Comments on: Sequel, What Sequel? New Mass Effect DLC’n'Patch

By: matte_k

matte_k — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 10:48:36 +0000

Played through it this morning, and sadly I can’t really recommend it to be honest. The combat modes in the simulator are semi interesting, and there’s a loose quest based around getting the best scores on all maps/modes, the end result of which being
1: a weapon choice that isn’t worth it if you’ve already got access to Spectre gear, and
2: an interesting looking, but woefully under functioned apartment. The three trade contacts only ship one item at a time, it’s random and one is extremely expensive.

Add to that limited and repetitive dialogue, and an area no bigger than any of the frigates you can board in the normal game, and you’ll question why you paid for it when Bring Down The Sky (the other DLC) was free for PC users. It was bigger, had a better questline, and more stuff to acquire if you were inclined.
I love Mass Effect, but this is definitely a step backwards, and has the whiff of a publicity shenanigan about it designed to whip up some interest for ME2 by getting people to replay the first game. As a freebie it would have been fine, but I can’t help but feel i’ve wasted money on this. Let’s hope that ME2 puts the negativity this will generate into the box labeled “mistakes we learnt from the hard way” when hardly anyone buys it. A shame.

By: Adventurous Putty

Adventurous Putty — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 03:29:12 +0000

In the initial advertising campaign, Bioware hinted that the DLC would be released in episodes that took place between the end of ME1 and the start of ME2. These would help bridge the gap between them and ultimately add story juiciness.

They lied. It would’ve been a quantum leap forward for DLC in general, and it was never executed.

By: We Fly Spitfires - MMORPG Blog

We Fly Spitfires - MMORPG Blog — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 22:20:54 +0000

Mass Effect for £10 is a steal, an utter must have and everyone should buy it for that if they don’t already own it. Go, my pretties, go and buy!

By: Petrushka

Petrushka — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 21:59:04 +0000

I find this good news. I never got around to playing Mass Effect (though I’d like to some day) and the existence of DLC, which will eventually, appear in a combo GotY-style pack on shop shelves, means that the basic package will be going down in price shortly. Hurrah!

By: Vinraith

Vinraith — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 21:54:02 +0000

In ME aren’t they talking about the kind of achievements that actually unlock things, though? There’s a world of difference between traditional, utterly pointless achievements and “achievements” as a new word for the old “do x, get y” kinds of unlock systems.

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 21:37:49 +0000

@Geoff,
Everyone is quite obsessed with ridiculous achievements. I can’t stand them, because it makes people go crazy and forces them to play a game in a certain way just to get a medal. It’s basically causing people to play a game not for the fun of it, but to gain medals, which… is kinda awful to me.

By: Mac

Mac — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 21:36:37 +0000

You can get a 20% discount … enter HotUKDeals20%

By: Alex

Alex — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 20:01:06 +0000

This seems like a really cynical move. The first DLC had new aliens, a side mission that actually felt important and an interesting. They were also nice enough to make it free on the PC.

Now they’re charging $5 for what seems like something that was designed to be the cheapest way to take up a few more player-hours.

By: Geoff

Geoff — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 18:17:24 +0000

Wait a minute, how did I miss this? “Farm your main game achievements in an easy to access combat simulator.”

They’re seriously, literally referring to achievement farming as a bullet-point feature? Has the world gone mad?

By: neolith

neolith — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 17:05:01 +0000

@jalf:
Well, that means still no Mass Effect for me. :( I really want to play the game but I neither want to deal with restrictive DRM nor Steam…

By: jalf

jalf — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 16:53:25 +0000

@neolith: Oh yikes, you’re more or less right. Looks like it de-authorizes (but doesn’t uninstall!) the game on the *current* computer. So if you don’t have access to the machine it was installed on, you’re screwed. And if you launch the game again on that machine, it obviously re-activates.
Sheesh, and here I thought it was useful. That renders the whole tool pretty damn useless.

Good thing I bought it on Steam then. And thanks for making me check up on that. Guess I’ll still have to avoid boxed versions of EA games then. There goes my Mirrors Edge purchase.

By: Lilliput King

Lilliput King — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 16:34:29 +0000

Mass Effect was a good game, but I’m not buying this. Too much faff with download platforms so poorly designed I’m afraid of losing my damned product before I get my hands on it.

Still, good to see Bioware can now add another name to their list of games with gratuitous and unnecessary ‘arena’ sections.

That makes 6 games out of 9 in total now by my count.