Mass Effect

Incredibly well done game. No surprise coming from Bioware, but still... I'm surprised these guys keep topping themselves.

It's by far the best combat system implemented in a real-time RPG. I can't think of another game which comes close. Unfortunately, the combat system was one of the only weak points, and only because small things like enemy AI reminded me that it was just one step shy of Halo or other FPS games.

The biggest problem with the combat system is that -- if you are smart -- you eventually overpower everything. The problem with class-based RPGs is they're always balanced for any class combination to complete the content. Since these games are built around mostly magic classes (in this case, Engineers, Adepts, Infiltrators, Vanguards and Sentinels), the fighter classes (Soldiers) who develop like tanks are king. In my case, I most often ran with three pure soldiers, all of them with maxed +Health, +Armor talents and abilities, all of them maxed in Assault Rifles.

This dynamic is one of the biggest shortcomings in Mass Effect's combat system. You do eventually overpower your enemies, but you won't during your early story missions. With the exception of a couple of the final battles, the mid-game encounters are often far more difficult, which leaves a bit of a lopsided feel.

The game also made me think of Deus Ex and Deus Ex II. I wasn't a big fan of either of those games, but people who've played both would probably agree that Deus Ex II was decent in concept, terrible and limited in implementation. Mass Effect is similar to playing DEII without the suck.

Vehicle driving in Mass Effect just isn't what it could have been, which is too bad. There's a reason Halo chose to have a separate turret controller for Warthogs instead of having the player control everything -- aimed fire virtually requires stopping. The problem in Mass Effect is that the MAKO vehicle is not a tank, and it requires speedy maneuvering.

All minor complaints.

This was the best RPG experience I've had, which is surprising because of how much I enjoyed Neverwinter Nights 2. The whole experience feels like an awesome movie. A lot of the cheesiness of past RPGs is cut out, and a lot of the cliches of RPGs are more subtle.

Voice acting is superb, as well as character direction. You have some control over your character dialog, but not so much that the story becomes tame and predictable. For instance, one of the most gratifying decisions I made was midway through the game when a reporter started asking some disagreeable questions; when I chose to set them straight, my character unexpectedly punched the reporter in the face.

It's definitely an RPG. It's as authentic of a character-driven story as has yet been created. It just happens to have an incredible combat system (with minor weaknesses). I've got a feeling Bioware will still be making our next great games as well.