Mass Effect 2

Oburi

All praise Grail
Proj2501 said:
Same hereSame here.

Also I got to witness
Shepard navigate the hallways in the Normandy under the influence.

Yea that was fun.
Who woulda thought you'd be taking shots of brandy with the doc (forget name) all these years later. I chose to keep it professional but I wonder what would have happened if I had gone the other way. I mean, she's pretty old. :carcus:

Sorry I can't resist discussing the game. though I know it's hard while your playing, you don't know what spoilers you know and which ones you haven't seen yet.
 

SimplyEd

エンシェント カタストロフィ
*sigh*

I'm so envious right now, about all of you folks who already own the game. I just got confirmation that my copy will arrive late, which translates into anything between the weekend or even next week...
I can't wait to actually play this game (especially with Tali *wink*) instead of just reading about it. Talking about "reading about it", it would seem that the only way to *not* get massively bombarded with spoilers about EVERYTHING is to steer clear of every gaming site on the web. Not pleasant at all.

Well, at least i had lots of time to prepare a few replays of ME1 recently (can't believe how much of the story i had already forgotten), apart from preparing for the actual game itself. Apparently there were quite a few disgruntled customers who had some tough luck with the Cerberus Network and save-game imports. I can feel their pain. I just hope that everything works out well in the end.
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
What weapon type do you guys find you use mostly? I know this will vary depending on your class, but I've really been favoring the heavy pistol. I've gotten pretty good with headshots thanks to playing through Borderlands recently, so I fell right in line with this weapon.

I love how the ammo cap forces you to vary up your weapon usage. It makes battles much more exciting than ME1.
 

Vampire_Hunter_Bob

Cats are great
Walter said:
What weapon type do you guys find you use mostly? I know this will vary depending on your class, but I've really been favoring the heavy pistol. I've gotten pretty good with headshots thanks to playing through Borderlands recently, so I fell right in line with this weapon.

As the soldier I find my self using the assault rifle the most, but you cannot ever really turn down a good side arm. Heavy Pistol is an excellent back up when you need to make sure what you shoot won't get back up.
 

Saephon

Die young and save yourself
I started out favoring the heavy pistol, but now I'm in the habit of toggling on the fly depending on the situation and types/number of enemies. Headshots with the hand cannon, particle beam for biotics with shields....submachine gun for everything else. :badbone:
 

Oburi

All praise Grail
I started off using the heavy pistol a lot too. But once you get upgraded for other weapons further on, i bet you'll tend to use them more. Now I stick to the assault rifle for the most part.

btw, not really a spoiler but just in case -
no grenades? I kind of miss them things
 

Scorpio

Courtesy of Grail's doodling.
PC version here, favorite weapon so far is the shotgun. Compliments my approach with the Vanguard class quite nicely.

Oburi said:
btw, not really a spoiler but just in case -
no grenades? I kind of miss them things

Enter heavy weapons. Not to mention the one you start with is... a grenade launcher.

Walter said:
I love how the ammo cap forces you to vary up your weapon usage. It makes battles much more exciting than ME1.

Not really sure why this is a spoiler but, I really don't like the new ammo system. I find that the new cover system, increased enemy resistances (armor and barriers are only effective against specific things, etc), and lower damage threshold (you get caught in the open and you're done) combine quite well in making me vary up my weapon use and tactics. If you're attentive to picking up ammo, you never run out anyway- so I see it as very tedious chore, wasting time running around picking up dropped ammo in between every fight segment.

That and a few other minor gripes aside, really enjoying the game so far. It's been keeping me up far past my bedtime every night since release.
 

Saephon

Die young and save yourself
Has anyone else been taking advantage of the DLC from the get-go?

