PRELL: ‘Mass Effect 2’ a game to behold

I’ll be honest with you: I don’t know how to write this review. I mean come on. It’s freaking Mass Effect 2. Odds are you’ve already bought the thing if you were even remotely interested in it. This isn’t exactly a middle-of-the-fence kind of game. If you’re looking for a short summary and a consensus, though, here it is.

Mass Effect 2 is great. Practically perfect. It’s well worth your money.

As in, go buy it right now.

And hey, if that’s all you wanted from me, congrats. You got it.

The game improves and expands upon its predecessor in nearly every fashion — combat, exploration, story, etc. Even romances feel far more organic and progressive as opposed to the last game where you pretty much knew that if you wanted to jump in the sack with one of your fellow crew members, you’d have to talk to them at specified points in time. Moreover, you knew when those specific points were.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s go back and examine these a bit more in-depth.

You’ll notice right away that combat in Mass Effect 2 is a quicker, more violent action than before. This is partly due to how little you’ll be shooting at non-organics, but more so due to the new combat designs.

For example, no longer will you have to worry about overheating your weapon. Instead, you’ll be utilizing clips of ammunition, which can be ejected and reloaded at any time. Of course nothing good comes for free, which brings us to the issue of ammo conservation.

Thankfully, this is in no way a bad thing, as it increases tension and pressure to make your shots count, and there was never a time I felt like I was running too low.

Still, if there was one piece of equipment I was wary of, it was my heavy weapon. Yup, there’s a new category of death-dealing in Mass Effect 2, and it is dee-licious. From launching mini-nukes to fricasseeing up toasty barbecues with a flamethrower, the heavy weapons are a blast. No pun intended.

You’ll also have better real-time control over your allies, allowing you to direct them individually, as well as utilize their powers without having to resort to the radial menu.

And utilize their powers you will, because these are by no means easy fights. Enemies will flank, vary their attack methods and push aggressively on your position. Some enemies have special shielding or armor that is more vulnerable to certain kinds of attacks, so strategy and balance is key. Other weaknesses can be structural, such as the head and limbs. In the case of mechs, you can even aim for the legs or arms to render them pretty well helpless.

Of course, to find your enemies, you’ll be flying all over the galaxy. The areas you’ll find are clearly designed and varied in their layout, unlike the planets of the first Mass Effect. Sure, there’s no more Mako, but I don’t really think anyone’s going to be complaining there.

Instead, you’ll scan planets for anomalies — side-quests — or resources, which are decidedly more useful in this game than the first. In this Mass Effect, you’ll put those resources to use, upgrading your weapons, armor, powers, even the Normandy itself. And speaking of the Normandy ...

Without giving away too much, this is a new model, vastly improved in its design and execution. There’s a greater variety of locations on the ship, and by the time you’ve assembled your entire team, it’ll be bustling with life and character. It’s actually fun to look around this time and get to know the people you’ll be dragging into Hell with you.

You’ll also have access to the new Captain’s Quarters, where you can review in-game e-mails, customize your appearance, choose the armor that best suits your needs, keep a few pets — some fish and a hamster, nothing major — and more. It’s a great way to organically integrate the customization options and reviewing of past accomplishments that players want without breaking their immersion in the world.

And with BioWare’s handily-crafted story, how could you not get immersed in this game? The characters are vivid and complex, with a few familiar faces, but plenty of new ones. Each one has a distinct personality and, while some are undoubtedly more original than others, they all feel like they belong in this universe. That’s a testament to BioWare’s skills if I ever saw one.

If characters aren’t a testament, reflect on how wholly remarkable the environments in Mass Effect 2 are. Each location has a unique feel and personality, and unlike some of the previous game’s environments, it really feels like people could live here.

From the dingy, clammy, putrid Omega asteroid station to the pristine and very Coruscant-like Illium, everything’s coming at you in a way that welcomes, inviting you to find out more.

It’s a science-fiction epic, but it’s far more than that as well. We may be dealing with synthetic intelligences, faster-than-light travel, magic heat-bullets, and the possible end of humanity, but I’ll be damned if I wasn’t invested in the tale as though it were a documentary on a real hero’s exploits.

Note that I say “exploits” and not “victories” here. Once again, BioWare is showing its maturity in the handling of complex themes and examination of the morality spectrum. Not every choice is an easy one, not every life saved is a victory. There will be times when you will question and fear what your actions will do to those around you, and to the galaxy as a whole.

Like the first Mass Effect, your actions will earn you “Paragon” or “Renegade” points. But there are even improvements to be found here.

In the first Mass Effect, the Paragon path was decidedly more kind, gracious, even meek or goody-two-shoes at times. Here, you can maintain your alignment status and, not only occasionally dip into the other side just for fun or to get what you want, but both paths are equally ... well, cool. Either way, Shepard’s out to save the galaxy, and nobody’s going to stop that kind of gung-ho attitude.

Well ... almost nobody.

In case you didn’t know this, you can — more or less — lose the game. I won’t go into specifics, but you know how in some games, the characters around you will cry warnings about how dangerous the mission you’re embarking on is? You know how, in most all of these instances, you ignore them and don’t really feel threatened? After all, you’re the hero. You’ll come out on top, right?

All I’m going to suggest is that you not approach Mass Effect 2 with that attitude.

I wish I could go into more details about the plot. Seriously, I do. I want to tell you all of the twists, character histories and revelations that occur. But the story is so perfectly executed in its writing, direction and acting that from moment one you’ll be on the edge of your seat with mouth agape. And of course, it only gets better from there.

This is a story of betrayal, vengeance, loss, love, bravery, honor, empathy ... It’s the total package. You just don’t see stories like this anymore. And even if you do, they so rarely present themselves properly on all fronts. Usually, something, some aspect, falls flat on its face. This just isn’t so here. It’s all right; the visuals, the acting, the writing, the plot, the characters, the gameplay, the music — oh man, the music ... BioWare kept the ’80s synths when it was appropriate, but this is a broader, more sweeping, orchestral score, and I can’t thank them enough.

I really don’t know how else to say it: Mass Effect 2 has improved on everything it needed to. Graphics may not always be perfect — there’s some model-clipping at times, and clothing textures are particularly flat — but they don’t distract or denigrate the experience. Likewise, you can find a similar pattern to plenty of fights, but enough variables are thrown in to keep you on your toes. Any criticism I can offer is overshadowed by ten thousand brightly burning stars of greatness.

Buy Mass Effect 2. Now.

This review appears courtesy of Sophie Prell’s blog, “G3 — A Girl’s Guide to Gaming.” You can find links to “G3” via iowastatedaily.com or Sophie’s Facebook fan page to find more video game news, commentary and reviews.