This is just the short list, mind you, I'm sure we can spend all day going over every nuance of the game that people liked or disliked.
An Honest Mature Story in Missions
Mature in this case doesn't mean showing off naughty bits, blowing people up into a bloody mess, or exaggerated use of foul language. That is in fact quite immature by comparison. I'm talking about the stuff with real deep meaningful significance, situations that expose you to the harsh realities of life and put before you real difficult decisions and opinions without any simple answers. This is stuff that makes some people uncomfortable, but it's a perfect and vital part of what makes Mass Effect so great, especially for this darker second chapter.
Jacob's loyalty mission can be truly disturbing, especially when you can clearly see it happening. Mordin's loyalty mission gives you a very honest, defendable, and logical reason why sterilizing an entire species was the best course of action. What's more it refuses to back down from this position and give you an easy way out. While at the same time is shows you the horrors that can develop in a species that are forced to live with this manufactured genetic curse. Tali's mission is a heart-wrenching example of how much politics can ruin a person and a family, and gives you a difficult decision between doing what's right for the truth or doing what's best for those you care about.
Which is why it's kind of strange, though not unexpected, to have people complaining about the intensity and dark, mature themes explored in these missions. These plot elements really bothered some people, who now insist that Bioware went to far. Well I completely disagree. The whole point of the game is that people go too far in real life all the time, and here they show you the result. It's up to you, as the mature player here, to figure out how to deal with that. It is by experiencing these real, and sometimes horrible situations that you become truly immersed in the story. The real world is never all about happy jokes and easy to kill enemies. And there's no reason to insult a mature audience by pretending that it is. Don't shy away from doing these kinds of missions, keep it real, even if the reality is more disturbing then we'd be comfortable.
The caveat to this however is that it only works because these themes are interspersed with some really high quality humor, as well as some wonderfully simplistic choices and a good heaping of violence and/or sex. This is important because all of this heavy mature story elements can become quickly morose and downright depressing if the player isn't given ample opportunity to break away from it. I've seen it too often in other games, movies, and TV shows where the writers are trying too damn hard to make everything so serious, and nothing good ever happens as a result, just one more depressing hardship after another. At which point I lose all interest.
Thankfully ME2 doesn't do that, it is the great balance towards fun that really makes the game work so well. The simple mindless fun aspects of the game really give you a greater sense of just how dark the universe can get when you're exposed to it in later missions. Likewise those dark themed uncomfortable missions allow you to appreciate the opportunity for mindless fun that much more.
Plus it helps to know that at the end of the game we'll be the ones kicking ass, winning against the bad guys, and making the galaxy a better place. True happy endings like that aren't exactly realistic, but that is where the game and the real world have to diverge. You have to win in the end, you have to be happy with your experiences when all is said and done, simply because this is still a game, and at the end of the day we want to enjoy ourselves. And that is what makes these missions even better, because at the end of the day you Can and Do make a difference. You rescue all the people from the planet on Jacob's mission. You can choose to save the data on the Genophage cure, you can help people resolve their dark pasts. This is what makes the game great, and I for one can't wait for more.
Liara Hardened
Wow, this one was a big shock to everyone. We were so used to the innocent archaeologist from the first game. Like the science geek in high school, she had this naivete that people found endearing. Of course that all went out the window when the Normandy blew up. Now when we meet her she's angry. Handing out threats, looking for people to kill, and lost in her own world of vengeance.
It's kind of strange seeing people who just can't quite handle that. It is such a drastic change people are convinced it ruined the character. This is, simply put, not the same Liara from the first game.
To which I say, what the hell did you expect? It's been 2 years! And Liara's gone through hell during that time. Which she'll tell you about if you bothered to talk to her about it. She changed a lot just in the few months she spent with you in the original game, it makes sense that after 2 years she wouldn't be the same.
This is something the Devs got down right. After two years I want to see characters changing and developing. Seeing Liara change so drastically was just great! I personally love the way she was handled, I love seeing her becoming a bit meaner, a bit more ruthless, as she struggles to deal with the injustices of the galaxy in her own way. This is a path Liara needed to take and it was awesome being able to see that in person.Plus it really showed you in a jarring way just how much things have changed. I can't imagine a better way to show the players that they're not in Kansas anymore. This is what the Universe has become without your presence in the last two years. Just imagine how boring it would have been for Liara to remain exactly the same this time. That would have truly sucked.
