Mass Effect 2 - Editorial @ Bitmob

[aries100]

Bitmob's latest editorial deals with if Bioware's Mass Effect 2 game has made it so that all future rpg games will be hold up to what they call "a masterfully streamlined action/adventure." They also think this is the reason for the mixed reception Alpha Protocol have gotten:

Case in point is Obsidian's Alpha Protocol (PC, Xbox 360, PS3), which releases in just a few days. The game has been receiving generally negative reviews so far, and while I don't doubt it deserves some derision (I haven't played it but expect it to be a fun but flawed experience), I doubt that it would be treated this way if Mass Effect 2 hadn't streamlined the RPG experience so masterfully.​

What do you think? Do you agree?
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More information.

 

[Grifman]

Well, that link certainly doesn't work doesn't even come close!

 

[Thaurin]

Somebody has been looking up a certain word.

 

[Arhu]

Thanks. Fixed the link.

 

[Twotricks]

I have to rant here...

I personally think that ME2 is simply not very good game. It is worse than ME1 in every single way. And ME1 was good , but flawed RPG.

The game stands exclusively on its extremely high production values.

So is this a future of games?

Who ever can throw more money in production wins ?
And don't forget to streamline it as much as possible so everyone can play it.
Their games use exactly the same design matrix. But they are becoming more and more simplified. Vanilla. Even the story and dialogues started to be very lukewarm.

I simply lost every hope in Bioware...(well except that their next game will have good voice acting.)

And than you have truly good games like Witcher, Risen, Drakensang that get butchered in reviews because they can not hope to match the same level of production (read money) as EA does.

 

[Alrik Fassbauer]

What do you think? Do you agree?
​

I tend to agree. Mass Effect kind of lready changed "the RPG experience" - much like Blizzard once did, only into a completely different direction.

I fear that there will be "Mass Effect Clones" one day - similar to Action-RPG clones.

People might recognise this one day as kind of an "industry standard"; and everyone would try to make games according to it, I fear.

I do hope that I'm wrong, but I have little hope.


The only question left is whether Mass Effect actually has already the same recognition like Blizzards games once had, back then.

 

[holeraw]

I tend to agree. Mass Effect kind of lready changedI fear that there will be "Mass Effect Clones" one day - similar to Action-RPG clones

I wouldn't think so. One of Diablo's characteristics that stood out the most was its apparent simplicity which I assume made many think that they 'could do that' just as successfully.

Mass Effect might be very simple, compared to other RPGs, as well but at the same time its charm lies in the very-expensive-looking 'cinematic experience' it offers.

So I doubt that there will be quite as many small companies that will accept the risk of trying something similar with much limited funds and resources. Instead there may be some who will try to create a good anti-Mass Effect kind of game in an effort to compete with what they can actually afford to do.

 

[Alrik Fassbauer]

I think it's this "cinematic experience" that makes it stand out of the crowd.
And which could become some kind of "standard".

 

[holeraw]

I think it's this "cinematic experience" that makes it stand out of the crowd.
And which could become some kind of "standard".

Yes, but that's a very expensive standard — Diablo's click-click-click wasn't expensive + it was extremely addictive.

Eventually AAA companies might try to replicate that… but since the only other RPG-focused company that can potentially pull it off is Bethesda, that could only mean more AAA RPGs… even if they are no good I don't see how it would be bad. I think it's more likely to raise some interest for more 'pure' RPGs that smaller companies can provide.

 

[Alrik Fassbauer]

Eventually AAA companies might try to replicate that…

Hm, this sounds like ... some kind of diversion.

There'll be possibly very, very few companies with a quality like that (which also have the money for it) - and then thre'll be the "big mass" of those who can't (include it).

 

[ortucis]

The only thing good about ME2 was the characters you meet everywhere you go. The gameplay is terrible, not challenging and every possible alien city you visit looks like it was created by humans, only uglier. Nothing unique about any location you visit and I sure as hell can't recall any place I went "whoa, look at that architecture.. it's so.. so.. architecurish (not an actual word)".

I don't even want to start bitching about "all new equipment is the better one" philosophy (why the hell even bother keeping old, low-end equipment in the list or "inventory" if it's useless?). Also, lets not forget the lazy "don't you dare remove you helmet during cutscene, Shepard" design.

Lets face it, BioWare itself doesn't know what to do with this game. They are trying to copy Firefly like drama and characters (and fail at that, but moving on..) while throwing in at first, RPG, then pure third person action like GOW. Now with ME3 they will be going back to RPG/action mix again. I think the problem is that they are trying to make it more of a cinematic experience, "go here, talk talk talk, go there, talk some more, occasionally shoot, talk about life.." and the shooting part just doesn't fit in. So even after two games they still haven't figured out what kind of gameplay their own game should have. Great.

/rant