January 2, 2008

Mass Effect is the best roleplaying game that ever graced the Xbox 360. It plays in a similar fashion to the game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic by Bioware. In case you didn't know, Bioware is an exceptional game development company that has made great rpg such as Baldur's gate and Mass Effect. My point is that they've perfected the conversation trees. You simply select a thought from the little menu on the bottom of the screen, and your character says a similar comment or question. Sometimes this will even result in an automatic action such as shooting a character, but I won't spoil anything for you. Just know that the conversations flow like real ones. Also, what you say and do in the game affects the outcome.

If you don't care about game dialog, there is also a real-time combat system. It plays like Gears of War in that you must shoot and use biotic abilities from cover. However, it just isn't as good as the company's previous inclusions. It doesn't suck, but it could have been better if it was a mixture of turn-based and real-time combat.

The graphics are the best on Microsoft’s console no matter what resolution your television can handle. The sound is just as good if you have decent speakers. As for the story, the dialog system, your impact, and the true cinematic narrative bring it all together. You will want to play the game at least twice to see everything. That is because you can either be a good cop (paragon) or a bad cop (renegade.) Overall, all hardcore 360 owners should get this game. Well, what are you waiting for?