1700 réponses à ce sujet

[Zulu_DFA]

smudboy wrote...

Zulu_DFA wrote...

smudboy wrote...
We want choices, not problem solving.

But we also want the choices to bite us in the аss from time to time!

I'd be happy with choices that impact anything at this point, including my ass.

Right.

[Frybread76]

Darth Drago wrote...

ybfelix wrote...

Darth Drago wrote...

ybfelix wrote...

I don't particularly mind lack of crouching. But I find that you have to first against you back to a cover then be able to vault over it quite absurd. It looks very unnatural in Gears of War, and unnatural here too. I think Splinter Cell Conviction did crouch/cover/vault right. Map jumping over and enter cover on seperate keys would be better.

-No argument on the lame duck and under cover before jumping over a low wall. There have been many deaths caused by this bad button/action combination. Again all in the name of better game mechanics to make a average at best shooter game.

Or, say, enter cover and then push stick foward and press A to jump over it takes 1.5 seconds as of now? Then make it so that if you are standing right next to a cover and push stick toward it continuously for 1.5 seconds, you jumps over it without having to enter cover (of course you can still enter and jump if you wish.)

-Wasn’t this sort of the way it was in Mass Effect 1? If I recall you could effectively run at a low barrier and effortlessly jump over it. Funny how what we got now is considered “progress”.

ybfelix wrote...
Personally I think weapons in ME does too much damage, both to enemies and the player, making both tougher would result in better gunplay on normal difficulty. Didn't think this throughly though.

-The nice thing about ME1 was that you did encounter enemies that could kill you in a single shot (or 2) or hit regardless of difficulty. Look at the rockets, thresher maw, snipers, Geth Armatures, Geth Colossus just to name a few things that could ruin your day if you moved in the wrong direction when they shot.

Now in ME2 is there anything at all that can kill you in a single shot at all difficulties? Even the thresher maw is insulting with its waving tentacles all but saying “I’ll pop up here in a second, get ready to shoot me!” and total lack of movement. Its all about cheap shots to stun you and turn your screen to crap with the lame bloody veins to hinder your vision.

It seems like ME2 traded the one-shot kills from strong enemies in ME1 for weak shields that go down in seconds to all enemy fire.

[Frybread76]

Turin_4 wrote...

You mean that if  "on clips" is says armor piercing ammos, character isn't skilled enough to put clip in his weapon?
How ever, if "on clips" it says normal ammos, character now knows how to put clip in his weapons?

This is a discussion that's been had before, but: do you actually think that just because all that is shown is a couple of buttons being pushed that that's all that's going on, anymore than when an AI is being hacked, all that is being done is an omni tool menu is being pulled down?  It is easy and plausible to imagine there is more to it than just pushing a button.

As for clips, that's not how ammunition in the ME universe works.

Especially when you could with any class in ME1, and when it was established that weapon mods are pretty much plug-and-play.

Yes, I know.  Sometimes there are hiccups between games for gameplay balance issues.  I'm perfectly aware it's not perfect continuity.  I know it's a pothole in the road.  Here's my response to that: Big Deal.  It was decided that your non-weapon specialists can no longer instantly and effortlessly trick their weapons and ammunition out in any way they see fit at any time in any situation at no character-building cost.  You're right, that's just completely out there and absurd.

It takes Shepard less than a few seconds to activate an ammo
power, which appears to be him just pushing a button.  What special
training is needed for that?

See above.  Just because something appears to be pushing a button does not necessarily mean it is only pushing a button.  That's a pretty standard sci-fi and fantasy convention for ease of storytelling.  Complicated magic and technological accomplishments are done very simply.

I just cant wait to see if BioWare decides to screw up the already
messed up ammo “powers” and thermal clips with something even worse.

If by 'screw up' you mean 'change to something that meets with even more nigh-universal acclaim', then I'll just say, "Me, too!" 

Pushing a button to create an ammo power is still pushing a button, which needs no special training.  It's the same as me pushing a button to turn on my crappy, 16 MB laptop I had in 1999 as pushing the button to turn on my 8 GB gaming PC today.

