Space Age

I hate video games.

Then why, oh why, do I play them once in a while?

I don’t know. That’s the furthest answer you’ll get from me. I know from the very bottom of my heart that games are like the dental equivalent in fear of cavity. Only this time the games rot your brains out instead of your teeth. I’m very serious here. They can certainly fill your head with an abyss of garbage.

Yet I find myself drawn to the one type of games which settle in their own niche of the video game library.

I like those with a big enough story to wrap around you several hundred times. And then more. I like a game with many complexities and layers to a story which you can dig through to find another maze of stories. It’s like turning to a different page in a novel and finding something different.

now I like the game Mass Effect 2.

Now, I’m playing this thing right on the heels of another game called Dragon Age: Origins which is provided by the excellent game designer called Bioware. The last game was thick with stories and plot making for seventy-five hours of constant playing… and it’s a marvelous adventure into video games.

So I admit it.

I do like video games.

However, only if they’re done by Bioware. You see I love their take on video games which is like they’re egging on the intellectual mind of gamers… it’s not just your sporty shoot ‘em up types that last about a half hour. It isn’t a sports game either. Nothing like that. There’s real dimension and beauty to the game playing that shoots like a breeze and brings you from one end of the universe to the other. You’ll find yourself in the middle of the intrigue when the second portion of the game continues with epic proportions. And I do mean EPIC.

I love this game. Very much like I adore all the other Bioware video games which hacks its way through simple game playing with a feast of graphics and designs that lifts with greater imagination.

This is the sequel to the already acclaimed original Mass Effect. This game starts off where you left off. However, your hero is killed off at the beginning of the game and resurrected very much like Jesus did in biblical times if you believe that sort of stuff. However, I do take into account the nice biblical touches the game possesses: the revival of a dead hero which brings on a symbol of a messiah. There’s real telling fiction right here. And you are seen as a force to be reckoned with even if the hero Shepherd is a mere human.

But you’re working on the other side now… the bad guys named Cerebus from the original game. So there are many questions being asked here. What is Cerebus’ interest in you? What are their interests in the gathering events of the galaxy? You’ll find that many of your team mates are shady folks… from the rogues to the scoundrels, they make up a hearty center of your game plan. Can you trust your own mates as well?

There are some nice additions to the game. You’ll have some old friends back on the team such as Garrus who is nicely nicknamed the Archangel to Tali who seems more in the gray area than before. Some of the non-playable characters in the game come back for supporting roles such as Liara who is merely an information broker on the planet Illuium.

The one thing I like about this game is the ability to import your character from the very first game. It’s worth the investment. I still find it rather strange to see my own character revived once again to do battle with the swarming Collectors who are ravaging space with their commanding presence… a sort of dictatorship god planting its influences around the galaxy. I’ve created my character making her a soldier from the first game… she isn’t the most beautiful woman, though still rather pretty… however, she has a military presence about her.

This is why I was happy to see my character imported into the second game. Depending on how you played your game the first time around, you’ll find that many people you crossed paths with return… either thanking you for what you’ve done or having a grudge.

The playability in the game is great. I have no problems playing through this thing… though it’s on a casual level. I want to have fun with my games, not have frustration. There are occasional glitches in the game which gets me killed now and then… but these glitches don’t happen often, thankfully. I’m just happy to see that the game is as fun as the first one. Some of the characters you might not think much of before… like Garrus… is much cooler this time around.

However, the romantic aspect of the game is more limiting this time around. Most of the romantic entanglements are straight… so there are no real branching into the bi-sexual or homosexual relationships much like the first game. However, this may be due to the fact that most gamers are probably male. Most likely. So it’s no surprise that the game is designed in this way.

This is a fun game. I’ve played about twenty hours into it and there’s still a lot to explore. It’s a worthy investment which throws you back into familiar grounds. And yet you’ll find much of it not so recognizable. But the threat is still there. And you’re the savior of the universe strung on the thread of good and evil. Dare I say that the background story and the conflict is on the same level of the Star Wars films? You can’t help but feel the sprawling epic of the entire game. It is like you’re getting lost in a space drama.

If you like video games, you’ll like this game.

If you like science fiction, it’s even better.

You’ll find yourself in the mists of battles and making greater choices that can lead you down the path of destruction or another road to the good side. Such choices can effect the rest of the story. I’m a goody two shoes so I play a good person. But even then, not all your choices turn out the way you want to.

And the action? It’s dynamite. You’ll feel like you’re right in a science fiction movie. Don’t miss this one if you’ve played the first one before. Others, beware. Make sure you got a lot of time on your hands. It’s a real doozy.