Just one of the best games I've ever played.
Commander Shepard takes matters into his own hands yet again and has to assemble a kick ass team of mercenaries, killers, scientists, and the occasional Krogan to defeat a new scheme by the sentient race of machines known as THE REAPERS.
Pros:
- Combat is (to me at least) a lot more difficult and a lot more "In your face" than the first game was. The gun play was definitely upgraded along with how useful your squad is. Commanding your squad feels a lot smoother than it did in the first game and who you take with you is almost as important because of their skill set. The powers feel a lot more refined and are actually a lot of fun to use and at the same time give you an edge. Each class you pick gives you an exclusive power that just rocks and is very fitting for the class. Plus you just gotta love Biotics.
- The story sucks you in and keeps you into the game, I know combat is a lot of fun but without a good story it just doesn't matter. The character development and how the game comes to an end will leave you begging for more and going straight back to the "New Game" option on the Main Menu.
- The characters in this game are just some of the most colorful people I have ever seen woven into a video game. Some new faces, some old faces. You'll find yourself getting attached to some of the characters or at times getting rather annoyed with some. The voice acting matches the characters and it's actually very refreshing to listen to the dialogue. It makes you feel like something big is on the horizon, some times it makes you happy, or sad.
-The environment is exactly what Bioware wanted when they made this game. It gives off a very dark energy and the game starts you off on a very gloomy note.
Cons:
- Planet scanning was one of the most tedious things that just chapped my hide when playing this game. I liked the idea of mining for minerals for the Normandy but it felt too drawn out. It was sometimes a little infuriating hearing the same voice track over again every time you probed for resources. It was something they could have refined or done differently.
- One of the other weakest points was straight from the get-go, Character Creation. I never felt the need to give my Shepard a face to look like me because lets face it, it was never one of the strong points in the first game either. You never really will get a chance to make your character look the way you want him/her to because of how limited the options are on the character creation. Plus the voice always seemed wrong to me whenever I made a celebrity face or attempted to copy my ugly mug into the game.
Maybe that's just me, I don't know.
- Now I love all the DLC that's coming out for this game. But some of it didn't even wait until a month after. Downloaded Content is GREAT and all. But couldn't most of it had been released with the game?
- They say it's a Shooter/RPG. I felt all RPG's need an inventory. I don't believe it deserved the axe, just a refinement. To me, it felt like Gears of War. But that's no excuse to hate it.
Conclusion: I highly suggest this game to anybody who is looking for a fresh and new science fiction story that allows you to explore and meet new characters and kick some ass. The guys at Bioware did a great job in creating a universe of just plain AWESOME. I nitpicked at some certain areas but believe me; This game will crash land straight into your mind and heart and leave you waiting for the next one to come out.