I just went to the wreckage of the Normandy last night. It was kind of neat, and a bit sentimental reading Presley's datapad, even though I only talked to him one time in ME1 haha. And then just as I was all emotional and about to finish my quest there, I run into the Mako, and it does another sad flashback. I couldn't help but chuckle because I did not miss that thing at all. All in all, a pretty neat addition to the game. BioWare seems to be starting a trend of destroying a level early in the game, then adding DLC to let you return to it. :troll:
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
Looks like Drpepper.com finally added the Mass Effect 2 bonuses to their promotion. Here's what you get if you redeem codes (one item per code):


Umbra Visor

A next-generation night-vision device that assists targeting. By detecting the focal point of the wearer's eyes and enhancing the image at that location, the visor helps direct a biotic power or a shot from an omni-tool exactly where the wearer is looking.

me2-umbra-visor.png

Increases power damage by 5%

Recon Hood
A hood issued to covert action teams, this model's optic display interfaces with most small arms' auto-targeting software, linking hand and eye for improved accuracy and increased weapon damage. Ballistic-mesh fabric and composite ceramic plating provide necessary armor, and the integral air filter helps in hostile environments.

me2-recon-hood.png

Increases weapon damage by 5%

Sentry Interface
This visor works with the Sentry system, a software application that optimizes an armor suit's microframe computer. When the Sentry system is running, more power can be devoted to shield management.

me2-sentry-interface.png

Increases shield strength by 5%


None of them are very flattering, and cover up Shepard's face with shit. But my Vanguard will probably be wearing the Giordi LeForge glasses. :badbone:
 
I'm playing on PC with high settings. I tend to use submachine guns(Tempest) since I'm a Vanguard as well as assault rifles(Vincidator) as my advanced weapon training probably should have gone sniper but I'm using thane as one and I like assault rifles. I'm kinda wishing I went Soldier because I don't use abilities too often trying to use em more and they are kinda meh.

I like the improvements to the classes, the combat system and the heavy weapons, but I'm not liking the resource gathering and the fact they removed equipment from the game. The characters this time around are far more interesting too.
 

Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
Started playing earlier today at last after an ordeal with UPS' deplorable service. I'm chock-full of bonus content (including the Dr. Pepper ones thanks to Wally) and having a blast with the game so far. The US collector's edition for Xbox 360 is very nice and I'm extremely happy with it. The standard version with its so-so cover art really doesn't compare.

If anyone wonders, the game is fully compatible between locales and an English NTSC version will work perfectly on a PAL Xbox 360 importing a ME1 save created with a French version of the game. I like when a plan comes together. :guts:

Going back in!
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
Aazealh said:
If anyone wonders, the game is fully compatible between locales and an English NTSC version will work perfectly on a PAL Xbox 360 importing a ME1 save created with a French version of the game. I like when a plan comes together. :guts:

Going back in!
That is great news dude... I was worried, and so was Jeff Green of EA :serpico:

In Jeff's newest blog, he notes this about what was going down around EA earlier this week:

[quote author=http://www.ea.com/blogs/ea-underground/jeff-greens-mass-effect-2-impressions]
So Mass Effect 2 is out today. I don't know what, if anything, that means for you, but over here at EA it's kind of a big deal. How do I know this? Because many of the menu items at the EA Café were changed today in honor of the game. You can always tell when something is a big deal around here when it gets its own menu items.

Here, for example, is one of the things being served today:

The Illusive Man's Special Panini[/quote]
:ganishka:
 

Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
Walter said:
That is great news dude... I was worried, and so was Jeff Green of EA :serpico:

And I as well, but it's all good in the end, Bioware delivered. :guts:

Anyway, some random comments:
I dig the hacking system, just challenging enough that it isn't a breeze but not a pain in the ass either. I also loved the way the colony's ambiance music is reminiscent of Feros' theme, very very cool. I'm playing in Veteran for those who care. It's about the level of difficulty I wanted so I'm satisfied.

My God I'm like a kid just going to the Citadel. Hearing that Balak is still at large made me burst out laughing. He's not getting away this time! I also laughed at several of the advertisements. And Emily Wong on the news, Toombs failing to get Cerberus convicted, the guys you meet randomly that reference previous events... All the little touches are really great. The amount of detail in following your background story from ME1 (for example as a Spacer, Shepard's mom refusing to be promoted admiral because it would be a political move, and as a Ruthless type, having people protest the Shepard flame of whatever on Torfan) is just amazing. This is never-seen-before attention to detail and I love it. Another example: new biotic implants (L5n), so new skills (for Vanguards at least). It's all very cohesive and that's extremely pleasant.

