+ The graphics were outstanding and out of this world (literally) when it was released, the world of Mass Effect is beautiful, the detail put into each character, the depth of each species. The amount of work that had to be put into the design of the Normandy and its crew, it has to be praised over and over. The weaponry is beautifully designed, each looking different from another with unique details. The worlds, stations and Normandy to explore, so much room to run and adore the amount of detail put into the game. Biowares attention to detail is phenomenal, nothing is left unchecked, everything is beautiful, even the Hanar.
+ Sound, the music produced by Jack Wall has to be awarded something because it is his music that sets the atmosphere for each part of the game, especially the last mission, the feeling of intensity and anxiety, all through one song. And the music you hear when you connect with a love interest. Then there are the voice actors…I’ll get to that later. The sound of the weaponry, no one could know what a space gun would sound like, but somehow Mass Effect reaches a level of realism that I believe that that is what a space gun would sound like.
+ The story of Mass Effect has so much depth, they tell the whole story along the way, even telling you the past as well. And if you want to know even more, you can pause and read the codexes in the pause menu to learn even more about the World of Mass Effect. Each person has a story and a reason of being where they are, Shepard died (to put it bluntly), Miranda had to getaway from her father, Grunt was created by another Krogan, Joker was grounded, Garrus is a real justifier, and many more.
+ The VOICE ACTORS, each voice actor makes each character feel so alive and real. Especially Yvonne Strahovski, the voice of Miranda Lawson, and Seth Green, the voice of Joker. They each play their role so well; they are the character, and literally when it comes to Miranda Lawson. Miranda Lawson was modelled after Yvonne Strahovski so she is literally Miranda Lawson. And each time they make each character so alive and full of emotion, it is so easy to connect and feel for each character. And Seth Green is always funny and having fun with things, thus he fits the character of Joker very well.
+ The way the game is played is remarkable; Bioware achieved a unique way of telling a story outstandingly while allowing you to have an incredible gameplay. Not many games can do that, and Bioware does it all the time (KOTOR, Dragon Age, Baldurs Gate). The gameplay is amazing and drastically improved from Mass Effect, allowing cover-to-cover combat and improved close quarters combat. The aiming mechanism is outstanding and the way they introduced ammo clips is awesome. And the abilities each character has only gotten better but shrunk in comparison to is predecessor. They also allowed skill max bonuses, giving a pimped out variation of your ability if you max its level.
+ Then there is the Normandy, not only is it your home base where you control where you want your ship to go, but you can converse with each character on your team, establishing and building up relationships. Not only that but when you leave the ship to enter a station, you can buy customizations for your armour or weapons and ships to display in your captains quarters. You can even get a space hamster and even fish, don’t forget to feed them or they die. You can even unlock a laboratory where you can upgrade your ship, abilities, armour or weapons with minerals harvested from planets or retrieved during missions.
Mass Effect 2 is my favourite game of all time. Nothing can compare to it in my opinion. You could combine Battlefield 4 and Call of Duty Advanced Warfare into one super game; I would still pick Mass Effect 2 over that.
Bioware has definitely created the jewel of Role Playing Games. They did not go wrong anywhere in this game, tell me otherwise and I will find you. The storyline, 10x deeper and stronger as the previous, Commander Shepard is back and brought back in a spectacular way, meeting knew people on his voyage to assemble a team to defeat a viscous enemy known as the Collectors.
Reading just that makes me want to play the game. Bioware also implements the same RPG elements in all their other games, whereas you make your characters decisions and is determines the outcome of the game, but in this game, it is expanded and more decisions are there to be made. More characters with even more depth, with the return of Garrus, I feel more connected to him and learn more about his character, and with the introduction of Jacob and Miranda, I get an inside look on how they think in working in an organization focused on putting Humanity First. I personally love Miranda's character, not only for her beauty but also for her voice acting and deep backstory.
The graphics have drastically improved from the first; the amount of detail in the world of Mass Effect had only tripled in comparison to its predecessor.
The gameplay is very fluid, the aiming mechanism has finally been straightened out and feels like you are playing a game like Gears of War, the 3rd Person Shooting has been improved quite a lot and the cover implementation was a big step by Bioware and it was a great one, making it seem more like a game with an amazing rather than a story.
And last but not least, the music, Jack Wall, the composer for the songs in Mass Effect 2, is a genius, he makes every situation feel important and intense, especially in the final mission with the song "Suicide Mission", that one song stayed with me for a long time.
Out of every single thing I have reviewed, never have I ever been so sure that this game is the one I want everyone to buy.