[JaegerBane]

Terror_K wrote...
In Mass Effect the concept makes little to no sense, and the explanation behind it is completely trite. It's just another one of many examples where in ME2 BioWare seemed to just not care about the overall realism and integrity of the ME world any more and just did all these things "becoz they b kewl!!1"

BioWare really need to pull the series back down to Earth with ME3, because as it stands with ME2 I simply can't take the universe seriously any more, and that's breaks immersion more than anything else.

I don't think it' necessarily just a case of things being justified, no matter how nonsensical, "becoz they b kewl!!1". I agree that there were things entered into the game that were there for no real reason, but this by and large didn't actually interfere with the gameplay and the storytelling.

I do think the whole idea about omni-tools shooting fireballs and characters learning 'squad ammo powers' was utterly absurd, and I suspect the reasoning behind this was due to Bioware trying to even out gameplay between the classes. In that regard I think the only real problem was that the developers just didn't bother trying to think out a plausible in-game reason for the changes, which is bad, and something that they really need to look at in ME3, but not something that ruins the game.

I do think Bioware need to re-think what they're doing with the way stuff is depicted in-game - as you say, it starts getting to the point where it becomes difficult to take seriously. However, they're still a long way from this being a problem so large that it ruins the game. I just hope that in ME3, they don't veer any further towards it.

[JaegerBane]

Frybread76 wrote...
Pushing a button to create an ammo power is still pushing a button, which needs no special training.  It's the same as me pushing a button to turn on my crappy, 16 MB laptop I had in 1999 as pushing the button to turn on my 8 GB gaming PC today.

Agreed. I actually quite like the implementation of specialist ammos as 'powers' in the game, due primarily to the similarity to how weapon enhancement spells were done in DA:O - it was far less fiddly than messing around with the inventory and trying to remember what weapon had what ammo attached.

Where I thought they went wrong is the nonsensical idea that only certain classes could use them - and then they went further by having this absurd idea of a character 'learning' how to 'project' the ammo onto other people's guns. It was a clunky and careless approach to implementing the ammos, and I can't shake the feeling they did it purely because they couldn't think of what else to give the soldier. Even aside from how ridiculous it was as a concept, it even began to intrude on the gameplay - often you're thrust into fights and your character will be stucking fiddling with his gun like a bloody amateur while being shot at.

Ammos should have been handled as an extra that any class could use, as it was in ME1. Take the elegance of their power implementation but allow them to be accessible to all classes. The situation of the Soldier being such a boring class shouldn't really be a reason to screw up the whole ammo system.

Modifié par JaegerBane, 09 octobre 2010 - 06:34 .

[Frybread76]

JaegerBane wrote...

Terror_K wrote...
In Mass Effect the concept makes little to no sense, and the explanation behind it is completely trite. It's just another one of many examples where in ME2 BioWare seemed to just not care about the overall realism and integrity of the ME world any more and just did all these things "becoz they b kewl!!1"

BioWare really need to pull the series back down to Earth with ME3, because as it stands with ME2 I simply can't take the universe seriously any more, and that's breaks immersion more than anything else.

I don't think it' necessarily just a case of things being justified, no matter how nonsensical, "becoz they b kewl!!1". I agree that there were things entered into the game that were there for no real reason, but this by and large didn't actually interfere with the gameplay and the storytelling.

I do think the whole idea about omni-tools shooting fireballs and characters learning 'squad ammo powers' was utterly absurd, and I suspect the reasoning behind this was due to Bioware trying to even out gameplay between the classes. In that regard I think the only real problem was that the developers just didn't bother trying to think out a plausible in-game reason for the changes, which is bad, and something that they really need to look at in ME3, but not something that ruins the game.

I do think Bioware need to re-think what they're doing with the way stuff is depicted in-game - as you say, it starts getting to the point where it becomes difficult to take seriously. However, they're still a long way from this being a problem so large that it ruins the game. I just hope that in ME3, they don't veer any further towards it.

But then the (gameplay) issue of one class having certain ammo powers while another doesn't would still exist.  It just makes no sense to me.

[JaegerBane]

Frybread76 wrote...
But then the (gameplay) issue of one class having certain ammo powers while another doesn't would still exist.  It just makes no sense to me.

