Mass Effect

I enjoyed it, but I played it more like a FPS (and developed my character accordingly). I think there were enough dialogue options that you could role-play it easily enough, though (although I'm not sure whether the different options made any difference outcome-wise).

 

Yup, but don't expect to get hundreds of hours of gameplay.

 

I only played ME1 through once (soldier). Definitely worth 5 bucks. There is certainly the potential for multiple run-throughs, but for whatever reason the other classes didn't really appeal to me.

Haven't bought ME2 yet. I have way too many unplayed games in my Steam Library (16), so I'll wait until the next sale.

 

Played them all. And they're worth the money.
Only thing that bothered me in ME2 and M3 was the absence of M1 mechanics like powers, skills and weapon overheating. And the Mako!
They did it right the first time.

 

ME 1&2 are both fantastic games, but different in some ways. ME2 is more "guns 'n' conversation" than an RPG, but it's superbly designed and paced, and comes into its own on Hardcore or higher difficulties, where you have to think a bit more about squad positioning and power use. The planet-scanning mechanic has taken a lot of stick, but I prefer that to ME1's tedious inventory management with its arbitrary carry limit. ME1 does a fine job of world-building and scene-setting, but pads itself too much into the bargain, and none of the classes feel as distinct as they do in the sequel. Once you've got used to ME1, the transition to a more 3rd person cover-shooter style in ME2 can feel jarring, but as it's one of the few games to make that style not tedious it doesn't take too long to adjust.

EDIT: almost forgot the Mako! I got on fine with it in ME1, but many people didn't. The relative lack of exploration is a miss, but you can see why the devs did it... ME2's pacing is much better as a result.

But basically, they're both well worth playing space romps that do a great job of making you feel a part of a good sci-fi series. Farscape, Babylon 5, Star Wars, Firefly and (of course) Star Trek all get referenced heavily, but that just helps build atmosphere. IMO, they're both must-plays.

 

I'd recommend the first one, the second not so much.

Spoiler

Unlimited ammo was a great feature of the first game that really gave the player a lot more freedom, and it was explained in the lore/encyclopedia in a way that made perfect sense. Playing bullet preservation and scavenging ammo clips in the 2nd game, as well as loadouts and modification restrictions just sucked a big chunk of fun out of the game for me.

 

I loved the series, it may not be a traditional RPG but it is still an action rpg, character development, good and bad choices, weapon and armour loadout etc... give you the feel of an rpg, and then the fast paced real time combat and squad leadership gives it that 'action movie' feel. Some cut scenes can really tug at your emotions.

The second and third games definately tell of a console to PC port, with the addition of key console type aspects, quick time events and the introduction of 'ammo' are perfect examples of how they've tried to make the game appeal to a larger audience (more money) but thankfully they didn't ruin the game with too much of that crap.