Am I missing something? When Mass Effect 2 launched last year, it was welcomed by critics with unending praise, many hailing it as this generation's best game. After playing the first game and being only moderately impressed, I was hesitant in picking up the sequel. Naturally, all the high review scores and unending compliments to BioWare for making such a fantastic title, compelled me to try it for myself. You see, I'm a sucker for a game that has a good story and cast of well developed characters, something this game was said to have in spades. However, after completing the game for myself, I must say that I wasn't all that impressed; so much so, that I'm not all that excited for the trilogy's final installment.
So here are five reasons why my experiences with the second title have dampened my excitement for the third:
5. Repetitive Structure - Mass Effect 2 is all about assembling a team of talented individuals that each bring something different to the table. Sounds interesting, right? Well after going back and forth to different planets with the aim of recruiting yet another party member, the mission structure got a bit old. While there were sub-plots and other mini-missions embedded into each overall mission, it didn't change the fact that the game was just a giant character fetch quest. Here's hoping the third game doesn't take the same approach.
4. Uninteresting Characters - Call me crazy, but I never really connected with any of the game's characters. Perhaps I am at fault for going with the default male Shepard, and would have enjoyed the game if I customized my character or gone with the female Shepard who I hear has better voice acting. The character backstories were fine, but none of them really had me dying to do another side quest. After playing the cinematic stories seen in Uncharted and Metal Gear Solid, I don't see what all the fuss is about with Mass Effect. I couldn't wait to see how it all ended with Metal Gear Solid 4, and I can't wait to see how everything wraps up in Uncharted 3. That is why it boggles my mind that I could care less how things end up in Mass Effect 3, even though I have guided my character through the entire game. Maybe I just don't like the choose your own adventure feel.
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