See my above post - I don't think it's good idea at all for ammo to be treated the same way as biotics and techs, as all characters use guns and ammo is something that is activated by pressing a button rather than requiring years of training in advanced omni-tool operation and electronic warfare, or similarly long time learning how to manipulate eezo nodules in the nervous system via bio-feedback.

But from a gameplay perspective, it isn't that big an issue. It's one of the reasons Warp Ammo is my fave - because I can just damn well stick it onto any character, and it provides a variety of boosts to any weapon I use, just like how ammo worked in ME1. Obviously, Warp Ammo doesn't really make any sense on a non-biotic, but since I largely play biotics it's not even a lore issue.

Modifié par JaegerBane, 09 octobre 2010 - 06:44 .

[Lumikki]

Ammo mods or ammo powers, it's battle between handy vs impression. It's same as elevators in ME1, not needed for gameplay, but it can create better impression, but cost of more time from players than just teleporting between places. Ammo power doesn't really make much sense, but it's very handy way to do it for gameplay. As for only sertain class have ammo powers, it's also issue, maybe for balance reason or unability invent "cool class powers" for every class.

I would my self like more ammos to be mods, because it makes more sense and gives better impression. Yes, I know, it does make ammos less handy for gameplay.

Modifié par Lumikki, 09 octobre 2010 - 07:18 .

[Turin_4]

Pushing a button to create an ammo power is still pushing a button, which needs no special training. It's the same as me pushing a button to turn on my crappy, 16 MB laptop I had in 1999 as pushing the button to turn on my 8 GB gaming PC today.

What about what is done to that 8GB gaming PC you've got today? Did you build it yourself, or modify it, or install any of the parts? Did that require any special training? There's a pretty sizable portion of the Normandy called the Armory. What do you suppose goes on there? Should ME2 have explained things better? Sure. Is it a big deal? Not in the least.

[JaegerBane]

Turin_4 wrote...

Pushing a button to create an ammo power is still pushing a button, which needs no special training. It's the same as me pushing a button to turn on my crappy, 16 MB laptop I had in 1999 as pushing the button to turn on my 8 GB gaming PC today.

What about what is done to that 8GB gaming PC you've got today? Did you build it yourself, or modify it, or install any of the parts? Did that require any special training? There's a pretty sizable portion of the Normandy called the Armory. What do you suppose goes on there? Should ME2 have explained things better? Sure. Is it a big deal? Not in the least.

I'm not really sure what your point is here, Turin. He doesn't need to have built the laptop himself to be able to switch it on, and the same goes for the ammo in game. At the end of the day, a specialised ammo amount is a tangible item - it isn't the manifested worth of being able to demonstrate telekinesis or hack a person's hardsuit computer. You load it.

Why do you think there's no specific combat power damage upgrades, hmmm?

Modifié par JaegerBane, 09 octobre 2010 - 08:24 .

[Frybread76]

Turin_4 wrote...

Pushing a button to create an ammo power is still pushing a button, which needs no special training. It's the same as me pushing a button to turn on my crappy, 16 MB laptop I had in 1999 as pushing the button to turn on my 8 GB gaming PC today.

What about what is done to that 8GB gaming PC you've got today? Did you build it yourself, or modify it, or install any of the parts? Did that require any special training? There's a pretty sizable portion of the Normandy called the Armory. What do you suppose goes on there? Should ME2 have explained things better? Sure. Is it a big deal? Not in the least.

What are you talking about?  Did Soldier Shepard build his own guns with little buttons to create fire or disruptor ammo?  What?

And, if Shepard or Jacob could modify their own guns to make them have ammo powers, then why not do that to EVERYONE's weapons.  Shep would have a much more effective squad than just giving himself fire ammo and Zaeed disruptor ammo.

[Turin_4]

[quote]I'm not really sure what your point is here, Turin. He doesn't need to have built the laptop himself to be able to switch it on, and the same goes for the ammo in game. At the end of the day, a specialised ammo amount is a tangible item - it isn't the manifested worth of being able to demonstrate telekinesis or hack a person's hardsuit computer. You load it.



