Mass Effect propaganda - sidequests?

[GhostofAnakin]

Mass Effect is a difficult game for me to rate, simply because I can't make myself call it a great game because it had too many flaws -- that I don't want to get into -- to do that. At the same time, I don't want to call it a disappointment, because I played it through twice, which means I got more for my money than I do with most games.

 

However, since this topic is about sidequests, then I'll comment on my dislike of the majority of them. As someone has already pointed out, they're basically carbon copies of each other. Go to planet --> clear out bunker --> fight boss dude --> pick up loot --> leave. Also, for the most part, they seem so unrelated to the main plot, that they kind of feel out of place. Especially since you have to travel to different planets than the main quest planets to complete them. It's like, "okay, the universe is in jeopardy, so we need to travel to Noveria. But there's some pirate group that's picking on farmers all the way across the galaxy that we'll stop at first". It just took me out of the experience.

 

Don't even get me started on the character/party interaction.

[Hurlshort]

KOTOR had narrative and universe implemented into gameplay, great characters, great dialog,interesting story, interesting art design, a lot of variety, relatively open levels, and most importantly great quest design.

 

This is just not true, especially about the narrative and the universe being implemented into the gameplay.

Yes, it's true. You go to the Jedi academy and through quests learn about the Jedi, you go to the Sith academy and learn about the Sith, and have a chance to either follow their philosophy or reject it by your actions. You're not just told Czerka is evil, you see for yourself how evil they are. If you're told Taris consists of the rich upper city and the wretched lower city, you go there and see for yourself. You learn all kinds of things about the universe, and very little through exposition. If it was ME, all that stuff would just be written down in the Codex for you to read, instead of experience for yourself. That's the difference between a great game and a mediocre one, I'll never understand why so many people can't see that.

 

Doesn't everything in the Sith Academy try to kill you whether you are good or bad?

[Wrath of Dagon]

No, there's an escaped group of students you can choose to help or kill, you can double cross fellow students or try to be honest, although they'll usually attack you anyway, there's a student you can save from the former headmaster at a cost to yourself, if you return with either of the headmasters you don't have to fight the whole academy, you can turn the Twiilek Sith to the light side, etc.

[Volourn]

ME > KOTOR

 

There is no doubt espicially in a ME thread. No matter how much the interlopers claim otherwise.

[WILL THE ALMIGHTY]

I agree with Wrath, Kotor simply mixed the setting with the gameplay more. Especially Kotor 2 with Kreia. And she never got annoying.

 

And TBH, KotOR had more interesting characters. The only ones I'd really want to speak to in ME was Wrex, but even then I think his stories should have been more... violent. Having him react normally to things humans find gruesome would have made some nice conversation. But in KotOR there were some really interesting characters, like HK-47, Hanharr and especially Kreia.

 

Another thing missing in ME that was in Kotor is that you never find out the dark stuff about your party members. In Kotor you'd usually find some sort of hidden truth or dark secret (Kreia being a sith, Atton having slaughtered Jedi, Juhani's crappy world being Taris, etc...) which would make the whole "talking to them" worthwhile. In Mass Effect, none of the characters evolved and talking to them was boring in the sense they never changed. We never get to know them on a more personnal level like Kotor, we never learn things about them...

 

So please, Volourn, stop saying ME is better than KotOR. Not only is it a matter of perspective, but you don't seem to have anything else to say about it other than " ME > KOTOR"

Edited July 9, 2008 by WILL THE ALMIGHTY

[Nick_i_am]

KotoR2 made me appreciate the SW universe more than the films ever did. Thanks mostly to Kreia.

 

KotoR1 was a pile of Llyrapoop.

[WILL THE ALMIGHTY]

KotoR2 made me appreciate the SW universe more than the films ever did. Thanks mostly to Kreia.

 

KotoR1 was a pile of Llyrapoop.

 

Yeah, even HK-47 seemed more boring in that one. In Kotor2 he sounds more... insane.

Edited July 9, 2008 by WILL THE ALMIGHTY

[Hurlshort]

Chicken > Steak

 

It's useless to argue, it's totally true.

[Wrath of Dagon]

Ah, but chicken fried steak > chicken.

[Volourn]

"So please, Volourn, stop saying ME is better than KotOR. Not only is it a matter of perspective, but you don't seem to have anything else to say about it other than " ME > KOTOR"

 

As long as people are spamming falsehoods about KOTOR's 'qualities' in a ME thread thahn ME > KOTOR is all that is needed.

 

ME has better role-playing, better writing, better characters, better story, better universe, better combat, better character system, better dialogue, better ending, better graphics, bettter music etc. etc.

