Sunday, June 3, 2012

Mass Effect 3

     Mass Effect 3 was released March 6, 2012 on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC. It was developed by BioWare and published by EA. If you haven't picked up the game yet then you are missing out on a lot of fun. You can expect the deep story, as in the first two games, and plenty of conversation. When you think of the first two games and the transition between the two, some would say that a lot of the RPG elements of the first were not carried over. If you agree, then you will be very pleased with Mass Effect 3.
    One element I am talking about was the ability to customize weapons. From the first to the second game, weapons and other options were less customizable than the previous game. Mass Effect 3 brings that back, bigger and better. Skill trees open up at the max level and allow you to choose between two options. Don't like the skill you just picked? Take some credits to the Med Bay and redistribute you skills. Weapons are now upgradable without having to search entire planets for the upgrades. Go to the arsenal and upgrade the weapons you have, add attachments, and purchase new equipment, armor, weapons.
    The Co-op Multiplayer is some of the most fun I have had in a game like this. Essentially a horde mode, your team gets dropped into an area that they have to recapture from the Reaper forces. What make this fun is the fact that instead of just making you survive wave after wave, objectives are implemented to keep things moving. One example is during a later wave of enemies, you will have to hold down a specific area, like a capture the hill game. This forces the squad to pick and move from their comfort zone. There are also multiple classes like Soldier, Sentinel, and Vanguards with multiple character models including the drell, krogan, and quarian. Each class and race has its own benefits and consequences regarding the biotics and technology that they each have.
     Kinect has been incorporated into the storyline of the game. This would be a great feature because it allows you to throw grenades by yelling "grenade", tell your party members to use biotics, abilities, or cover, and even other interactions like doors, pickups, and dialogue selections. Problem is that the Kinect still has the annoying response lag to your commands (maybe half a second). It will be a while until the Kinect works the way we want it to.

This is a great game and a must have.