Why do you think there's no specific combat power damage upgrades, hmmm?

[/quote]



It's not the manifested worth? If it's trivial, why are people upset about the change? If it isn't trivial, then it would seem you're mistaken. Furthermore, obviously it's not trivial. Switching from heavy disruptor to heavy warp or inferno can be enormously effective.



[quote]What are you talking about? Did Soldier Shepard build his own guns with little buttons to create fire or disruptor ammo? What?[?quote]



OK-use a little imagination: the little buttons are not magic. You don't just push a little button and that's it. That would be ridiculous, I agree. Flybread, can you really not take the next step? Do you need every last little tiny piece of the mechanics explained to you?



[quote]And, if Shepard or Jacob could modify their own guns to make them have ammo powers, then why not do that to EVERYONE's weapons. Shep would have a much more effective squad than just giving himself fire ammo and Zaeed disruptor ammo.[/quote]



Funny you should say that! They can.

[Frybread76]

[quote]Turin_4 wrote...

[quote]I'm not really sure what your point is here, Turin. He doesn't need to have built the laptop himself to be able to switch it on, and the same goes for the ammo in game. At the end of the day, a specialised ammo amount is a tangible item - it isn't the manifested worth of being able to demonstrate telekinesis or hack a person's hardsuit computer. You load it.

Why do you think there's no specific combat power damage upgrades, hmmm?
[/quote]

It's not the manifested worth? If it's trivial, why are people upset about the change? If it isn't trivial, then it would seem you're mistaken. Furthermore, obviously it's not trivial. Switching from heavy disruptor to heavy warp or inferno can be enormously effective.

[quote]What are you talking about? Did Soldier Shepard build his own guns with little buttons to create fire or disruptor ammo? What?[?quote]

OK-use a little imagination: the little buttons are not magic. You don't just push a little button and that's it. That would be ridiculous, I agree. Flybread, can you really not take the next step? Do you need every last little tiny piece of the mechanics explained to you?


[quote]And, if Shepard or Jacob could modify their own guns to make them have ammo powers, then why not do that to EVERYONE's weapons. Shep would have a much more effective squad than just giving himself fire ammo and Zaeed disruptor ammo.[/quote]

Funny you should say that! They can.[/quote]

Yes, Shepard can give his squad mates a LESSER version of his own ammo super powers, but not the strongest version, by pressing a button on his gun that magically changes the ammo properties of his squad mates' weapons.

But if Shepard can modify his own guns to give him ammo super powers, then why can't he modify his entire squad's guns in the armory to give them the most powerful version of ammo power, not the lesser squad versions?

[Turin_4]

Yes, Shepard can give his squad mates a LESSER version of his own ammo super powers, but not the strongest version, by pressing a button on his gun that magically changes the ammo properties of his squad mates' weapons.

But if Shepard can modify his own guns to give him ammo super powers, then why can't he modify his entire squad's guns in the armory to give them the most powerful version of ammo power, not the lesser squad versions?

OK, so what you really want is to have an incredibly powerful ammunition mod that is very damaging to enemies that can be changed in and out of weapons instantly in any situation that all characters can use at effectively zero cost, at no expense in credits or character points, just like in ME1? Just to be clear.

As for plausibility reasons, perhaps having a weapon that fires, say, warp ammo makes it fire slightly differently than normal ammo, meaning that Joe Adept can't just use it as easily as Arnold Schwarzensoldier.  Is it perfectly consistent with ME1?  No.  Use a little imagination!

Modifié par Turin_4, 09 octobre 2010 - 09:10 .

[sevalaricgirl]

The only thing I don't like about ME2 is that there isn't enough dialogue options and that bleeping firewalker. I hate that bleeping thing. I want my mako back. Other than that, I'm addicted to both games.

[Frybread76]

Turin_4 wrote...

Yes, Shepard can give his squad mates a LESSER version of his own ammo super powers, but not the strongest version, by pressing a button on his gun that magically changes the ammo properties of his squad mates' weapons.

But if Shepard can modify his own guns to give him ammo super powers, then why can't he modify his entire squad's guns in the armory to give them the most powerful version of ammo power, not the lesser squad versions?

