When I think of solid RPGs, usually Square is somewhere in the mix if not at the top, but there’s always one group giving Square a run for their money – Bioware. Creators of such amazing RPGs as Knights of the Old Republic and Jade Empire for the Xbox, Bioware is following up their last original IP with yet another one, merging a sci-fi like Star Wars tale with the tactics of a shooter. So does Mass Effect continue the tradition of quality Bioware has established, or is Mass Effect a slight blemish on Bioware’s solid reputation?

THE STORY SO FAR
You play as Shepard, a soldier in the military, who finds himself on a seemingly random, every day assignment when suddenly something goes wrong, a distress signal is sent out, and out of nowhere the galaxy is facing an enemy that they haven’t seen for quite some time. With the promise of more chaos and destruction to come, will Shepard and his gathered crew be able to stop the enemy and save the galaxy in the process?

Given that Mass Effect is a new IP, you can’t just rely on past knowledge, as you have to come out delivering a solid mythology that will instantly draw players in, and Bioware thankfully does a good job in this regard. During the early parts of the game, I found myself most interested in the new alien species I was seeing for the first time, and I would ask every new species personal questions about themselves and their race’s culture, just to find out more about them. My favorite new alien race, for example, are a giant, elephant seal looking race, who talk in monotones and explain their emotions since they can’t express them through the sound of their voices.

Another part of the game’s story that is so appealing is the choose your own adventure nature, which has you choosing not only dialogue options to express what you want to say, but the way in which you are able to change lives in some dramatic ways. If you want to play the good natured hero, you can always answer everyone in a kindly manner, but if you want to play a jerk there are many instances where you can berate and threaten individuals. Beyond dialogue choices, the more interesting aspect comes from the decisions you make, such as delivering a set of contraband to score some cash or either turning it in to the proper authorities. Some decisions are more minor than others, but others are pretty huge in the grander scale of things, such as choosing whether or not a whole alien species shall die or be allowed to live in freedom; this particular choice is one that isn’t very black or white, but rather one mighty shade of gray. Other decisions in the game come from choices such as picking what team you want to take out in the field, what sidequests and planets you visit, and even in some cases what order you want to progress the story (an early choice lets you choose between three initial planets to start the next section of the story off).

While all of that is great, the main story of the game is only good, as it just isn’t as interesting as the story presented in KOTOR or Jade Empire, which both had excellent worlds and stories. The problem with the story is that there is an air of déjà vu as many of the elements seem very familiar, such as the nature and how an alien race called the geth came into being – hello, The Matrix anyone? There are some interesting twists and solid moments, however, just overall from beginning to end it isn’t as great a narrative as one would’ve thought or have liked.

GAMEPLAY
Like most RPGs, Mass Effect is a single-player game only; the funny thing is that is about the only thing Mass Effect has in common with other RPGs. Mass Effect still has the standard questing system (to a degree), you’ll have the ability to level up characters after they get enough experience from combat and quests, and you’ll also be able to upgrade your characters with the latest weapons and armor, but that’s about it.

The biggest thing about Mass Effect’s gameplay is the combat system, which is unlike other RPGs I’ve played. If you want turn based, forget about it. If you want semi real time, forget about it. If you want the standard dice rolls and calculations to determine hits and such, forget about it. In Mass Effect the bulk of your combat comes in the form of firearm use, namely sniper rifles, assault rifles, pistols, and shotguns. Stats still play an issue, such as getting more power as you level yourself up and make yourself more fluent in certain weapons, and even weapons have different stat variations, such as power and accuracy, as well as determining how many shots you can get off before the weapon overheats and needs to cool down. When you’re using your weapons, Mass Effect feels a lot like a FPS or tactical shooter like a Ghost Recon or Rainbow Six. You’ll be running and moving on the fly as you shoot, throw grenades, and take cover behind objects so you can pop out and back to cover. The game does pause during the action at times, such as when you’re telling your allies to switch weapons or changing what power you want to activate. Besides the firearm weapons, players can develop more Star Wars Force like powers, allowing you to heal players, cast black hole like wave fields, pick enemies up in the air, temporarily down them, throw them around, and more. If you choose to make your own character in the game, your combat experience will differ based on what character type you play as, since each of the different classes are different in how they play in terms of combat.

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