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☖ Forums → Discussion Forum → Mass Effect is incredibly awesome
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Mass Effect is incredibly awesome
2008-10-26, 7:39 AM #1
I just finished playing it. It's easily one of the best games I have ever played. It's as good as KotOR, at least. The in-game cinematics are among the best I have ever seen, probably the best. I only had a few gripes with the gameplay (like the repetitive planet exploration), it was mostly extremely awesome.

One thing I didn't understand though... I thought the conduit was supposed to take you to the core of the Citadel? The keepers come from the "inaccessible core," and presumably, that was where you had to go to stop Sovereign and Saren. All it did was drop me in the presidium? I was really looking forward to seeing some secret part of the Citadel... I mean, the Prothean AI even said that, once the Protheans got there, they were likely unable to find any food or water. What gives?

Ohh I see, I'm reading the Mass Effect wiki and it explains it all. The conduit was a back door into the Citadel, created by the last few Prothean scientists. It didn't take them to the "core," it just had to get them to the Citadel itself. What I don't understand though, is why Saren was searching for it... yeah, he can use it to get himself into the Citadel, but surely there would have been an easier way?
Bassoon, n. A brazen instrument into which a fool blows out his brains.
2008-10-26, 7:44 AM #2
I got the PC version like 2 months ago and still haven't played it... Ir eally want to finish TODOA first so I can focus on everything else afterwards :|
Star Wars: TODOA | DXN - Deus Ex: Nihilum
2008-10-26, 8:16 AM #3
Emon, it's been about 5 months since I played the game, but I believe that Saren wanted to find the Conduit because he too talked to Sovereign and it basically took over his mind. You were to believe that you were also tempted when talking to the hologram of the ship on whatever planet that was, but you had the strength in your mind to resist the temptation (Luke resisting the dark side, anyone?).

Anyways, the whole ordeal was because apparently those living ships repeat the cycle of destruction every thousands/millions of years or whatever, and have to have the conduit activated in order to travel from the nowhereness of space that they're held, to get to the Citadel. The Sovereign ship was the only one of the Reavers that stayed inside the Citadel space, in order to get someone to reactivate the conduit for them.

That's my understanding of it all, at least.
Author of the JK levels:
Sand Trap & Sand Trap (Night)
2008-10-26, 8:20 AM #4
Mass Effect is indeed awesome. The combat was a lot more strategic than I first gave it credit for (I got horribly mauled in one particular sidequest time and time again until I started pre-planning cover spots). Plus it reminded me a lot of Operation: Winback on the N64. Mako exploration wasn't the best, particularly on planets that had huge mountain ranges that you could either spend half an hour driving around or half an hour futilely trying to find a level enough path over.

Some of the dialogue was incredibly well written, too. One line in particular that made me laugh a lot was when you Intimidate the shopkeeper on Noveria ( the one who wants you to smuggle something in ), and Shephard says something like "You must think I'm here to amuse you, to make strangled noises in my throat when you offer an insult instead of a reward."
2008-10-26, 8:25 AM #5
Not quite... The reapers didn't need the conduit to get back into the galaxy, they needed the Citadel itself. The Citadel is a giant mass relay. When the vanguard reaper signals the Citadel, the Citadel instructs the keepers to open the Citadel's relay to dark space, allowing the reapers to return.

The Conduit was just a backdoor into the Citadel created by the protheans. Which, by the way, makes no sense. How could they have constructed the mini-mass relay on the Citadel? It would have had to already been there for the scientists on Ilos to get to the Citadel.
Bassoon, n. A brazen instrument into which a fool blows out his brains.
2008-10-26, 8:58 AM #6
The cycle has repeated itself many times. I think it's only assumed that the protheans built it (but probably not).
2008-10-26, 9:05 AM #7
No, Vigil, the prothean VI, specifically says that the conduit was built by the last protheans as a way to break the cycle.
Bassoon, n. A brazen instrument into which a fool blows out his brains.
2008-10-26, 9:20 AM #8
Ah, ok. It's been a while since I played through it.

The cutscenes with the alliance showing up to save the council and the destruction of Sovereign are epic.
2008-10-26, 9:24 AM #9
I'm getting Mass Effect next time I go home on days off.
Pissed Off?
2008-10-26, 9:50 AM #10
Mass Effect is indeed awesome.
2008-10-26, 9:53 AM #11
You're a year late for this conversation, PCboys.
2008-10-26, 10:15 AM #12
Ugh. I basically feel the same about the game as Emon does, just not as forgiving. It is indeed an awesome game.....for however long the main storyline lasts. It was tragically short for its epicness and to artificially lengthen the game they just stuffed pointless exploration in.

Because it's one of my favorite reviews by this guy, here is Yahtzee of Zero Punctuation reviewing Mass Effect. Swearing, NSFW, all that jazz.
Democracy: rule by the stupid
2008-10-26, 10:24 AM #13
The two ends of the Conduit, I think, were built by two sets of Prothean scientists working together, one on the Citadel and the other on Ilos. IIRC, it had just been finished at the time of the Reaper invasion. I believe that when Vigil says that the Protheans found a way to break the cycle, he's talking about them reprogramming the keepers not to respond to Sovereign.

