Challenge

As with many other games similar to its kind, ME2 (Mass Effect 2) is relatively challenging, but tends to get quite a bit easier as your character levels up.  For those who prefer a lot of challenge, or not much challenge at all, ME2 offers three difficulty settings- easy, medium, and hard.  Directions and quests are relatively easy to follow, and locations where you are supposed to go for quests and the like are clearly marked.  Overall, the game offers decent challenge, but the real fun in playing is probably more towards the RPG aspects.

Graphics

The graphics in ME2 have a noticeable improvement over ME1.  Characters faces are clearly defined, with every single stray hair or chin stubble easily seen.  Uniforms and armor are well represented as well and offer quite a bit of detail and customization.   Muscle definition for male characters and curvature for female characters is well defined and well drawn; it is obvious that the game designers spent a lot of time on the physical attributes of each character.  Weapons and locations are also very clear and life-like, along with plant and animal life.

Replay Value

ME2 definitely has replay value in that the map that you are given to explore is absolutely huge; the game takes place in space, which is infinitely large, so why should it not be?  There are a ton of different planets that you can land on, all of which you could spend hours exploring and finding new items and gear.  The main quest takes a decent amount of time to complete, but there are so many side quests that you could be lost in the game for hours.  In addition to all this, there are five character classes and two genders to choose from when you create you character, so the possibilities of mixing and matching each of these are endless.

Narrative

As with most RPGs, the narrative is an integral part of the game, and it is no different with Mass Effect 2.  The storyline is relatively in depth, although a bit far fetched; in the beginning of the game you watch the death of your main character, Commander Shepherd, only to see him (or her) magically come back to life due to a combination of “modern” medicine and biotic implantations.  But then again the game takes place 200 years in the future so we should expect nothing less than pure medicinal magic.  The main quest is interesting enough and leads to a satisfying conclusion, but with the addition of the many side quests the game can take on a whole new meaning of its own, depending on how you decide to play it.

Ease of use

Although maybe a little difficult to get the hang of at first, ME2 is relatively simple in terms of controls.  The game can be paused in the middle of combat, and there are a plethora of useful tips and strategies throughout the game that make mastering the controls and easy process.

Social Playability

This game is one player, and would probably be pretty boring to just watch.  For those who enjoy one-player games and a bit of alone time, this is probably the game for you.  For those who do not, I suggest trying something else.

Overall Grade

Based on other RPGs that I have played in the past, this is probably one of the better ones that is offered offline and that is based in the future instead of medieval/magic warlock times.  The depth of the game is pretty amazing, and the interactive quality between the NPCs (non-player computers) is extremely realistic.  For RPGs of the future designed for console use alone, this could be a very good starting point.  Overall grade A-.

Replay Value

Parents, if you aren’t able to follow my suggestions from above, let me tell you about the replay value of this game in layman’s terms.  Depending on the player, this game could have great replay value, or it could be a one and done deal.  Fortunately (or unfortunately) the game definitely takes more than one weekend to beat, assuming that you don’t play it for 12 hours a day, so it may be worth buying outright.  However, if you know that your child is rather goal oriented and just enjoys beating a game and than never touching it again, this is one of those games where that goal can be achieved in a relatively short amount of time.  If that is the case with your child, than I suggest that you do not buy this game.

Social Playability

This game is one player, so unless your child has friends who enjoy watching one-player video games, this game is for solitary enjoyment only.  If that is not a problem for you than I would suggest getting the game; it is a great game.  However, if you are trying to foster some social interaction, this is not the game.

Objectionable Content

• Violence- there is a fair amount of violence in this game, but as far as M games go this isn’t all that bad.  There are minimal levels of bloodshed and the fighting is like any other first person shooter.
• Sexual content- this game can at times be sexually suggestive.  You are able to have relations with other characters in the game, and although there are no actual depictions of the relations, the content is suggestive nonetheless.
• Drunkenness- your character is able to go to bars and drink enough to pass out.  This is obviously quite suggestive.
• Gender stereotyping- as with many video games men are hyper-masculinized and women are hyper-femenized.  Although these images of men and women are extremely unrealistic, I personally wouldn’t don’t find them all that objectionable, but depending on how you view such images, this game does contain a lot of that kind of content.
• Language- there is a decent bit of language, nothing more than the “S” word but enough to contribute to the games M rating.

Addictiveness

This game can be slightly addictive, but it does not take all that long to beat so at most your child could be addicted to it for a week or so at most.  When I played I was pretty immersed in the storyline and I found that the hours just melted away when I played.  However, the game is over pretty quickly and I got pretty bored after that.

Final Notes for Parents

As with many new RPG’s for console systems, characters are getting more and more realistic and there are many more available character interactions such as sexual, friendship, or aggressive interactions.  This game is a decent bit of fun, but definitely meant for more mature audiences than younger children.  Many of the games aspects, such as getting drunk or wooing female or male characters is probably beyond children under the age of 13-14 anyway.

Academic Perspective

This game is very interesting from an academic perspective. Avatars are completely customizable and are very realistic looking. Every aspect of your avatars facial structure can be changes, from cheek depth to lip size. I have yet to find a game that lets you customize your avatars hair, but this game had the most customizable facial features I have ever seen. The implications are two fold- I feel like realism is definitely increased along with immersion for you can make your avatar look just like you. When playing this game I found that I was very immersed as well, not only because of my avatar, but also because of the depth of the storyline and the size of the game world. There was so much that you could explore, and there were so many between character interactions and small plotline deviations that you can find yourself getting lost in the game. I would love to see some long-term studies that use this game to test for different things such as addictiveness or realism.