Upon finishing one of the most amazing science fiction adventures in entertainment history back in 2007, I and countless other space faring fans found ourselves in a bit of an intergalactic pickle. Developer Bioware had painstakingly crafted an unbelievably deep universe that rivaled the likes of most Hollywood epics while ensnaring our attention with emotionally gripping characters and dialogue, a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure plot structure, and a sizeable role-playing system coupled with some decent third-person combat. Upon saving (or condemning) the galaxy to certain doom, we all faced a terrifying conundrum found nowhere within the game’s skillfully plotted dialogue trees;  now what do we do?

In response Bioware has listened to every glowing exaltation, every scathing criticism, countless discussions, wishes, annoyances, suggestions and requests in order  to deliver a game which somehow manages to not be thoughtless enough to try and merely out-do its predecessor  but to instead somehow fuse the two titles into an incredibly personal experience that illicits a level of investment and loyalty to virtual characters that I haven’t felt playing a game in quite some time.  Mass Effect 2 takes the decisions you made the first time around, your adventures, conquests, friendships, and even failures in order to give you the chance to pour it all into this utterly captivating adventure that takes you to the very edge of what video games as a medium are capable of. You aren’t just playing the game, you’re creating  it.  You are driving the plot with every bullet you shoot, every decision you make, every word you utter and every life you risk. People, comrades, are going to die in the course of your mission, sometimes needlessly and without even the dignity of having you there to witness it.  There is nothing you can do to save them, and the beauty is that even when there are no more options you always had a choice.

Mass Effect 2 is the gritty second chapter in what is planned to be a trilogy of adventures designed by illustrious developer Bioware, filled to the torpedo tubes with complex characters, gut wrenching betrayals, and sinister forces all wrapped up in a sense of ominous tension that is hard to shake even after your disk stops spinning. It’s not all doom and gloom on the good ship Normandy though as the developers havetaken note concerning virtually every issue anyone and their hyper-neurotic cousin had a problem with their first entry into the franchise, managing to craft a game almost entirely different from its predecessor but still retaining a familiarity that fans will feel at home with. Never before have I seen a game go under so much re-design under the guidance of outside opinion, with many of the issues addressed being ones I myself voiced over the  course of this game’s development cycle. While players will truly appreciate most of what Bioware has tweaked, in the end I believe that sometimes trying to cater too much to your audience may not always be the best of plans.

Let’s start with the story, seeing as how telling a good tale is really what these guys are all about.  If you haven’t played the first Mass Effect, I personally think you should  be declared legally insane seeing as how it was an incredible game. That being said, thanks to a handy prologue, in depth universal codex and clever storytelling, newbies shouldn’t be too lost within the established universe.  Conversely, veterans won’t suffer pointless backtracking while giggling with glee at the fact that most of your previous decisions from the last game will come back to help or haunt you in some truly surprising ways. It’s really amazing that before you even pop in the disk, Mass Effect players already have shaped their sequel by decisions made last time, meaning that Mass Effect 2 is an unparalleled personal experience which should encourage players both old and new to revisit the original title upon completing this new adventure.

Without spoiling too much, human SPECTRE (think James Bond’s “double-0″ program) Commander Shepard is off minding his own business and fighting the forces of evil when the new Big Bad shows up and forces our hero to fall of the face of the galaxy for a while.  This leads to the intergalactic community declaring the Commander  dead and quickly moving on to restore the status quo of pre-Geth invasion life while burying their heads in the sand concerning inevitable doom at the hands of sentient spaceships known as Reapers. After some help from the shady pro-human terrorist organization Cerberus (whom you blew the hell out of often in the first game), Shepard  is back in the saddle and off to recruit a new team of bad-asses with whom he plans to pull off a delightfully hopeless suicide mission. Make new and powerful friends while pissing of equally influential enemies, get back in touch with old pals and traipse across the universe saving (or ruining) the day all in the hopes of successfully making your way to the enemy stronghold and throwing your lives away for the good of humankind.  It’s like the Dirty Dozen but with tentacles and lasers.