OK, so what you really want is to have an incredibly powerful ammunition mod that is very damaging to enemies that can be changed in and out of weapons instantly in any situation that all characters can use at effectively zero cost, at no expense in credits or character points, just like in ME1? Just to be clear.

As for plausibility reasons, perhaps having a weapon that fires, say, warp ammo makes it fire slightly differently than normal ammo, meaning that Joe Adept can't just use it as easily as Arnold Schwarzensoldier.  Is it perfectly consistent with ME1?  No.  Use a little imagination!

No.  I'd rather have weapon/ammo mods (like we had in ME1) that you can change or install by visiting Jacob in the armory.  Shep could either purchase these mods or build them (kinda like how in KOTOR 2 you could make mods if your skill was high enough).

For people that would complain that weapon/ammo mods that you can't change during missions would make gameplay less flexible, then you can have multiple guns each with different mods.

[Turin_4]

No. I'd rather have weapon/ammo mods (like we had in ME1) that you can change or install by visiting Jacob in the armory. Shep could either purchase these mods or build them (kinda like how in KOTOR 2 you could make mods if your skill was high enough).

There, now that's a good idea instead of just silly complaining about the plausibility of a trivial gameplay element. I'd be behind that. And, to add utility to the Soldier and other combat hybrid classes, add a feature to them that permits them to make switches inside combat or perhaps inside missions at, say, weapons lockers.

Modifié par Turin_4, 09 octobre 2010 - 09:58 .

[Sago_mulch]

i was disappointed by the difficulty it was waaaay tooo hard and too much dialogue man. Biowear should just mold all the classes together into one class, make the game shorter as well and have more romancve.

[brfritos]

Zulu_DFA wrote...

smudboy wrote...

Zulu_DFA wrote...

smudboy wrote...
We want choices, not problem solving.

But we also want the choices to bite us in the аss from time to time!

I'd be happy with choices that impact anything at this point, including my ass.

Right.

And choices that impact beyond Shepard's control, BTW.

[Terror_K]

JaegerBane wrote...

Terror_K wrote...
In Mass Effect the concept makes little to no sense, and the explanation behind it is completely trite. It's just another one of many examples where in ME2 BioWare seemed to just not care about the overall realism and integrity of the ME world any more and just did all these things "becoz they b kewl!!1"

BioWare really need to pull the series back down to Earth with ME3, because as it stands with ME2 I simply can't take the universe seriously any more, and that's breaks immersion more than anything else.

I don't think it' necessarily just a case of things being justified, no matter how nonsensical, "becoz they b kewl!!1". I agree that there were things entered into the game that were there for no real reason, but this by and large didn't actually interfere with the gameplay and the storytelling.

I do think the whole idea about omni-tools shooting fireballs and characters learning 'squad ammo powers' was utterly absurd, and I suspect the reasoning behind this was due to Bioware trying to even out gameplay between the classes. In that regard I think the only real problem was that the developers just didn't bother trying to think out a plausible in-game reason for the changes, which is bad, and something that they really need to look at in ME3, but not something that ruins the game.

I do think Bioware need to re-think what they're doing with the way stuff is depicted in-game - as you say, it starts getting to the point where it becomes difficult to take seriously. However, they're still a long way from this being a problem so large that it ruins the game. I just hope that in ME3, they don't veer any further towards it.

I dunno... having squaddies run around in pajamas with only a breather-mask on for protection not only in combat but in hadardous environments takes me right out of the game, and the only way it doesn't ruin the game for me is if I make sure I'm only taking Tali, Garrus or Grunt to those locations, because they're the only ones with proper protection. Not to mention the fact that kinetic shields and the new medi-gel dispensing technology is supposed to be a part of armour, and yet your squaddies can run around in standard clothing (or in Jack's case, not so standard...) and still reap the benefits. As far as I'm concerned whoever decided that that was acceptable in a supposedly serious sci-fi universe should be flogged, fired and then flogged again, especially when the solution is so simple: give everybody battle-gear, and civvie gear, just like Shepard.

Then there's things like The Hammerhead: a vehicle so clearly made for platformy action sections in a game that it's mere presence takes me out of things.

