Sunday, January 23, 2011

It's Utterly Massive... And Still Costs Way Too Much: Mass Effect 2 (PS3)

I'm going to get a lot of gaff for what I'm going to say, but here it goes:

Like most every gamer in the world, I liked Mass Effect 2, despite the disappointing last boss, and Miranda. Seriously, I still don't know what the appeal of her is, especially when Tali is so damn awesome... *ahem.* Anyway, it was a great game that wasn't perfect. But, honestly, what game is perfect?

But. Mass Effect 2 had a big, big nagging flaw: Downloadable Content that was originally supposed to be on the disc, but the developers forgot. Zaeed? Okay, he's free. Kasumi? She was planned as DLC. Layer of the Shadow Broker? They give you the first few missions in the game, how did they forget the rest? And why did the Cerberus network become absolutely meaningless after two DLC's?

Last year, BioWare announced ME2 for the PS3, and I was tossed up. Why no original? That was answered by adding an interactive comic that let you make the decisions from the first game. While the PS3 version doesn't have this on the actual disc, it is free DLC when you activate the Cerberus Network on the PS3 version. When you download the Network, it also downloads the Terminus Pack, the Blood Dragon armor, bonus missions, Zaeed, and the comic. This is kind of disappointing if you happen to buy a used copy of the game and miss out on it, especially when the box says it's on disc. The only way I found out is buy browsing the Achievements and seeing it mentioned.

The other big reveal was that it would use the Mass Effect 3 engine. This caused fans to get excited that they as PS3 users would be the first to try a new game engine. Unfortunately, this falls flat, too. The major difference between them is lighting. Mass Effect 2 now has more shadows... and that's about it. The gameplay is exactly the same, and the graphics are mostly the same, but as far as a technical improvement goes, I personally don't see it, other than more shading. Of course, the game looked beautiful in the first place.

I really hate to say it, but buying ME2 on the PS3 at full price is pretty much a waste of time. You're buying a game which is now $20, with DLC that's $10-$20 total, including some that was meant to be on the disc anyway, and a new engine that's barely noticeable (at least to me). I do have to mention that it has been a while since I played the 360 version, but even seeing comparisons at the game store, I still don't see the difference. I can't even suggest that PS3 gamers buy the game used because then they'd miss out on the complete story. Essentially, you'll be paying for a $20 game and a $40 tech demo, and I can't suggest it unless you don't have an XBox 360, or didn't buy the DLC on the 360 version and sold it. Even in the latter category, it's best to wait until the price drops.

Overall: B

+ Mass Effect 2 for the PS3!!!
+ The Complete Story, including interactive comic...
- ... if you buy it new
+ New technology...
- ... that really isn't that noticeable
- Not a good deal at full game price considering how old the game is

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