The main storyline is solid, suffering only slightly from that ill-fated sequelitis which ensures that while there are definitely good plot reveals here and there, the big issues are really going to start hopping once the climactic exploits of Mass Effect 3 rolls around. The strength here is in developing characters, something Bioware has already proven thoroughly capable of. While your focus will be in recruiting a sizeable contingent of skilled assassins, mercenaries, scientists and war criminals, you will also be surrounded by a galaxy full of captivating enemies, allies, and NPC’s who sometimes seem to deserve a game of their own.  While combat and story seem to be much more balanced this time around, the narrative still takes precedence thanks to a cast of deep characters who manage to grab you emotionally on countless different levels, thanks mostly to some of the best voice acting this side of Uncharted 2.

Dialogue is real and compelling as the patented conversation wheel still works gloriously with the simple Paragon/Renegade mechanics which are now complemented by the new interrupt triggers that can prove both awesome and annoying in equal parts. Popping up in the middle of cinematic dialogue scenes, the Paragon or Renegade interrupts allow Shepard to take control of the situation with either a heroic act or devilish flair. These definitely lead to some cool scenarios to be sure, but their quick appearances also don’t allow for you to be the least bit distracted by anything around you, something I find difficult in the midst of a multitask session or a good blink.

With the darker story comes a larger focus on combat with some tweaks to the gunplay that make for a much more intense and action packed experience than before. Along with a set of really great class specific moves and skills, players now have a lot more tactical control over the field thanks to enhanced weapons selection and power skill wheels, not to mention the new ability to individually direct squad members to specific parts of the battlefield. Using the power/gun wheels pauses play, allowing you to set up devastating combos and get incredibly strategic even when you’re neck deep in angry mercs gunning for you head. Riding the tough balance of hardcore diversity and approachable control, this is definitely not a heavy RPG with a little bit of shooter slapped on for good measure. Combat is visceral, violent,  and incredibly addictive, a welcome addition to the Mass Effect franchise.

Which brings us to the  RPG bits, which where I think Bioware went a bit too far in catering to their detractors.  Much of your character and squad customization has been scaled back or completely thrown by the wayside. While I don’t miss micromanaging the dozens of different bullet types and gun mods that I ferreted away over the course of my travels, I do miss the major loot stores that gave my team an edge in battle. Hacking and Bypassing terminals (while a lot more enjoyable and challenging this time around) yield only credits and occasionally EXP instead of  the armor, weaponry, or interesting side stories of before. Killing enemies doesn’t even earn you points any more, as all quests have been subdivided into missions with predetermined amounts of EXP divvied out upon completion. You can upgrade your weapons by finding or buying a moderate amount of upgrades in the battlefield, each in predetermined locations and all evolving along a relatively short skill tree. Speaking of skills, your character skill management is much more focused this time around with characters starting with only a handful of powers that can then be upgraded along one of two paths and a special move that only becomes unlocked once you’ve earned that character’s complete loyalty. The RPG elements are still there, but they feel a bit stunted in comparison to how far the combat has come. Here’s hoping they can balance the two out next time.

One huge improvement to the game is the state of side-quests. No longer do you fight your way through identical halls shooting random mercs for slightly ambiguous ends. Now you’re fighting through well thought out varieties of battlefield, still shooting occasional random mercenaries but often in the pursuit of a really cool sub-plot. Designed almost like episodes of Star Trek, each mission (called an N7 mission) is a self contained narrative that may or may not have implications on the bigger plot. Each is creative and unique, creating  complex challenges and providing a variety of mission structures akin to Assassin’s Creed 2 or GTA IV. One mission might have you taking back a missile base from terrorists, another battling a crazed A.I. and yet another exploring a foggy swamp where enormous monsters lumber out of the shadows as you find yourself separated from your squad. While these missions are a welcome change of pace from the tiresome MAKO treks across similar looking locales, I still felt a pang of loss for the freedom I felt defying gravity in my little mini-tank.

Other additions include a lack of elevators (now replaced by much more annoying load screens), no more grenades (hated them anyway), some new weapons sub-classes (SMG’s and Hand Cannon’s make me happy), Heavy Weapons (Big-Bada-Boom) and a new  mining mini-game which starts out clever and cool at first but quickly sinks into the depths of tedium and despair. You see, in order to upgrade your ship and weapons you will need minerals, and in order to find them you will have to scan countless planets, launch probes onto their surface and bring back all the rock.  I cannot even  begin to convey how mind-numbing it is, but at least it was a bit more rewarding than just reading pointless text like before.