The scarring I used is another example, it's just smacks of trying to be "badass" it's not funny. It's so modern Hollywood that it's pathetically sad... like something Michael Bay would put in one of his movies.

he fact that I'm supposed to believe Thermal Clips spread so far and fast and made old weapons extinct in less than two years is easier to ignore, but not by much, especially when you land on Aeia to find it riddled with them and have Zaeed telling old stories involving thermal clips from before their time, and when you consider places like Omega and The Migrant Fleet (are the poor and desperate really going to make sure they have the latest weapons in the case of the former, and I find it hard to believe a race that's struggling to keep their ships from falling apart and desperate for new ones and parts would make sure every weapon they have is top of the line).

Things are over-hologrammed too. I actually remember commenting on this back when the first images of  the tech-armour and other holograms was shown when people weren't entirely sure what they were. I pointed out how completely counterproductive it is in a combat situation to have something that lights you up so spectacularly, even when you're behind something, especially in the dark places you generally fight in in ME2. You may as well have a giant flashing sign above your head pointing down to say "I'm Here! Shoot Me to Win Prize!" or something. One of the devs (I forget who) popped in and basically said "but they look cool!" as an excuse, and that's pretty much when I realised that many of my fears were realised before I even knew about them. I countered again how simply looking cool isn't cool at all when it becomes so unrealistic that it boggles the mind, and the dev just said that if they decide something is cool enough, they'll put it in anyway, whether it makes sense or not.

And I think this is the wrong attitude and exactly what's wrong with much of ME2 aesthetically. Things that seem cool on pen and paper cease to be when they become so incredibly stupid that they crack the very fabric of the universe they're set in. ME1 had a lot of issues, but not once did I come across something and go "that's completely farcical and mind-numbingly stupid" that ended up taking me out of the game and breaking my immersion. ME2 is riddled with this stuff, and while much of it is minor on the surface, it pops up repeatedly and constantly and is hard to ignore. And when the people making the game don't even seem to give a damn about the integrity of their own universe any more and make sure stupid decisions and amateur mistakes, then why the hell should I care about it any more either? ME1 started off being something I was really considering to be --for me-- the Star Wars, Star Trek and Babylon 5 of this century. Now it's just become like all the other lazy, over-the-top dreck out there that sacrifices integrity and cohesion for being "coolz!" and "badass!!1" instead.

[JaegerBane]

Turin_4 wrote...

I'm not really sure what your point is here, Turin. He doesn't need to have built the laptop himself to be able to switch it on, and the same goes for the ammo in game. At the end of the day, a specialised ammo amount is a tangible item - it isn't the manifested worth of being able to demonstrate telekinesis or hack a person's hardsuit computer. You load it.

Why do you think there's no specific combat power damage upgrades, hmmm?

It's not the manifested worth? If it's trivial, why are people upset about the change? If it isn't trivial, then it would seem you're mistaken. Furthermore, obviously it's not trivial. Switching from heavy disruptor to heavy warp or inferno can be enormously effective.

Turin, no offence, but what on earth are you talking about?

[JaegerBane]

Terror_K wrote...

I dunno... having squaddies run around in pajamas with only a breather-mask on for protection not only in combat but in hadardous environments takes me right out of the game, and the only way it doesn't ruin the game for me is if I make sure I'm only taking Tali, Garrus or Grunt to those locations, because they're the only ones with proper protection. Not to mention the fact that kinetic shields and the new medi-gel dispensing technology is supposed to be a part of armour, and yet your squaddies can run around in standard clothing (or in Jack's case, not so standard...) and still reap the benefits.

To be fair, the only problem I had with that was the breath masks. There are actually plenty of real-world precedents for skin-tight/snug space suits, not to mention within ME1 so the only issue with that is their performance under fire, which is really what kinetic barriers are for. Regardless, I didn't think it was enough of a problem to cause issues in the game (barring Jack, of course, but then her Alternate Appearence from the DLC looked much more practical)

Then there's things like The Hammerhead: a vehicle so clearly made for platformy action sections in a game that it's mere presence takes me out of things.

