Mass Effect PC

Fear · Post by **Fear** » July 2nd, 2008, 0:40

Spoiler:

Post by **deject** » July 2nd, 2008, 3:02

Sheriff Fatman wrote:I'm a big fan of KoToR, and Baldur's Gate, but this game is just hard work. The map and inventory are rubbish. There is far too much pissing around in the inventory to get to where you want to be and the map has been utterly useless, so far.

Meh, as I said: PC snob.

OK, see, you fail hard for sure now. KOTOR was a much worse console port in every way than Mass Effect is. It had the shitty textures that shouted "HEY I WAS MADE FOR THE ORIGINAL XBOX." The inventory and equipment screens are almost exactly the same. Selecting skills was a much bigger pain in the ass in KotOR, what with needing to scroll through 3 items to get what you want, and that's after you've properly got the mouse on the right stupid small box. I just don't get how you think it's a shitty console port. The only port that behaves this well in recent memory is COD 4, which was more simultaneously developed than a port. Bioshock wasn't this good.

Post by **Dog Pants** » July 2nd, 2008, 7:34

I've got to say I really can't see your point either. The inventory system is annoying, but not nearly enough to spoil the game. I can't remember a lot about Baldur's Gate other than that I was completely uninspired by it and gave up half way through because it just felt lika a grind. Mass Effect's quests all feel like a natural progression, and the dialogue gives them more gravity than the typical 'clear my cellar of rats' quests most RPGs lump you with.

Post by **FatherJack** » July 2nd, 2008, 8:17

Sheriff Fatman wrote:It's a console port. From the first moment I started the game it was glaringly obvious. I'll hold my hands up as a PC snob, but the entire interface, quest system, map and anything else was shit; it's cluncky, counter-intuitive and far too much like hard work.
I just got bored.

You should have seen it when it was a console game. The weapon selection is massively improved for the PC, the Mako is (a bit) more drivable and the hacking bits are..well I can actually do them on the PC.

Yeah, it's a console port, but a much better one than a lot around, they've made an effort to improve things and make them more PC-friendly, far more so than they did with the KoTORs and Jade Empire and don't even get me started on those "Games for Windows" abominations where you have to click the buttons of a rendering of the 360 controller to operate them.

It does get a bit samey, particularly if you do all the missions where it plonks the Mako on a planet, and since I've taken the same approach I did in Bioshock of hacking everything I see - that can get a bit monotonous.

How does it work if you have no hacking skills yourself, do you have to use mongy-gel every time?

Post by **Dog Pants** » July 2nd, 2008, 8:21

FatherJack wrote:How does it work if you have no hacking skills yourself, do you have to use mongy-gel every time?

You use the skill of your comrades, which is why I always take Tali on landings. From what I've encountered, if you don't have enough skill you just can't do it, omni-gel or otherwise.

spoodie · Post by **spoodie** » July 2nd, 2008, 10:07

Well I liked the original, console version and I'm not going to play it on the PC as I've already finished it on the 360.

Post by **deject** » July 2nd, 2008, 15:01

After I got about halfway through the game I had so much mongni-gel that I just did that anyways even though I could easily beat the hacking mini-game, mostly because I was trying to get through the cookie cutter side quests as fast as possible.

Sheriff Fatman · Post by **Sheriff Fatman** » July 2nd, 2008, 21:07

Well, it seems I am in the minority here

I've put a few more hours into it today and nothing I have seen has changed my mind. I'm not saying it's a bad port, but it is still a console game nonetheless: I don't like the interface and it seems to be a struggle to do anything. Perhaps I am too used to being spoon-fed "go here and do this" quests from PC-centric games, but the quest system is a pain in the arse. I'm constantly having to click backwards and forwards between the myriad of entries I have in my log to work out where the fuck I need to be (which more often than not is in another galaxy).

As I said, it's just too much hard work, and it's boring.

spoodie · Post by **spoodie** » July 2nd, 2008, 21:29

Sheriff Fatman wrote:Well, it seems I am in the minority here

Yes, get to the back of the bus.

Post by **Dog Pants** » July 2nd, 2008, 21:29

Ah, I think I understand what you mean there. You can't access the journal from the navigation screen, so you need to come out and check, then try to remember the name of the planet and system you're after. I did get briefly and slightly annoyed by that.

Had I not already known though, I'd have never guessed it was a console port. Feels fine to me. You must be more sensitive

Shada · Post by **Shada** » July 2nd, 2008, 21:35

Sheriff Fatman wrote:Perhaps I am too used to being spoon-fed "go here and do this" quests from PC-centric games

So now you're picking out GOOD traditional PC game features like reduced hand-holding and an encouragement to figure things out yourself and saying it's the mark of a console port? :D

Anyway, by clicking back and forth through log entries, do you mean the journal? The ones that clearly say "Go to this system in this sector and do this"? Because I don't see how you're having trouble working it out.

Post by **Roman Totale** » July 2nd, 2008, 21:35

spoodie wrote: Yes, get to the back of the bus.

The short bus.

Post by **Dog Pants** » July 2nd, 2008, 21:44

Roman Totale wrote:
The short bus.

The other bus.

Killavodka · Post by **Killavodka** » July 2nd, 2008, 23:52

Dog Pants wrote:
The other bus.

The Rhom bus

Post by **HereComesPete** » July 3rd, 2008, 18:01

Killavodka wrote:
The Rhom bus

Anery · Post by **Anery** » July 4th, 2008, 7:22

So far I have
1. Shot everybody I get the chance to
2. Pissed the council off somewhat by blatantly ignoring them
3. Biffed an alien

The alien was the most fun

Post by **Dog Pants** » July 4th, 2008, 9:05

Crikey, you're flying through. I only did the romantic bit last night, same night I finished the game.

I'm really rather impressed, very well put together and a nice (relatively) original story. Nice to play a character who doesn't have amnesia.

I'll definately be playing through again, if only to try the other romantic sub-plots and try life as a renegade (and this time maybe not let the Council get blown up

)

Lateralus · Post by **Lateralus** » July 4th, 2008, 11:47

Well I just found that one of my mates has the xbox version of this, so given that it comes for the bargain price of Free, I might give it a go.

Sheriff Fatman · Post by **Sheriff Fatman** » July 29th, 2008, 16:51

For info:

http://masseffect.bioware.com/galacticc ... ky_pc.html

Post by **Dog Pants** » July 29th, 2008, 17:13

Is it any good? I heard it put a time limit on the game.