Post by Jonathan on Feb 24, 2017 19:56:29 GMT -5
Mass Effect
Mass Effect is an action role-playing video game developed by BioWare and originally released for the Xbox 360 video game console in 2007. It is the first game of the Mass Effect series, taking place within the Milky Way galaxy in the year 2183. The player assumes the role of Commander Shepard, an elite human soldier who must stop a rogue agent from opening a portal for a highly advanced machine race of synthetic-organic starships that are believed to eradicate all organic civilization every 50,000 years. The gameplay requires the player to explore a galaxy map to find and complete quests. Most of the game's main quests are combat missions, while secondary quests generally involve the player gathering items or interacting with non-player characters.
Planned as the first chapter of a trilogy from the very beginning, Mass Effect was developed over the course of three and a half years and uses the Unreal Engine 3 as a groundwork. It was designed so that the player would assume the role of a central character that could make important decisions and impact the story of the game in numerous ways. The combat was designed to offer the tactics and customization of a role-playing game, but through a simpler and real-time third-person shooter interface. In 2008 and 2009, two downloadable content packs that introduced new missions to the base game were released.
Mass Effect received critical acclaim from video game publications and sold more than one and a half million copies as of January 2008. Critics praised the game's interactive storytelling and cinematic design, but criticized its unbalanced combat mechanics and poor artificial intelligence. The game received several year-end awards, including Best RPG at the 2007 Spike Video Game Awards and Roleplaying Game of the Year at the 2008 D.I.C.E. Awards. Mass Effect was ported to the Microsoft Windows and PlayStation 3 platforms in 2008 and 2012, respectively. A sequel, Mass Effect 2, was released in 2010.
Mass Effect is set within the Milky Way galaxy in the year 2183 where interstellar travel is possible through the use of mass transit devices called Mass Relays, a technology believed to have been built by an extinct alien race known as the Protheans.[10] The term "Mass Effect" is defined as a form of mass-negating technology, allowing the creation of physics phenomenons like artificial gravity or FTL travel.[11] A conglomerate body of governments known as the Citadel Council controls a large percentage of the galaxy and is responsible for maintaining law and order among races of the galactic community.[12] Races that belong to the Citadel Council include humans, asari, salarians, and turians. Other alien races seen in the game include the reptilian krogan, the environmental suited quarians, and a hostile race of networked artificial intelligences called geth. Humanity is represented by the Systems Alliance, an organized body that joined the Citadel Council in 2157.[13]
The protagonist of the game is Commander Shepard (voiced by Mark Meer or Jennifer Hale), a graduate of the Systems Alliance special forces program and a candidate to become the first human member of the Spectre force, agents who are above the law and answer directly to the Council. Shepard's squad members include human Systems Alliance marine Kaidan Alenko (Raphael Sbarge), human Systems Alliance soldier Ashley Williams (Kimberly Brooks), turian Citadel Security officer Garrus Vakarian (Brandon Keener), krogan mercenary Urdnot Wrex (Steven Barr), quarian mechanic Tali'Zorah (Liz Sroka), and asari archaeologist Liara T'Soni (Ali Hillis). Other characters include SSV Normandy captain David Anderson (Keith David) and SSV Normandy's pilot Jeff "Joker" Moreau (Seth Green).[14]
Plot Edit
Mass Effect begins when Shepard is sent to the human colony of Eden Prime to recover an unearthed Prothean beacon. After landing on the planet, Shepard and Kaidan meet Ashley, who reveals that the colony is under attack by a geth army. The army is led by a rogue turian Spectre named Saren Arterius, who activates the beacon before escaping. Shepard ultimately locates the beacon and receives a vision showing scenes of war and death. The SSV Normandy and its crew are summoned by Ambassador Donnel Udina to the Citadel Station, but Shepard is unable to convince the Citadel Council of Saren's treason without solid evidence. With the help of Garrus and Wrex, Shepard is led to Tali'Zorah, who possesses a recording of a conversation between Saren and an asari Matriarch named Benezia. In the recording, the two discuss their victory while also mentioning an artifact called the "Conduit" and the return of the Reapers, a highly advanced machine race of synthetic-organic starships believed to eradicate all organic civilization every 50,000 years. Confronted with this evidence, the Council revokes Saren's Spectre status and makes Shepard the first human Spectre. Anderson relinquishes command of the SSV Normandy to Shepard, who uses it to follow several leads provided by Anderson and Udina.