That's merely a matter of opinion, Terror_K, not something that can be empiracally put forward. Personally I thought the concept of a combat vehicle that blurred the line between ground vehicle and aircraft made a lot of sense given the way military technology has advanced in the ME universe. The only issue I had with the Hammerhead was that it's absurd fragility.

The scarring I used is another example, it's just smacks of trying to be "badass" it's not funny. It's so modern Hollywood that it's pathetically sad... like something Michael Bay would put in one of his movies.

Yeah, well, they did provide a way for the player to totally ignore it. I don't think there's really a legitimate reason to hold this up as a major problem.

he fact that I'm supposed to believe Thermal Clips spread so far and fast and made old weapons extinct in less than two years is easier to ignore, but not by much, especially when you land on Aeia to find it riddled with them and have Zaeed telling old stories involving thermal clips from before their time, and when you consider places like Omega and The Migrant Fleet (are the poor and desperate really going to make sure they have the latest weapons in the case of the former, and I find it hard to believe a race that's struggling to keep their ships from falling apart and desperate for new ones and parts would make sure every weapon they have is top of the line).

This definitely has some merit. While I don't remember Zaeed talking about Thermal Clips, the whole Aeia thing was an extreme example of what can go wrong when the ammo system changes to the polar opposite. I don't actually think the explanation they gave for the change was all that bad... my only beef was that there are other ways of achieving the goal in the codex for weapons rather than taking a step back 60 years and reintroducing the concept of ammo to infantry warfare. Stuff like the Revenant and the Avenger weren't so much a problem, but stuff like the Vindicator and the Mantis were just absurd - the Mantis couldn't even store enough 'ammo' to take advantage of the 10% extra ammo pack as 10% of it's total ammo didn't actually equate to a single shot.

Things are over-hologrammed too. I actually remember commenting on this back when the first images of  the tech-armour and other holograms was shown when people weren't entirely sure what they were. I pointed out how completely counterproductive it is in a combat situation to have something that lights you up so spectacularly, even when you're behind something, especially in the dark places you generally fight in in ME2. You may as well have a giant flashing sign above your head pointing down to say "I'm Here! Shoot Me to Win Prize!" or something. One of the devs (I forget who) popped in and basically said "but they look cool!" as an excuse, and that's pretty much when I realised that many of my fears were realised before I even knew about them. I countered again how simply looking cool isn't cool at all when it becomes so unrealistic that it boggles the mind, and the dev just said that if they decide something is cool enough, they'll put it in anyway, whether it makes sense or not.

The reason I was never bothered about this was the same reason why I didn't think stuff like Colossus armour was wrongly coloured. I mean, ultimately, every soldier on the battlefied has a targeting VI that highlights, paints and pinpoints every enemy within effective range - it's effectively rendered the concept of passive camoflage obsolete, so the idea the absence of a few LEDs wouldn't make any appreciable difference.

And I think this is the wrong attitude and exactly what's wrong with much of ME2 aesthetically. Things that seem cool on pen and paper cease to be when they become so incredibly stupid that they crack the very fabric of the universe they're set in. ME1 had a lot of issues, but not once did I come across something and go "that's completely farcical and mind-numbingly stupid" that ended up taking me out of the game and breaking my immersion. ME2 is riddled with this stuff, and while much of it is minor on the surface, it pops up repeatedly and constantly and is hard to ignore. And when the people making the game don't even seem to give a damn about the integrity of their own universe any more and make sure stupid decisions and amateur mistakes, then why the hell should I care about it any more either? ME1 started off being something I was really considering to be --for me-- the Star Wars, Star Trek and Babylon 5 of this century. Now it's just become like all the other lazy, over-the-top dreck out there that sacrifices integrity and cohesion for being "coolz!" and "badass!!1" instead.

While I can see some merit in what you're saying, respectfully, I think you're going too far on a lot of them. The point about LEDs and skin-tight suits indicates that you've built up your own view of what is and isn't acceptable, regardless of whether it's realistic or not. I've never been a fan of the thermal clip system and the best I can say about it is that it wasn't as crap as I'd initially feared, but realistically, it's been reasoned in the game and supported. Whether you like it or not is up to you, but there isn't really legitimate reason to decree it 'farcical'.

