[ad_1]
With the legendary edition of Mass Effect just around the corner, longtime fans finally get the chance to play a more optimized Mass Effect experience on modern consoles. Being a huge Mass Effect fan myself, more than a few people wondered if the remaster would be a good reason to jump into the franchise for the first time. My answer? Heck-to-the-YES, here’s why.
A little story: I’ve been playing for over 30 years and enjoy all kinds of genres and stories. From full-fledged single-player stories to filming a few rounds in Battlefield, the game is my life and I’ve had some amazing adventures there. That being said, no franchise has had as much of an impact on me as the Mass Effect series and a lot of that is due to the incredible story craftsmanship and legacy of Commander Shepard.
For those who may not know, the Mass Effect trilogy begins with the player who becomes Commander Shepard, an N7 agent who joins Normandy in 2183. Aliens, interstellar travel and Turian loot are all around you (just kidding on that last part, sorta) but it’s not your average space adventure.
While there are weapons and combat, that is not the primary focus of the Mass Effect tale. The story that follows Shepard’s journey is powerful, unique, and at times heartbreaking.
Before continuing, I’ll refer to Shepard as “their” since players can choose to play a male or female version. I use “their” to encompass both options.
As Shepard, you will start as XO to none other than a man named David Anderson, the Commander of Normandy. Anderson becomes like a father figure to Shepard, although events ultimately lead Shepard to take the helm of the Normandy. The first game is also about discovering an ancient threat, one that isn’t even fully realized until the end of the story of the first title. The first entry is all about setting up the universe, making you care about it and feel like it’s part of your real reality.
Because the first Mass Effect is more about setting the world up than the end of the game series, the pace is a bit slow to start, but once it picks up? He really picked up. The disruption of pace is also a world-building disaster, not something that affects games two and three.
The first game leads to the second where we know who the threat is, but the right people don’t take it seriously. Politics (shocking) obstruct public safety as Shepard goes through an entire global shift from being a child of the Alliance, the interstellar army of man, to being part of an organization human terrorist due to unforeseen circumstances (we will not). say why, major spoiler). Without saying too much, the organization in question is called Cerberus, and it’s an organization that we first learn about in the first game when players discover sordid experiences under that particular banner. Throughout the three games, we learn more and more about Cerberus and his place in the galaxy, and these gruesome details create a unique and heartbreaking narrative divide for our protagonist and those close to him.
In a massive fight against an ancient race known as the Reapers, a race of sentient machines that wipes out millions of lives on a cyclical schedule, Shepard builds his team through the three games with characters so vastly different from each other. and start to feel. like a real family.
For me, what makes this story so special are the characters themselves. Over the course of 30 years of playing, I have grown so attached to thousands of characters, all with something special to add to any gaming adventure. That being said, there is something about advancing NPC knowledge. from Mass Effect that feels organic, real, and feels like how we build friendships and romantic relationships in real life. They are special in a way that even as a writer I’m not sure I can convey them properly.
Don’t judge, but I have 31 playthroughs from this trilogy. It’s my comfort game. When life gets too hard, I dive back into the world of Mass Effect. This is my security blanket. But even with so many passages through the story, it still makes me scream like a baby and feel like I’ve been punched in the stomach when I have to say goodbye again when the end credits roll. A big part of that is how amazing it is, and another part is that while the ending is sharpened in three clear directions, your choices really matter in ways that many don’t even realize throughout the trilogy. . No other game has done this to me and while it’s not necessarily like this for everyone for various reasons, it’s a testament to the special magic of this BioWare story.
Part of that dedication is the writing itself. The dialogue seems natural and engaging. There’s quarrels, there’s the process of winning someone over, and these characters go to hell and come back with each other. This type of shared experience connects in any situation, and that connection is expertly conveyed with the narrative structure and mechanics of the game. As a person on active duty, I have experienced real life situations with people who couldn’t stand me, and vice versa. But these situations that we endured together? It forged a bond that transcended previous perceptions. This same transformative relationship building is very evident in the Mass Effect Trilogy, and something that can be felt on a universal scale, regardless of each player’s IRL logs.
Through loyalty missions that delve deeper into these characters’ backgrounds for dialogue options that shape how these characters see the player in this world, every action feels meaningful and impactful, which is a big part of why Mass Effect is so incredibly immersive. These characters matter. They matter to Shepard and they matter to you.
The combat mechanics aren’t to be laughed at either, although the boy aged the weapons of the first game badly. As the series progresses, the true evolution can be seen both narratively, mechanically and graphically. . With the arrival of the alleged remaster, all of this can be experienced once again, but with improved graphics.
Another reason why you should play the trilogy is that the remaster includes ALL DLC. While the DLC is generally fun as an option, Mass Effect always felt like essential pieces of the game were missing if you didn’t buy them. I couldn’t imagine playing Game 3 without meeting the creators of the Reapers face to face with the Leviathan DLC, or dancing dirty with Jack while Vega and the Biotics have a muscle contest with the Citadel DLC. The extended stories are all very unique to each other, and many of them are essential building blocks for a much bigger picture. Since all DLC is included (except Pinnacle, here’s why), it’s a great way to see the franchise through a new lens that was previously locked behind a paywall.
The bottom line, and I know this article was a bit vaguer than it perhaps should have been, is that the Mass Effect trilogy is a gem. I’ve tried to keep this as vague as possible since this article is aimed at newcomers to the series, and I don’t want to spoil the key points of the story. If you haven’t dived yet you are really missing out on a phenomenal run that is on a pedastool that few games reach. Planning to dive and looking for help? You know where to find me. I have tips, recommendations, insanely annoying pterodactyl screams (as my author bio suggests). Hit me, let’s fan out!
You can also check out the latest episode of Replay where we talk about all things Mass Effect 2, it’s the video at the top of the article! Don’t forget to also consult our exclusive The Mass Effect Legendary Edition game hub here for exclusive first glances, interviews with the team and much more.
[ad_2]