Mass Effect 2 is an enormous game filled with way too much science fiction goodness for me to ramble on about here. Here’s what you need to know; the game is much more cinematic and capable of delivering even greater emotion and power than before, it looks fantastic, the combat has taken a big step forward while the RPG elements can use a little more work.  You’ll love carrying out every side mission, unlocking every gun, researching every upgrade and chatting up anything with vocal chords. The characters at play are thought provoking and surprisingly identifiable while the story is awe inspiring in scope while managing to deliver both a thrilling quest here and setting even bigger issues into play for next time. This is the title to beat for Game of the Year, plain and simple. This isn’t a game, it’s an experience, and one no human being should ever be robbed of. I’ve fallen head over heels for this game, and that’s with copious amounts of fan boy adoration and gamer skepticism playing merry havoc with my judgment.  No game is perfect, but I have to say this one comes pretty close.

The choice is yours.

Update 1: After entering the game, even after downloading the free content below, you are required to enter in a certain code. We aren’t sure yet if this is a code that comes with every copy of the game, or only Collector’s Edition, but will try to find out immediately.

Earlier tonight, we were notified of some leaks of Mass Effect 2 DLC, which as reports come, were supposed to be free on launch day (and maybe even after).  However, we’re under the assumption that EA didn’t really want this out until the game launched.  So here’s a list of all the DLC and descriptions, but be careful as the last one is extremely spoilerific!  Quite frankly, the spoilerific piece of content called “Normandy Crash Site” seems to be the much-touted Day 1 free DLC.

• 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. Increases shield strength by 5%
• 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. Increases power damage by 5%
• M-29 Incisor Sniper Rifle – The M-29 Incisor rifle is one of a new wave of military and police sniper rifles designed to overload active defenses such as shields. Firing three shots with each pull of the trigger, the Incisor’s burst is so fast that all three rounds will be in the target by the time the barrel has moved a millimeter, increasing its stopping power without sacrificing accuracy.
• Blood Dragon Armor – Created for Earth’s Urban Combat Championship league, this set of armor has undergone more field testing than those of modern militaries. The chest and shoulder piece bears the logo of the Edmonton Blood Dragons, and the inside of the armor bears the signatures of the entire team. When and how the Illusive Man got his hands on the armor is unknown. Increases power damage by 15%. Increases shield strength by 10%.
• Recon Hood – A hood issued to covert action teams. Ballistic-mesh fabric and composite ceramic plating provide necessary armor, and the integral air filter helps in hostile environments. Weapon damage + 5%
• Normandy Crash Site – Shepard discovers the location of the Normandy Crash Site, an emotionally charged and reflective moment for Shepard as he is on a mission of salvage and recovery.

Also, some of the various armours that were being included with the game from various sellers was also up, as well as the Collector’s Edition Weapon and Armor. Read up on them below if you’re interested:

• Collectors’ Weapon and Armor – The Collectors’ weapon uses the same principles as a human assault rifle, but its organic components clearly set it apart. Its ammunition resembles pellets of metallic enamel that strip shields off enemies with deadly efficiency. The Collectors’ armor is flexible and even tougher than ballistic fibers. Its organic construction allows it to be self-healing. Regeneration Bonus +10%. Storm Speed +10%. Health +20%.
• Terminus Weapon and Armor – The M-490 Blackstorm Singularity gun encases particles of matter within a high-powered mass-increasing field. This creates a gravitational singularity that draws enemies inward for a short time before exploding. Terminus armor is environmentally sealed with an independent air supply for use in space and extreme planetary conditions. Increases storm speed by 10%. Increase shields by 15%. Increases all weapon’s reserve ammo by 10%.
• Inferno Armor – The Inferno armor has a VI dedicated to recognizing signs of stress and medical trauma. This application helps assess soldiers, but can be useful in any high-risk situations. The Inferno’s microframe computer also manages biotic amp and omni-tool power, and microservos help the wearer’s movements to counteract the armor’s weight. Negotiation Bonus +10% Tech and Biotic Power Damage +10% Storm Speed +10%

If you can’t tell, we’re itching to get our hands on Mass Effect 2!

A big thanks to AlkalineProdigy for the heads up!

I don’t know about you, but the upcoming release of sci-fi odyssey Mass Effect 2 doesn’t seem to be as painfully out of reach as most big-name titles rounding into the home stretch. I can chalk this lack of obsession fueled fury up to some fabulous PR on the part of Bioware, who have been releasing a flood of new screens, trailers, interviews, featurettes and blogs on a regular basis in order to sate the appetites of fans while keeping just enough away to keep their audience completely and utterly hooked. With less than a week left, it seems they still aren’t done yet.