You see other characters change pretty dramatically as well in this game, and every time I have to say it was wonderfully done. Tali's become a lot more mature since completing her Pilgrimage. Garrus went from a lawful but troubled cop on the edge to a full blown vigilante. And it's awesome! Hell even Joker changed noticeably. It might not be something you pick up right away, but he's the one out on the port entrance of the ship shooting down collectors at the end of the game. He's the one risking his life for you the way you risked your life for him two years prior.
Seeing character develop especially for a game like Mass Effect, is truly great. The greater injustice would have been to not see the characters develop at all.
Jack
So now people are afraid of strong personalities in a woman? Even though at least half of the players are actually playing one?
Ok I jest, but it's funny that people would find her offensive, since that's kinda the whole point. She's a criminal, of the violent Homicidal Maniac variety. She lived in a prison where the most innocent man there killed about twenty people and destroyed a habitat. And even then they had to put her in cryo-statis isolation, guarded by three heavy mechs.
But for some reason there are some people that are offended by her rude behavior. Truly that can only be described as comedy. It's equally funny, and just as pointless, that the one thing people seem to hate about her the most is her haircut.
Regardless of the reasons why though, I personally think she's a great character. In fact I think the fact that so many people hate her is a good thing. Great in fact, she's the type of person that wants you to hate her, she wants to make the people around her uncomfortable. Let's face it, she'd love any excuse to kill anyone near her. The way I figure, the more people hate her the better she is as a character because of it.
That said I do look forward to how she will evolve in ME3, maybe she'll learn to be kinder and gentler person. Personally I hope she remains the same offensive violent person, only evolved to the point where she at least treats her friends (i.e. you) a lot better. Not kinder, mind you, just better. She'll still insult you given half the chance, but at least she'll be willing to sit down with you for a friendly lunch while doing so.
Miranda
Like Jack, Miranda has a surprising number of haters out there as well. Unlike Jack, however, Miranda was a character that I pretty much hated for most of the game. But this is what makes her such an awesome character.
All throughout the game she was always going on about how superior she was. She made sure to remind you that if it hadn't been for her and Cerberus you wouldn't even be alive. And even after showing her proof she still refused to see how bad Cerberus truly was. I couldn't believe it that after helping her with her sister, after taking her to see the conditions Jack was raised in, after confronting her about the experiments they conducted on Husks, Thorians, even Rachnni, she was still defending Cerberus and all their actions.
It seemed we disagreed on everything. So much so that when she and Jack had their little argument, I sided with Jack even though I could have easily persuaded both of them to stand down without choosing a side. I came back around to smooth things over with her with the proper renegade dialog, sure, but at the time I simply refused to agree with her even remotely. God how I hated her.
And that was the biggest reason why I love the writing they did with this character. Because as much as I hated her, I also totaly respected her. I liked that she stuck with her guns even when I completely disagreed with her. I liked that she never once had a problem disagreeing with me in return. And it was the fact that we completely disagreed and yet still respected each other that made things so much better when she finally did agree with me about the Collector base, even going so far as resigning from Cerberus rather then be forced into following TIM's orders.
This is why I so look forward to her in ME3, not as a friend who agrees with me, there are plenty of those already, but as someone I respect who still disagrees with me. I want to have that character who is a constant foil to my decisions, someone who will always have the opposing viewpoint available for me to see.
I can see a great rivalry happening here between Miranda and my Shepard. Shepard was born on the streets of Earth and had to fight everyday just to survive. Miranda also born on Earth but in a a life of luxury, everything she could ever want was provided for her but she threw it all away for the one thing she didn't have, her freedom. Despite both coming from the same planet they come from two completely different worlds. And I can't wait to see how this develops further.
Again this is just a short list of the wonderful story elements Bioware added to this game, even if they weren't the most loved. And I can only hope that Bioware will continue to add more of these in the future. That's not to say they didn't make some mistakes that they really need never repeat if at all possible. But that's probably something best left for another thread.
Retour en haut