On the world of Therum, Shepard rescues Benezia's daughter Liara T'Soni, who joins Shepard's squad because of her biotic abilities and expertise in the Protheans. On the colony of Feros, Shepard fights off Saren's forces and learns that Saren's flagship, Sovereign, possesses unique mind-control capabilities. On the world of Noveria, Shepard tracks down Benezia and defeats her, revealing that she and Saren are being controlled by Sovereign. After completing these missions, the Council informs Shepard that a salarian infiltration unit has uncovered Saren's main base on Virmire. Upon arrival, Shepard learns that Saren has discovered a cure for the krogan disease known as the genophage and plans to breed an army of unstoppable krogan warriors. When Wrex finds out about the cure, he clashes with Shepard over whether to destroy it, and Shepard must either kill Wrex, have Ashley kill him, or convince him to stand down. After this conflict, Shepard assists the salarians in destroying the base by planting a bomb in it. Inside the base, Shepard is confronted by Sovereign, who reveals itself to be an actual Reaper.
Sovereign reveals that the Reapers remain outside the Milky Way waiting for organic life to develop and discover the Mass Relays, before being harvested upon reaching their peak. Shepard also finds Saren, who claims that his allegiance to Sovereign will save organic life forms by demonstrating their usefulness to the Reapers, but ultimately escapes. Shepard then receives news that both Ashley and Kaidan have become pinned down and has only enough time to save one of them before the bomb explodes. Back on the SSV Normandy, Liara is able to pinpoint the Conduit's location on a Prothean world known as Ilos. There, Shepard learns that the Citadel Station is actually a huge Mass Relay that the Reapers use to invade the galaxy. During the last extinction cycle, a few Protheans survived on Ilos via cryopreservation and then re-entered the Citadel Station via the Conduit, a reverse-engineered miniature mass relay disguised aboard the station as a statue. The scientists managed to sabotage the process that would summon the Reapers in order to prevent future extinction cycles from succeeding. Saren plans to undo this sabotage, and needs the Conduit to get him inside the Citadel.
Shepard pursues Saren through the Conduit, arriving at the Citadel as it is under attack by Sovereign and a massive geth force. After confronting Saren, Shepard can fight or convince him to rebel, and, if convinced, Saren will thank Shepard before committing suicide. Joker then informs Shepard of a human Systems Alliance fleet massing to counterattack. Shepard can order the Alliance fleet to save the Council and risk heavy casualties or go directly after Sovereign while risking the death of the Council. Saren's corpse is then reanimated by Sovereign, who attacks Shepard while simultaneously fighting off the Alliance. Eventually, humanity prevails, and Saren's corpse is destroyed while Sovereign is dispatched by the SSV Normandy. If Shepard chose to save the Council, the Council will thank humanity and add a human member to their ranks. The other choice will result in the death of the Council, letting humanity take over. Regardless of outcome, Shepard is asked to nominate either Anderson or Udina to this new leadership position. Shepard does so, then turns away from the proceedings, vowing to end the Reaper threat.
