Five Gripes I Have With Bioware’s Hit Title Mass Effect 2

Before we get into this, I just want to say I love this game so far. It might not take the place for best game I ever played, and might not even be better than the first one, but it definitely is something I will not put down until I am finished. Bioware really came back with a great sequel, and though it is not necessarily MY perfect sequel, It is an accomplishment none the less.

That said, there are still some things that are just really grinding me up in those mass effect relays. These instances are annoyances, pet peeves if you will in an amazing accomplished game. It is as if a perfect album came out and the bonus song and artwork were horrendous. The core content, and why you would buy the album, is fantastic, but the extras and the things that make it an overall perfect experience are somewhat lackluster. This would annoy you correct? You would also want to hear about them right? Or at least tell the world why you hate them.

So Bioware, trust me, you still have your place inside my heart.

With that, here are my gripes with 2010’s best game so far, in order.

1. Disabling control over Drawing and Holstering your weapons whenever you want.
This drives me absolutely crazy. So, say you enter a room and there are 5 battle mechs. You get stoked, amped up, and beat the crap out of these mechs. Shooting their heads off and making them fly into walls. Awesome. Now that you did that, It is time to explore a bit. Would you want to open a safe with the barrel of your gun pointing at it? To me, it seems like a bad design choice, and even pulls me out of the mindset that I am in control of this squad. Sure, this might just be my old Bioware RPG granpa inside me, but I want to hear my team go into a relaxed state after battle, and then “gear up” right before it.

2. Text appearing and then disappearing before you can read it
Though this is not something specific to Mass Effect (as other games tend to do this as well), I feel it is worth mentioning because it pisses me off. The text that appears after the cinematic (or before? I somewhat forget. I WONDER WHY) in the beginning of the game disappeared before I could read it. Why not make it so I could skip to the next part once I am finished with it? Sorry, I am not a robot and can’t read two paragraphs in 5 seconds. Plus, even if I could, why would you as a game developer let important information about plot be potentially passed over by a new player? Just make me press A!

3. Scanning the planets
I get it. Exploring an empty planet with shotty vehicle controls was boring. But to take out the concept of being able to go to any planet and most of the time, set foot on it, really takes the fun out of the expansive universe. Granted, the mini game in which you find the resources by scanning the planet is pretty neat. Shepard’s way of meditation maybe?

4. Shepard is not fleshed out or “funny”
This is purely opinion, but it would be nice if Shepard’s dialogue wasn’t so…monotone. I understand why Bioware made him this way, I get it, but that doesn’t mean I like it. Thankfully the supporting characters are interesting enough that my mind is taken away from this, but it would have been nice for a more snarky Shepard. At least he isn’t voiced by Nolan North.

5. Mission breakdowns!
All of these other gripes combined don’t bother me as this one thing. When I see a breakdown of how many credits I obtained in the “mission,” it really breaks the immersion of the game. It rips me out of the role playing aspects that the game is apparently trying to get rid of. Why not give me the breakdown within the narrative? Have a character tell you what you received or acquired when you come back on the Normandy, don’t give me numbers in front of a screen that repeats over and over. Ugh. Way to kill the flow!

Overall, this game is awesome, and is no doubt worth playing. I guess I just want perfection, or maybe I just want something to blog about. Do you agree with me? Hate that I am complaining about a game that receives nothing but praise? Let me know!