Saren had to use the Conduit, not to get himself on the Citadel, but to get his army of krogan and geth on the station. Spectre or not, f he'd tried to take over the Citadel tower alone in order to let Sovereign in, he'd have been gunned down.
If you think the waiters are rude, you should see the manager.
2008-10-26, 10:28 AM #14
Do we really need spoiler tags at this point? The game has been out for awhile...

As I understood it, the reavers could take control of Citadel at any time, so the protheans built the conduit to break into the Citadel even when the reavers took control. Sovereign was looking for the conduit because A) He didn't actually know what it was, and B) He didn't want the Specters getting it.
2008-10-26, 10:51 AM #15
I liked it, but I dunno. It's not the kind of game I'd play through again.
COUCHMAN IS BACK BABY
2008-10-26, 11:24 AM #16
Yeah I'm working on my 3rd play through, it is a great game.
"Nulla tenaci invia est via"
2008-10-26, 11:27 AM #17
Massive hugs to all for the spoiler tags - I'm still in the early days of this one, and I've got dead space to do first!! :D
2008-10-26, 11:31 AM #18
I have to agree, the game was great and the combat system was very nice (combat did not feel repetitive at all). I would have also preferred more real content in lieu of bumbling around on planet surfaces. However, I spent very little time on the planet searches, thanks to the in-game maps, so I cannot complain that much.
[This message has been edited. Deal with it.]
2008-10-26, 1:28 PM #19
Like Martyn, hugs for the spoiler tags. This is one I intend to buy at some point but after recently taking a paycut at work I just can't aford to yet.
Only the plus side it give me an excuse to finish kotor.
On a Swedish chainsaw: "Do not attempt to stop chain with your hands or genitals."
2008-10-26, 1:38 PM #20
I had really mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, a lot of the environments and storytelling were really creative and the game's aspirations were obviously really high. But on the other hand, if felt like I was't getting a good ratio of enjoyment to playtime, which is seriously problematic for a game with such a short story arc. I felt like I spent the vast majority of the game either running slowly from one group of enemies to the next, or clicking through long boring segments of plot exposition. It's like the writers felt like they had to cram every bit of Mass Effect canon they'd thought up into a conversation somewhere or other. I'm all for epic stories in ridiculously complicated alternate universes, but I want to be shown, not told.

Also, maybe I was playing on too low a difficulty level (can't remember which it was, haha) but the combat seemed really, really easy. I didn't even know how to spend skill points until the very end of the game and yet I still blew threw nearly every encounter with my skills all on minimum.
2008-10-26, 1:58 PM #21
I really loved it when I got it on the 360 (despite the unreadable disc errors).

The one gripe I really had with it was that the item selection screen was a ****ing chore. Every time you deleted an item it would start you off at the top again, making deleting items damn damn tough. I kind of didn't manage my items that much at the beginning, so when I got the "inventory full" messages, it would take a good ten minutes to delete a ton of items.

I think I'm going to love the PC version even more because of the use of the mouse making it easier. I just picked it up, so I'll prolly start playing soon.
"His Will Was Set, And Only Death Would Break It"

"None knows what the new day shall bring him"
2008-10-26, 3:45 PM #22
Originally posted by 'Thrawn[numbarz:
;955566']I had really mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, a lot of the environments and storytelling were really creative and the game's aspirations were obviously really high. But on the other hand, if felt like I was't getting a good ratio of enjoyment to playtime, which is seriously problematic for a game with such a short story arc. I felt like I spent the vast majority of the game either running slowly from one group of enemies to the next, or clicking through long boring segments of plot exposition. It's like the writers felt like they had to cram every bit of Mass Effect canon they'd thought up into a conversation somewhere or other. I'm all for epic stories in ridiculously complicated alternate universes, but I want to be shown, not told.

Also, maybe I was playing on too low a difficulty level (can't remember which it was, haha) but the combat seemed really, really easy. I didn't even know how to spend skill points until the very end of the game and yet I still blew threw nearly every encounter with my skills all on minimum.


It's not fun on easy. It's hard on hard. Trust me.

And more fun.
2008-10-26, 8:57 PM #23
I loved it, but I was really dissapointed that there was no "continue playing" option after I finished the main storyline.
幻術
2008-10-26, 8:57 PM #24
I chose the pistol/shotgun/biotic class. By the end of the game, when using my biotic ability that increased pistol rate of fire and damage, my pistol would fire at like 300 RPM. It would just tear through enemies.
Bassoon, n. A brazen instrument into which a fool blows out his brains.
2008-10-26, 9:08 PM #25
Werd. The pistol was by far my favorite gun in the game by far. I had that thing so powerful, it was great.
"His Will Was Set, And Only Death Would Break It"