Bonus laugh for punching the news reporter and telling her you should have done that the first time around. Hearing Ashley's borderline talk from ME1 on the news as they highlight her Turian and Salarian decorations wasn't bad either.

I also raided the souvenir shop (ugh, I know) after getting myself a discount (despite being rich) by endorsing the shop (shameful, I also know). Got a fish from Illium (for when Liara joins me there :nerd:), some other shit and of course the Space Hamster, which I take it is a reference to Boo & Minsc. Very neat. Currently using the Inferno armor, but the default N7 one is so cool I'm having a hard time not going back to it.

Just details but the possibility to listen to ME1 tracks in your room is sweet, and the medal on the desk as a way to check the achievements artwork is a pretty cool idea. But the best of course is having Liara's picture on my desk. I'm glad they kept Uncharted Worlds for the space map, and maybe it's just me but the sinister loading music reminds me of the Thorian's theme at times. Traveling in the galaxy is fun; mining is alright, interesting but I can already tell it'll take efforts to deplete every planet. The crew management thingie is cool too. Deepening and expanding on what they'd started with Kaidan in ME1. Kelly dreams if she thinks she can get in my pants though. My heart is taken! :iva:

I love the combat but I'm not totally used to the new powers and how to use them yet (missed quite a few times early on and it annoys me). The new Squad screen's for upgrades is alright I guess, but so far it doesn't feel particularly superior to the old one. Lots of stuff is still locked I imagine (I hope) so it'll take a while before being able to judge. I like how they changed medi-gel to be used in conjunction with Unity. Makes perfect sense and moving from a hybrid health system to a purely shield based one doesn't bother me much. I'm a bit perplexed at the fact you no longer have an inventory accessible at all times though. But I can't really complain since it's more realistic, and I can't say I used to actively switch equipment unless I was getting a new, better piece. I'm not missing the grenades at all, never used them in the first game except to incapacitate the colonists on Feros.

I dig Jacob, he's way cooler than in ME Galaxy IMHO. Miranda's status as a loyal Cerberus officer isn't so hot though. Wish I could get my old crew back somehow. :sad: I really liked how the game started with Liara visibly on the ship with me though, and Tali mentioned later as having escaped (implying she was still on board with me). I don't know if it's the default stuff, but I like to think that the game took in consideration the fact I played with them the most in ME1 and assigned them as my most faithful crew members.

Anyway, I'm waiting for the first opportunity to defect from Cerberus at the moment and have already started keeping tabs on the Normandy's crew in that regard. I just know they'll try to fuck me up at some point.

One last thing: Heavy Pistol :badbone:
 

Oburi

All praise Grail
I really liked how the game started with Liara visibly on the ship with me though, and Tali mentioned later as having escaped (implying she was still on board with me). I don't know if it's the default stuff, but I like to think that the game took in consideration the fact I played with them the most in ME1 and assigned them as my most faithful crew members

Well i got the same intro and I didn't use Tali a whole lot. But I imagine the Liara scene would be totally different (Ashley instead). And Yea I agree about the amount of detail. It's actually more in depth than I originally thought. The unique thing about this game is that no one person is playing the same game. Well ok many people are, but the point is there are little variations for everybody. And when it continues over the course of multiple games, it's pretty orgasmic.

EDIT- After reviewing my post and seeing as how everything is in spoilers, I guess I should mention that my comment is in response to one of Aaz's comments about the intro to the game.
 
Aazealh said:
Anyway, I'm waiting for the first opportunity to defect from Cerberus at the moment and have already started keeping tabs on the Normandy's crew in that regard. I just know they'll try to fuck me up at some point.

Fear not man.
I have most of the new squad. Did all their 'loyalty missions'. They're some good eggs.

Also...
I fucked Jack.
Hope that doesn't ruin
my chances with Miranda or the new Asari.
:ganishka:
 
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