Mass Effect features two downloadable content packs. The first pack, "Bring Down the Sky", was released as a paid download for the Xbox 360 on March 10, 2008 and as a free download for Microsoft Windows on May 28, 2008.[56] The pack is included in the PlayStation 3 version of the game, which was released on December 4, 2012.[57] "Bring Down the Sky" introduces a new mission where the player must explore an asteroid using the Mako and prevent it from striking an Earth-like planet. It also includes a new alien race and additional side-quest content.[58] According to BioWare, the adventure takes 90 minutes to complete.[56] Ryan Geddes of IGN highlighted the pack's included extras and "stunning" visuals,[58] while Dan Whitehead of Eurogamer criticized its lack of narrative weight and reuse of outpost maps that are also available in the base game.[59]
The second pack, "Pinnacle Station", was released as a paid download for the Xbox 360 and as a free download for Microsoft Windows on August 25, 2009.[57][60] However, it remains absent on the PlayStation 3 version of the game.[57] The pack introduces a training facility where the player can compete in eight virtual reality combat scenarios, divided into four different game types like Deathmatch and Capture the flag.[60] After beating the combat scenarios, the player needs to complete four more to unlock a special survival mode, which is the same as the previous survival challenges but requires players to last five minutes.[60] BioWare described "Pinnacle Station" as "a Fight Club-style arena" and originally intended to include a similar arena in the base game, but the idea was ultimately dropped because they were not able to do it well enough.[61] The pack received mediocre reviews from critics,[62] who called it uninspiring and unnecessary.[60][63]
Mass Effect Galaxy is a game for iOS, released on June 22, 2009. The story focuses on backstory of one of the companion characters from Mass Effect 2. BioWare stated that the game will contain two hours of gameplay and will have "top down shooter action". BioWare also stated that the game, like the novels, will not be "required reading" for Mass Effect 2, meaning that players will still be able to enjoy Mass Effect 2 having only played Mass Effect.[1][2]
The story starts off with Jacob Taylor on vacation aboard a cruise ship. It is suddenly boarded by pirates and Jacob, utilizing his experience as a former Alliance soldier, fights the pirates off. The pirates turn out to be batarians. He is sent to the Citadel where he talks to his former commanding officer, Major Derek Izunami who assigns him to investigate the agenda of the batarians in the Terminus Systems and beyond.
There is a big commotion at the Citadel because a batarian ambassador, Jath'Amon is visiting the Council soon to negotiate peace. Many people are worried by this, as terrorists are threatening to ruin the peace talks. Jacob has to meet a woman named Miranda Lawson in the Nemean Abyss to get his information but he is forced to deal with human pirates who have taken over Cartagena Station. The boss of these pirates is called "Black Eye" Clint Darragh and you can choose to let him surrender or you can kill him. Miranda is impressed and tells you what she knows. There are three leads.
One is a turian arms smuggler named Illo Nazario who is hiding on Tortuga. He's been working with the batarians for several years and may know something. The second lead is information regarding the planet Bekke, where the batarians are building an army. This information is considered suspicious, as batarians form small terrorist cells as their preferred method of attack. The third lead is reports of human doctors and scientists being kidnapped by the batarians and being taken to the Ahn'Kedar Orbital Platform. It is implied they are being forced to work on a biological weapon. You can tackle these three missions in any order.
On Bekke, Jacob must discover what this army is protecting. Miranda's scans reveal some kind of hazardous material which gets more potent the further Jacob progresses through the base. It is eventually revealed to be a large cache of Element Zero, which enhances Jacob's Biotic abilities but could kill him unless he leaves quickly. He is extracted and the eezo is stored safely.
On the Ahn'Kedar Orbital Platform, Jacob discovers it has been taken over by batarians who are forcing the kidnapped scientist to work on something. He runs into Nax, a krogan who is searching for a missing asari scientist called Batha. The two decide to team up; Nax rescues Batha while Jacob saves the others. Nax distracts the batarians, allowing Jacob to sneak into the lab and confront the leader. The scientists claim that the batarians are dying of a blood plague and that they are working on a cure for them, but Jacob knows that this is a ruse. The batarians have engineered the disease themselves and are planning on unleashing it on the Citadel council, with the cure Batha has made as their defence. Miranda allows Batha to complete the cure on the ship but they must hurry to Tortuga to find Illo.
Upon arrival, Jacob meets an informant of Miranda's; a salarian named Ish. Ish tells Jacob that Illo hasn't made any deals in a while and may be up to something. He gives Jacob the passcode to Illo's base and warns him of the thugs he has as bodyguards. Jacob infiltrates the base and confronts Illo. Meeting him reveals that he is dying of a biological weapon the batarians have tested on him and he won't tell Jacob anything until he gets the cure which Batha has made. They take him to the ship and cure him and he tells Jacob everything he knows. He reveals that the batarians have no qualms about unleashing the virus in the council meeting because not only do they have the vaccine, but the Ambassador Jath'Amon is the terrorist leader and he plans on infecting the council members himself.
Jacob and Miranda rush to the Citadel where they foil the plan and save the council as well as hundreds of lives. Jath'Amon swears vengeance against Jacob and the human race and is escorted out by C-Sec. Jacob goes on another vacation and is surprised when Miranda joins him, a bottle of champagne in hand and a smirk on her face.