"None knows what the new day shall bring him"
2008-10-26, 9:16 PM #26
I sniped. Sniping sucks and is damn near impossible at lower levels, but once you invest a little into it, you can do some crazy ****.
2008-10-26, 9:20 PM #27
Sniper rifles with Exploding rounds (not available till the last part of the game) are incredibly cheap. Not only can you kill almost anything with a single shot, but you can kill people through cover/walls.
"Well, if I am not drunk, I am mad, but I trust I can behave like a gentleman in either
condition."... G. K. Chesterton

“questions are a burden to others; answers a prison for oneself”
2008-10-26, 9:36 PM #28
I played it through as the...erm...Vanguard, was it? Is that the Engineer/Sniper guy? But yeah, sniper rifle rocked at the end. On the medium difficulty the battle with Saren was stupid easy, and I wasn't using the exploding rounds. If I play through again I'm going to try the Biotic/Shotgun class. I felt having my pistol and sniper rifle was kind of redundant, so it'll be nice to have one close range and one long range weapon.

btw, why do all shooting games have pistols as being super accurate? That's not what they're like in real life at all!
Democracy: rule by the stupid
2008-10-26, 9:45 PM #29
I'd totally believe you if it wasn't for your comparison to KOTOR... I didn't like that game at all....

Still going to get ME though :)
2008-10-26, 9:57 PM #30
I love the shotguns in this game. Towards the end of the game, my shotgun would overheat in two shots, but could kill anything besides a boss with one shot, and it had such long range for a shotgun, too.
"I got kicked off the high school debate team for saying 'Yeah? Well, **** you!'
... I thought I had won."
2008-10-26, 10:07 PM #31
Originally posted by Kieran Horn:
btw, why do all shooting games have pistols as being super accurate? That's not what they're like in real life at all!

They don't? Besides, this takes place in 21xx, I'm pretty sure they have something better.
Bassoon, n. A brazen instrument into which a fool blows out his brains.
2008-10-26, 10:17 PM #32
Pistols are pretty accurate in range
"Nulla tenaci invia est via"
2008-10-26, 11:43 PM #33
They clearly have invisible, massless, utopium extended barrels.

<.<
2008-10-27, 5:13 AM #34
Problem I had with Mass Effect was those *******s with rocket launchers. I had to snipe them, because if I got close enough to use anything else, I got raped. I wasn't playing sniper until I got to a level full of them, and then I got to snipe my way through it with no points spent in sniping.
2008-10-27, 5:47 AM #35
Those guys are easy. You just dodge the rockets. You could, for example, storm in close and pistol them in the face like I did.
Bassoon, n. A brazen instrument into which a fool blows out his brains.
2008-10-27, 5:51 AM #36
I've played through as a soldier and as an infiltrator. Both have been really fun. The infiltrator was more strategic, with a lot of sniping, while the soldier was up in your face with a shotgun, one shotting everything.

On my soldier, with maxed out intimidation, I made Saren realise he was dooming the galaxy, at the final showdown, and instead of fighting me, he gunned himself in the head. That was totally awesome. Until Sovereign took control and turned him into a Uber-Husk.
Was cheated out of lions by happydud
Was cheated out of marriage by sugarless
2008-10-27, 5:53 AM #37
I did that too, without any intimidation.
2008-10-27, 5:54 AM #38
Originally posted by JM:
I did that too, without any intimidation.


You must have had charm, maxed out? I know for fact you can't cause that without having one or the other available, because you do not get the dialogue options without them.
Was cheated out of lions by happydud
Was cheated out of marriage by sugarless
2008-10-27, 6:05 AM #39
Originally posted by Kieran Horn:
I played it through as the...erm...Vanguard, was it? Is that the Engineer/Sniper guy?

That's the Infiltrator, I think. The Vanguard was my first playthrough, and they're the Pistol/Shotgun/Biotic choice, which was really handy. Pistol was my weapon of choice throughout, because it was accurate, rapid firing, and with a decent damage output, particularly when modded.

And yeah, that part can be done through Charm or Intimidation. I think with Charm Shephard uses a tact more like "It's not too late to redeem yourself and fight Sovereign". I have to be honest, I didn't expect the close-up when he pulled the trigger, ME hadn't really seemed that mature/explicit up to that point, even considering the Ashley/Kaidan choice.
2008-10-27, 7:24 AM #40
I also did it with max Charm.

Originally posted by LividDK27:
I didn't expect the close-up when he pulled the trigger, ME hadn't really seemed that mature/explicit up to that point, even considering the Ashley/Kaidan choice.


The fact that there hadn't been anything else quite at that level is what made it so powerful. Maybe killing Wrex? I don't know, because I always managed to talk him down.

My first playthrough was as the basic, premade Soldier. I kept Liara and Tali with me at all times. Soldier, Adept, and Engineer make a great team. I really love the amount of shields Tali can have.

You guys with multiple playthroughs have been taking advantage of the weapon/power unlocks right? My second playthrough was as an Adept. I chose Shotgun over Sniper, and while I do love Mass Effect's shotguns so very much, I really missed being able to zoom with the Sniper rifles.
"I got kicked off the high school debate team for saying 'Yeah? Well, **** you!'
... I thought I had won."
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