 

The only thing KOTOR does is have better inventory and not by much.

 

ME > KOTOR

[Sand]

The one thing that irked me about KotOR is that it was so blatant and obvious in its so called plot twists that our character should have been able to figure it out rather early on instead of being "surprised." Forcing the character to be "surprised" when the player is not is just bad design and bad writing. In Mass Effect I was actually surprised on a few things which means Bioware did improve on the writing between KotOR 1 and ME.

[Hurlshort]

I was completely surprised in KotOR. It was an awesome moment. I feel bad for anyone who is too smart and didn't get the full experience of the surprise.

[Sand]

It had nothing to do with intelligence. It all had to do with how observant you were. Following all the clues and poorly planned foreshadowing.

[Volourn]

"It all had to do with how observant you were. Following all the clues and poorly planned foreshadowing."

 

Actually, to me, the best twists are the one you cna figure out before hand. Twists that come out of nowhere are illogical, and dumb.

[GhostofAnakin]

In Mass Effect I was actually surprised on a few things which means Bioware did improve on the writing between KotOR 1 and ME.

 

Any specific examples of this, my good friend?

 

Because there was nothing in ME that "surprised" me, anymore than the revelation in KOTOR did. So I'm genuinely curious what took you for a loop in ME.

[Sand]

Because there was nothing in ME that "surprised" me, anymore than the revelation in KOTOR did. So I'm genuinely curious what took you for a loop in ME.

Sovereign.

[WILL THE ALMIGHTY]

I was completely surprised in KotOR. It was an awesome moment. I feel bad for anyone who is too smart and didn't get the full experience of the surprise.

 

I got the full (seriouosly ****ing amazing) experience. Best gaming moment I've had yet.

 

Because there was nothing in ME that "surprised" me, anymore than the revelation in KOTOR did. So I'm genuinely curious what took you for a loop in ME.

Sovereign.

 

Yes, that was a good twist. But it wasn't all that important compared to Kotor's, in the sense it didn't alter the plot enough.

 

 

Another thing I didn't like about ME is it blatantly spit out info on the main plot really early. You quickly learn about machines coming every 50000 years to kill everyone and that kinda ruins whatever mystery there was.

 

But I have to agree on one point: ME had much, much better immersion.

[Sand]

In degree of importance I agree, the one that was in KotOR was higher on the importance scale but I think it was poorly executed while the one in ME was done very well but in the scope of the story was fairly inconsequential.

[Volourn]

"Another thing I didn't like about ME is it blatantly spit out info on the main plot really early. You quickly learn about machines coming every 50000 years to kill everyone and that kinda ruins whatever mystery there was."

 

Well.. to be fair.. ME's main plot point about the machines was spoiled by the advetrising as soon as the game was announced. In fact, that's my biggest beef with the game (horrid inventory aside) is that the basic whole story was spoiled before even turning on my 360. L0L

[WILL THE ALMIGHTY]

"Another thing I didn't like about ME is it blatantly spit out info on the main plot really early. You quickly learn about machines coming every 50000 years to kill everyone and that kinda ruins whatever mystery there was."

 

Well.. to be fair.. ME's main plot point about the machines was spoiled by the advetrising as soon as the game was announced. In fact, that's my biggest beef with the game (horrid inventory aside) is that the basic whole story was spoiled before even turning on my 360. L0L

 

I had that problem too. I find I enjoy games a hell fo a lot more if I go into them without knowing anything.

 

To be fair, I thought the machines were the geth before the game came out.

Edited July 9, 2008 by WILL THE ALMIGHTY

[GhostofAnakin]

Because there was nothing in ME that "surprised" me, anymore than the revelation in KOTOR did. So I'm genuinely curious what took you for a loop in ME.

Sovereign.

 

What was so surprising about Sovereign?

[Volourn]

YUeah. I actually agree witH GOA on this...

[Sand]

That it was a giant self aware robot instead of just being a spaceship.

[GhostofAnakin]

YUeah. I actually agree witH GOA on this...

 

You make it sound like that's a rare thing.

 

That it was a giant self aware robot instead of just being a spaceship.

 

Uh, considering you're one of the people who constantly talks about how obvious the KOTOR revelation was, due to tons of foreshadowing, I'm surprised you didn't pick up on the fact there was more to Sovereign than met the eye after, about, Eden Prime.

[Sand]

TO be honest I was trying not to guess or trying to figure it out. Each time I try to figure out a plot or twist in a story or in a game I just ruin the surprise for me. After KotOR 2 I decided instead of analyzing the game as I play it I just play it.