Mass Effect is an action role-playing video game developed by BioWare and originally released for the Xbox 360 video game console in 2007. It is the first game of the Mass Effect series, taking place within the Milky Way galaxy in the year 2183. The player assumes the role of Commander Shepard, an elite human soldier who must stop a rogue agent from opening a portal for a highly advanced machine race of synthetic-organic starships that are believed to eradicate all organic civilization every 50,000 years. The gameplay requires the player to explore a galaxy map to find and complete quests. Most of the game's main quests are combat missions, while secondary quests generally involve the player gathering items or interacting with non-player characters.
Planned as the first chapter of a trilogy from the very beginning, Mass Effect was developed over the course of three and a half years and uses the Unreal Engine 3 as a groundwork. It was designed so that the player would assume the role of a central character that could make important decisions and impact the story of the game in numerous ways. The combat was designed to offer the tactics and customization of a role-playing game, but through a simpler and real-time third-person shooter interface. In 2008 and 2009, two downloadable content packs that introduced new missions to the base game were released.
Mass Effect received critical acclaim from video game publications and sold more than one and a half million copies as of January 2008. Critics praised the game's interactive storytelling and cinematic design, but criticized its unbalanced combat mechanics and poor artificial intelligence. The game received several year-end awards, including Best RPG at the 2007 Spike Video Game Awards and Roleplaying Game of the Year at the 2008 D.I.C.E. Awards. Mass Effect was ported to the Microsoft Windows and PlayStation 3 platforms in 2008 and 2012, respectively. A sequel, Mass Effect 2, was released in 2010.
Mass Effect is set within the Milky Way galaxy in the year 2183 where interstellar travel is possible through the use of mass transit devices called Mass Relays, a technology believed to have been built by an extinct alien race known as the Protheans.[10] The term "Mass Effect" is defined as a form of mass-negating technology, allowing the creation of physics phenomenons like artificial gravity or FTL travel.[11] A conglomerate body of governments known as the Citadel Council controls a large percentage of the galaxy and is responsible for maintaining law and order among races of the galactic community.[12] Races that belong to the Citadel Council include humans, asari, salarians, and turians. Other alien races seen in the game include the reptilian krogan, the environmental suited quarians, and a hostile race of networked artificial intelligences called geth. Humanity is represented by the Systems Alliance, an organized body that joined the Citadel Council in 2157.[13]
The protagonist of the game is Commander Shepard (voiced by Mark Meer or Jennifer Hale), a graduate of the Systems Alliance special forces program and a candidate to become the first human member of the Spectre force, agents who are above the law and answer directly to the Council. Shepard's squad members include human Systems Alliance marine Kaidan Alenko (Raphael Sbarge), human Systems Alliance soldier Ashley Williams (Kimberly Brooks), turian Citadel Security officer Garrus Vakarian (Brandon Keener), krogan mercenary Urdnot Wrex (Steven Barr), quarian mechanic Tali'Zorah (Liz Sroka), and asari archaeologist Liara T'Soni (Ali Hillis). Other characters include SSV Normandy captain David Anderson (Keith David) and SSV Normandy's pilot Jeff "Joker" Moreau (Seth Green).[14]
Plot Edit
Mass Effect begins when Shepard is sent to the human colony of Eden Prime to recover an unearthed Prothean beacon. After landing on the planet, Shepard and Kaidan meet Ashley, who reveals that the colony is under attack by a geth army. The army is led by a rogue turian Spectre named Saren Arterius, who activates the beacon before escaping. Shepard ultimately locates the beacon and receives a vision showing scenes of war and death. The SSV Normandy and its crew are summoned by Ambassador Donnel Udina to the Citadel Station, but Shepard is unable to convince the Citadel Council of Saren's treason without solid evidence. With the help of Garrus and Wrex, Shepard is led to Tali'Zorah, who possesses a recording of a conversation between Saren and an asari Matriarch named Benezia. In the recording, the two discuss their victory while also mentioning an artifact called the "Conduit" and the return of the Reapers, a highly advanced machine race of synthetic-organic starships believed to eradicate all organic civilization every 50,000 years. Confronted with this evidence, the Council revokes Saren's Spectre status and makes Shepard the first human Spectre. Anderson relinquishes command of the SSV Normandy to Shepard, who uses it to follow several leads provided by Anderson and Udina.