On Thursday, January 21st at  12 PM Pacific Standard Time, Mass Effect 2 producer Jesse Houston will be playing a demo of the game live on the Xfire Network. Not only will you be able to catch some never before seen sci-fi goodness, but immediately after viewers will have the rare opportunity to chat directly with Jesse and one of Bioware’s lead designers via an interactive chat session. Ask the guys behind one of the most anticipated sequels of all time anything you want, and you  might be rewarded with one of these fabulous prizes:

Mass Effect Xbox360 Faceplates

Commander Shepard Statues

Mass Effect 2 N7 T-shirts

or

A pair of PsykoAudio Surround Sound Headphones

All we have to do (you better believe I’m not missing out on this) is visit Xfire’s website as linked above and sign up for the event, then mosey on over and enjoy the fun. For those of you wondering, 12 PM PST translates to roughly 3PM EST, so don’t forget to set your alarms lest you miss out on this (dare I say it?) Mass-ive opportunity!

Today, BioWare revealed an in-game hub for Mass Effect 2 DLC and news titled “The Cerberus Network”.  The Cerberus Network will be an interactive way for the developers to communicate with the players and reward them with goodies such as bonus content, daily messages, DLC, and the latest Mass Effect news.  Of course, on launch day (Jan 26th), The Cerberus Network will feature the free DLC pack that includes new items and missions.

Every new copy of the game comes with a single-use code to unlock The Cerberus Network.  Gamers who pick up Mass Effect 2 second-hand will be able to download The Cerberus Network for a fee.  It hasn’t been announced how much the fee will be, but we imagine that it has to be relatively nominal.

Is it January 26th yet?  Could have fooled me.

Mass Effect 2 is closing in and the brains at Bioware have somehow managed to keep their horde of fans sated with a near constant stream of new intel and footage from one of 2010’s most anticipated games. We’ve heard from most of Commander Shepard’s new Suicide Squad already, but now it’s time for a few words from the hero himself.

Check the video above to get a sense of what Shepard plans to do in order to save the galaxy from inevitable doom. Be warned; may cause insatiable cravings for copious helpings of Mass Effect goodness.

Here is a bonus video of an upcoming special that is set to air 1 week before Mass Effect 2 releases.

In conjunction with the impending release of Mass Effect 2 on January 26th, we’ve been taking a look at all the different classes that are available in the game.  One of the classes allows you to harness psycho-kinetic energy, another allows you to utilize armies of robotic troops, and so on.  Today’s class is more for the people whom are of the school of thought “If you shoot something enough times, everything will be alright”.

The Soldier is the latest class to be detailed by EA, and from the looks of it, we wouldn’t want to get on this guy’s bad side.  As you could probably guess, the Soldier’s main interests are guns, killing Geth, and killing Geth with guns.  Obviously, the Soldier is a whiz with all types of firearms – from shotguns to sniper rifles, he can do it all.  In fact, the Soldier is the only class that can wield an assault rifle.  Jealous, Engineer? You should be.

The Soldier has a few more perks that work in his favor.  For instance, they can use their Adrenaline Rush to slow down time, allowing them to clear out rooms while absorbing minimal damage.  Hardly seems fair, right?  Additionally, if the Soldier ever feels overwhelmed, they can employ a concussive blast that will knock down multiple enemies, taking the heat off of them for a bit.

But enough with the reading, take a look at the video to see exactly what you’re in store for if you choose the Soldier.  Then, go back to counting the days until the Bioware sure-to-be masterpiece comes out.

BioWare announced today Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening, the first official expansion pack to Dragon Age: Origins, which will be available for the Xbox 360 on March 16, 2010.

Designed and written by the same team that brought you Dragon Age: Origins, the Awakening expansion pack offers a brand new area of the world to explore known as Amaranthine, featuring an epic story that will allow players to unravel the secrets of the darkspawn – and their true motivations! Players will face a range of horrific and terrifying creatures including an evolved, intelligent breed of darkspawn and other menacing creatures such as the Inferno Golem and Spectral Dragon. Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening provides exciting new ways for players to customize their heroes and party, including the ability to re-spec their character attributes, allowing even greater customization and replayability. Featuring an increased level cap, new spells, abilities, specializations and items, plus five all-new party members, players can continue their adventures from Dragon Age: Origins, or begin with a brand new character.

“Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening shows BioWare’s commitment to our fans by delivering new story-driven experiences which enrich the dark heroic fantasy universe our fans have come to know and love,” said Dr. Ray Muzyka, Group General Manager of the RPG/MMO Group, EA, and Co-Founder, BioWare. “The vibrant worldwide community of Dragon Age fans will relish uncovering the secret motivations of the darkspawn, revealing how the darkspawn continue to infest the world despite the defeat of the Archdemon.”

Players will be able to import their character from Dragon Age: Origins or start out as a new Grey Warden from the neighboring land of Orlais. Only downside to the $39.99 cost is that the expansion pack will require the original Dragon Age: Origins to play.

Early last week, on the Xbox 360 Dashboard, there was a teaser blade for a Mass Effect 2 Cinematic Trailer.  Opening it streamed a quick short teaser clip for it, and stated that the full version would be available on the 22nd of December exclusively on the Xbox Live Marketplace.  Once the 22nd rolled around, promises were filled and “awesomeness” ensued.  Now, the full cinematic trailer has been released online and we have it embedded below just for you.

Oh and if this doesn’t get you hyped up and interested in Mass Effect 2, I don’t know what will or could.

Some would say less is more.

Mass Effect 2’s Engineer would summon a combat drone, hijack your weaponized android, and turn its disintegrator on you before telling you to eat futuristic space-lead and die. Know why?

Because he can.

While the Adept was all about turning Commander Shepherd into a one-man power house of psycho-kinetic energy capable of clearing a room with the flick of an armored wrist, the re-tooled Engineer holds true to the “strength in numbers” school of modern combat. Thanks to his ability to hack into robotic enemy units whilst controlling a deadly combat drone, the Engineer assures that players can have up to 4 additional allied units in the field at any one time (that includes your 2 trusty companions), the most of any character class. The Engineer’s strength hinges on how the new drone can be upgraded in a multitude of ways, while the efficiency of your hijacked enemy unit solely depends on just how much of a badass it already is.

As “technical combat specialists”, Engineers can get very creative on how they take out enemy combatants. The ability to control a floating orb of destruction will come in handy seeing as how you can use your friendly automaton as a distraction, laser gun, or even a bomb. Engineers also have some powerful class specific moves they can deal out on the fly such as Incinerate, Overload, and Freeze. Combining these brutal attacks with your customizable arsenal and you have yourself a recipe for wielding offensive tactics on a massive scale.

Watch the newest Class Trailer from Bioware and prepared to be blown away by the Engineer’s new moves. I have to say, it’s looking to be a harder and harder decision on just what class I’m going to finally decide on playing through , and this new Engineering shenanigans is NOT helping.

As promised, we are going to be having a look at Mass Effect 2’s newly revamped Adept class. As an Adept, players will have access to powerful psionic abilities which play out sort of like Force powers in the Star Wars universe, only wavier and with more explosions. Playing as an Adept is touted as a very strategic experience, as Shepherd will have the ability to lockdown enemy movement and smack them about like toy dolls. Adepts are the wizards of this sci-fi RPG, so their power needs to be as much respected as feared.

Mass Effect 2’s Adept class looks to provide players with the power to strategically and effectively win engagements without firing a single shot. Playing off the strengths of the futuristic biotic powers, an Adept Commander Shepherd will possess the ability to bend matter and physics to his will by creating warp singularities, mentally tossing enemies from afar and phasing attacks through walls. Not only has Bioware tweaked the way biotic attacks can be utilized, but they have also reworked the upgrade system so that players can evolve their attacks into more powerful versions that appeal to a player’s overall attack strategy. Like using warp? Well, after gaining enough experience, you can choose to upgrade the damage radius of the attack or lengthen its effect depending on what you the player wants the ability to accomplish.

Providing players with the ability to bend their biotic attacks around obstacles and cover in order to smoke out enemies not only provides a new tactical advantage but also ensures that an Adept can play just as brutally as any combat class. Lifting an enemy out of cover and then hitting them with something like Push also confirms that players can now chain together biotic attacks with vicious results. Controlling an Adept looks to be more streamlined in this sequel, which leads to a more visceral combat experience and almost god-like control of the battlefield. Check out the trailer below to see this incredible specialist class in action!