[Terror_K]

It's not that the suits are skin-tight that's the main issue: it's that they're skin-exposed that's my main problem. A space-suit that's half a foot thick doesn't make much difference if you're not wearing a helmet. Beyond that my issues are that outfits that don't have the capacity to have kinetic shields and medi-gel dispensers shouldn't realistically be healing and protecting people.

But again, my main issue is that a breathing mask is apparently enough to protect against hazardous environments such as the vacuum of space, various toxins, high pressure, extreme temperatures, random planetary elements, etc. It's a simple, and stupid mistake that should never have been made, and they were definitely more careful about it in ME1 by making sure nobody had exposed outfits and that full-face helmets came on in hazardous places. In ME2 it's like they no longer care about the integrity and realism of the universe suddenly after setting up a generally believable setting in the first game (if one ignores the space magic that is eezo and biotics, but every sci-fi gets a couple of these). One moment we've got codex entries and characters speaking about the hazards of space, and then in the sequel they just don't give a damn and make lazy and bad choices like that. How am I supposed to trust a development company who makes such a juvenile, amateur mistake like this? It seriously boggles my mind that they could either be so dense, so careless or so blase about it. It's not like this is something that slipped through: it was a clearly intentional thing, considering they designed the so-called "protection" themselves. To me it's the equivalent of watching Star Trek DS9 or Babylon 5 and suddenly them having an episode where a character gets out onto the space station without even wearing a suit. I know it's science fiction, but there are some laws you have to obey. Hell... even Futurama obeys this one and it's a friggin cartoon!

[Biotic_Warlock]

Well i think the only thing dissapointiong is the lack of Male-Male romance options... but then again so many ppl have complained about that before, so i shouldn't go too far into detail about that.



Other then that Mass effect 2 is probably the best game i have ever played.

[JaegerBane]

Terror_K wrote...

It's not that the suits are skin-tight that's the main issue: it's that they're skin-exposed that's my main problem. A space-suit that's half a foot thick doesn't make much difference if you're not wearing a helmet. Beyond that my issues are that outfits that don't have the capacity to have kinetic shields and medi-gel dispensers shouldn't realistically be healing and protecting people.

But again, my main issue is that a breathing mask is apparently enough to protect against hazardous environments such as the vacuum of space, various toxins, high pressure, extreme temperatures, random planetary elements, etc. It's a simple, and stupid mistake that should never have been made, and they were definitely more careful about it in ME1 by making sure nobody had exposed outfits and that full-face helmets came on in hazardous places. In ME2 it's like they no longer care about the integrity and realism of the universe suddenly after setting up a generally believable setting in the first game (if one ignores the space magic that is eezo and biotics, but every sci-fi gets a couple of these). One moment we've got codex entries and characters speaking about the hazards of space, and then in the sequel they just don't give a damn and make lazy and bad choices like that. How am I supposed to trust a development company who makes such a juvenile, amateur mistake like this? It seriously boggles my mind that they could either be so dense, so careless or so blase about it. It's not like this is something that slipped through: it was a clearly intentional thing, considering they designed the so-called "protection" themselves. To me it's the equivalent of watching Star Trek DS9 or Babylon 5 and suddenly them having an episode where a character gets out onto the space station without even wearing a suit. I know it's science fiction, but there are some laws you have to obey. Hell... even Futurama obeys this one and it's a friggin cartoon!

Indeed, and that's why I'm not so keen on the idea of a breath mask somehow protecting against extremes of hot and cold, pressure etc. I suspect part of this is to do with the fact that *by and large*, you're not in environments that would require full all-enclosing space suits. There are a few where they pushed the limits of beliveability (the planet where you retrieve the Hammerhead is one that sticks in my mind) but you're never exploring planetoids with virtually no atmosphere like you did on Bring Down the Sky or whatnot, and hence, I can see why they didn't consider full helmets as necessary.

Why they didn't just bite the bullet and go with full helmets is not really clear, as it would have allowed them a lot more leeway in designing levels, but in the end, there isn't really any solid evidence to suggest they present a situation like the one you describe (i.e. running around on the outside of a space station).