On the world of Therum, Shepard rescues Benezia's daughter Liara T'Soni, who joins Shepard's squad because of her biotic abilities and expertise in the Protheans. On the colony of Feros, Shepard fights off Saren's forces and learns that Saren's flagship, Sovereign, possesses unique mind-control capabilities. On the world of Noveria, Shepard tracks down Benezia and defeats her, revealing that she and Saren are being controlled by Sovereign. After completing these missions, the Council informs Shepard that a salarian infiltration unit has uncovered Saren's main base on Virmire. Upon arrival, Shepard learns that Saren has discovered a cure for the krogan disease known as the genophage and plans to breed an army of unstoppable krogan warriors. When Wrex finds out about the cure, he clashes with Shepard over whether to destroy it, and Shepard must either kill Wrex, have Ashley kill him, or convince him to stand down. After this conflict, Shepard assists the salarians in destroying the base by planting a bomb in it. Inside the base, Shepard is confronted by Sovereign, who reveals itself to be an actual Reaper.
Sovereign reveals that the Reapers remain outside the Milky Way waiting for organic life to develop and discover the Mass Relays, before being harvested upon reaching their peak. Shepard also finds Saren, who claims that his allegiance to Sovereign will save organic life forms by demonstrating their usefulness to the Reapers, but ultimately escapes. Shepard then receives news that both Ashley and Kaidan have become pinned down and has only enough time to save one of them before the bomb explodes. Back on the SSV Normandy, Liara is able to pinpoint the Conduit's location on a Prothean world known as Ilos. There, Shepard learns that the Citadel Station is actually a huge Mass Relay that the Reapers use to invade the galaxy. During the last extinction cycle, a few Protheans survived on Ilos via cryopreservation and then re-entered the Citadel Station via the Conduit, a reverse-engineered miniature mass relay disguised aboard the station as a statue. The scientists managed to sabotage the process that would summon the Reapers in order to prevent future extinction cycles from succeeding. Saren plans to undo this sabotage, and needs the Conduit to get him inside the Citadel.
Shepard pursues Saren through the Conduit, arriving at the Citadel as it is under attack by Sovereign and a massive geth force. After confronting Saren, Shepard can fight or convince him to rebel, and, if convinced, Saren will thank Shepard before committing suicide. Joker then informs Shepard of a human Systems Alliance fleet massing to counterattack. Shepard can order the Alliance fleet to save the Council and risk heavy casualties or go directly after Sovereign while risking the death of the Council. Saren's corpse is then reanimated by Sovereign, who attacks Shepard while simultaneously fighting off the Alliance. Eventually, humanity prevails, and Saren's corpse is destroyed while Sovereign is dispatched by the SSV Normandy. If Shepard chose to save the Council, the Council will thank humanity and add a human member to their ranks. The other choice will result in the death of the Council, letting humanity take over. Regardless of outcome, Shepard is asked to nominate either Anderson or Udina to this new leadership position. Shepard does so, then turns away from the proceedings, vowing to end the Reaper threat.
