So I’ve been lucky enough to have the opportunity to play about 3 hours of the final production version of the upcoming Bioware title Mass Effect.
I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m eagerly anticipating this game and playing it has only increased that feeling. I’m happy to answer any questions about game mechanics, gameplay, or story (with or without spoilers).
Anyone want to ask anything? I’ll be sure to spoiler tag anything even remotely spoilerish, so don’t be afraid to check in on this thread.
Bioware has recently picked up a reputation for linear RPGs which tax characters with simplistic moral dilemmas. They are unable or unwilling to create the kind of rich RPG experience that was the trademark of the Baldur’s Gate series. Here’s my question: Mass Effect will be Jade Empire with lasers, right?
Well no, not exactly. It’s much more like Knights of the Old Republic without Star Wars. Your point about simplistic moral dilemmas is well taken, though, and the KOTOR Light Side vs Dark Side has been essentially replaced by Paragon vs. Renegade. The difference here is that it’s not so much good and evil actions, but rather how you handle things that moves the “moral compass” to one side. The Renegade is more like the rough-around-the-edges cop who doesn’t have time for crap, and the Paragon is the touchy-feely one who listens to everyone’s feelings. Certain actions/quests might only be available depending on how you play (mostly in the dialog, I’ve seen).
So it’s not quite as lame as good guy/bad guy, save the universe or rule the universe, since everything you do is basically good. It’s just a matter of whether you want to be a bastard about it or not.
You can read more about Paragon/Renegade here. Overall, based on the antagonistic tone of your question, it won’t be very satisfying to you. I find it an improvement, however. Sadly, the days of Baldur’s Gate-style experiences might be over.
My problem is that I’d like to play Mass Effect, but I don’t want to own an XBOX 360.
Near as I can tell, game companies want to market beyond the hard core RPG market and so dilute those elements that confuse the twitch gamers and create products that aren’t entirely satisfying to any particular market and will in the end tweak gameplay until they’ve finally got something nobody wants and will then declare CRPGs dead.
I don’t know about that. BioWare’s previous outings have done pretty well, haven’t they? They seem to be appealing to quite a few people. Including me, and I’m a pretty serious RPG geek. Not my favorite CRPGs in the world, but still pretty fun.
How so? Just in the general sci-fi/futuristic feel, or are there things about the gameplay that are more reminiscent of KotOR as well?
I think you’re partially right, but there’s a good reason BioWare sticks to the formula they’ve got-- it sells. It’s far simpler than the grand old days of deep and truly immersive RPGs, yes, but it also appeals to a wider market. People who loved Baldur’s Gate will buy it because it’s damn near the best we can get anymore, and people who’d never touch BG with a ten-foot pole will buy it because it’s just simple enough for them to be able to enjoy. It’s not entirely satisfying to those who know better, but it opens up a whole new arena to people who’d like a little more story with their fighting, yet don’t want to spend 200 hours on a single game.
It’s not as though these newer games aren’t fun in their own right. But they seem so pale when compared to the games of that bygone golden age, the one between when CRPGs no longer required you to supply your own graph paper and when they no longer required any input more complicated than you could administer with a handheld controller. Of course, I’ll ever again get to play Planescape: Torment for the first time. But it’s increasingly clear that I’ll never get to play anything anywhere close to it again.
I do want to encourage the production of more sci-fi CRPGs, so if Mass Effect comes out for the PC, I’ll certainly buy it, my bitching notwithstanding.
Well yes, the sci-fi feel, but also the exploration, quests, and squad management style. Furthermore, instead of force powers, we get “biotics”. (For example, instead to force push, we have “throw”). What’s mostly different is the combat, which is much more real-time than KOTOR. That is, shooting firearms involves some semblance of aim (though exactly how much I’m not sure). It is possible to pause the game to give (mostly biotic) commands to your teammates.