Mass Effect features two downloadable content packs. The first pack, "Bring Down the Sky", was released as a paid download for the Xbox 360 on March 10, 2008 and as a free download for Microsoft Windows on May 28, 2008.[56] The pack is included in the PlayStation 3 version of the game, which was released on December 4, 2012.[57] "Bring Down the Sky" introduces a new mission where the player must explore an asteroid using the Mako and prevent it from striking an Earth-like planet. It also includes a new alien race and additional side-quest content.[58] According to BioWare, the adventure takes 90 minutes to complete.[56] Ryan Geddes of IGN highlighted the pack's included extras and "stunning" visuals,[58] while Dan Whitehead of Eurogamer criticized its lack of narrative weight and reuse of outpost maps that are also available in the base game.[59]
The second pack, "Pinnacle Station", was released as a paid download for the Xbox 360 and as a free download for Microsoft Windows on August 25, 2009.[57][60] However, it remains absent on the PlayStation 3 version of the game.[57] The pack introduces a training facility where the player can compete in eight virtual reality combat scenarios, divided into four different game types like Deathmatch and Capture the flag.[60] After beating the combat scenarios, the player needs to complete four more to unlock a special survival mode, which is the same as the previous survival challenges but requires players to last five minutes.[60] BioWare described "Pinnacle Station" as "a Fight Club-style arena" and originally intended to include a similar arena in the base game, but the idea was ultimately dropped because they were not able to do it well enough.[61] The pack received mediocre reviews from critics,[62] who called it uninspiring and unnecessary.[60][63]
Mass Effect Galaxy is a game for iOS, released on June 22, 2009. The story focuses on backstory of one of the companion characters from Mass Effect 2. BioWare stated that the game will contain two hours of gameplay and will have "top down shooter action". BioWare also stated that the game, like the novels, will not be "required reading" for Mass Effect 2, meaning that players will still be able to enjoy Mass Effect 2 having only played Mass Effect.[1][2]
The story starts off with Jacob Taylor on vacation aboard a cruise ship. It is suddenly boarded by pirates and Jacob, utilizing his experience as a former Alliance soldier, fights the pirates off. The pirates turn out to be batarians. He is sent to the Citadel where he talks to his former commanding officer, Major Derek Izunami who assigns him to investigate the agenda of the batarians in the Terminus Systems and beyond.
There is a big commotion at the Citadel because a batarian ambassador, Jath'Amon is visiting the Council soon to negotiate peace. Many people are worried by this, as terrorists are threatening to ruin the peace talks. Jacob has to meet a woman named Miranda Lawson in the Nemean Abyss to get his information but he is forced to deal with human pirates who have taken over Cartagena Station. The boss of these pirates is called "Black Eye" Clint Darragh and you can choose to let him surrender or you can kill him. Miranda is impressed and tells you what she knows. There are three leads.
One is a turian arms smuggler named Illo Nazario who is hiding on Tortuga. He's been working with the batarians for several years and may know something. The second lead is information regarding the planet Bekke, where the batarians are building an army. This information is considered suspicious, as batarians form small terrorist cells as their preferred method of attack. The third lead is reports of human doctors and scientists being kidnapped by the batarians and being taken to the Ahn'Kedar Orbital Platform. It is implied they are being forced to work on a biological weapon. You can tackle these three missions in any order.
On Bekke, Jacob must discover what this army is protecting. Miranda's scans reveal some kind of hazardous material which gets more potent the further Jacob progresses through the base. It is eventually revealed to be a large cache of Element Zero, which enhances Jacob's Biotic abilities but could kill him unless he leaves quickly. He is extracted and the eezo is stored safely.
On the Ahn'Kedar Orbital Platform, Jacob discovers it has been taken over by batarians who are forcing the kidnapped scientist to work on something. He runs into Nax, a krogan who is searching for a missing asari scientist called Batha. The two decide to team up; Nax rescues Batha while Jacob saves the others. Nax distracts the batarians, allowing Jacob to sneak into the lab and confront the leader. The scientists claim that the batarians are dying of a blood plague and that they are working on a cure for them, but Jacob knows that this is a ruse. The batarians have engineered the disease themselves and are planning on unleashing it on the Citadel council, with the cure Batha has made as their defence. Miranda allows Batha to complete the cure on the ship but they must hurry to Tortuga to find Illo.
Upon arrival, Jacob meets an informant of Miranda's; a salarian named Ish. Ish tells Jacob that Illo hasn't made any deals in a while and may be up to something. He gives Jacob the passcode to Illo's base and warns him of the thugs he has as bodyguards. Jacob infiltrates the base and confronts Illo. Meeting him reveals that he is dying of a biological weapon the batarians have tested on him and he won't tell Jacob anything until he gets the cure which Batha has made. They take him to the ship and cure him and he tells Jacob everything he knows. He reveals that the batarians have no qualms about unleashing the virus in the council meeting because not only do they have the vaccine, but the Ambassador Jath'Amon is the terrorist leader and he plans on infecting the council members himself.
Jacob and Miranda rush to the Citadel where they foil the plan and save the council as well as hundreds of lives. Jath'Amon swears vengeance against Jacob and the human race and is escorted out by C-Sec. Jacob goes on another vacation and is surprised when Miranda joins him, a bottle of champagne in hand and a smirk on her face.
"[125][126]