Mass Effect series discussion

[sakuraZaKi]

BW decided to have co-op up a day early, guys.

Have fun~

 

[LivewiresXe]

BW decided to have co-op up a day early, guys.

Have fun~

Does that include PSN too?

 

[sakuraZaKi]

Yeah.

I mean, it *should*, lol.

 

[F8AL]

All platforms: 360, PS3 and PC.

 

[LivewiresXe]

Sweeeet.

That's awesome to hear. I'll have to check it out tonight.

 

[Pluvia]

I know what you mean, lol. But I could resist.

Now I need a Paragon Bush.

The things you can do with this game. Keep 'em comin', BW.

Ironic as if you were to go by their political sides, Bush would be Renegade as he's Right, Obama would be Paragon as he's Left.

 

[LivewiresXe]

I believe that was the point of the joke, Pluvia.

 

[O D I N]

Yeah, I'd say, don't.

Also, F8AL, the Tempest is a Submachine Gun you pick up on Haestrom.


And, for Pluvia

Spoiler

That's not true. I remember on my first ever playthrough, I messed up the loyalty thing on Zaeed's loyalty mission and didn't have the Paragon to convince him to be loyal, and I lost Jack's loyalty by not having enough Paragon to peacefully resolve the argument. Zaeed survived holding the line (apparently because he has the 2nd highest defense in the game), and I took Jack with me to the final battle and she survived that, so...

Spoiler

You're remembering wrong then. It's impossible for a non-loyal squadmate to survive the final boss fight.

I'm gonna solve this line of discussion here.

F8AL, don't read.

Spoiler

http://masseffect.wikia.com/wiki/Suicide_Mission#Suicide_Mission

 

[F8AL]

Dammit, the urge is killing me to read those. ;-;

I'll be playing the MP in the demo tomorrow.

 

[sakuraZaKi]

That very well may solve it, but is that wikia site official stuff?

Just wondering. I've actually followed that and saved everyone, over 2 playthroughs, though.

 

[F8AL]

Sak, DL the 360 version and play with me. ;-;

 

[sakuraZaKi]

Tomorrow, broski, tomorrow.

 

[LivewiresXe]

The multiplayer is a lot more fun than I thought it would be. Sure, it doesn't start you with much and I legit panicked a bit when there was no "Weapon Wheel" (until I remembered "oh right, hold Square"), but yeah it seems fun. And Engineer is a lot more entertaining to play with than I'd have first thought. Combat Drone is pretty useful to help you get some extra EXP from Assists and the occasional Kill, and Incinerate is just a sweet power to throw at the enemies, lol.

 

[Pluvia]

I use an Asari Adept. They've changed the mechanics of Stasis now, you can hurt someone who has been paralyzed by it, but they break out and ragdoll once they've taken a certain amount of damage. Anyway this makes it much more useful and it actually has good upgrades now. The point is, Phantoms are insane on multiplayer, much harder than an Atlas, but Stasis from an Asari really helps deal with them.

Still, it doesn't work on Turrets, so you need someone with Overload to help you. I actually like how multiplayer forces you to use a varied team and stick together.

 

[O D I N]

That very well may solve it, but is that wikia site official stuff?

Just wondering. I've actually followed that and saved everyone, over 2 playthroughs, though.

Official enough; It's run by the fans, with additions from game guides and stuff people have run across over the game. Hasn't failed me yet. Even Bioware resorts to it for stuff.

I'd like to play the MP with someone over the weekend.

 

[Pluvia]

An important note about the multiplayer:

When you start you need to play on Bronze difficulty. It doesn't matter how good you are, it matters how good your character is. Even a team of four level ones isn't going to complete Silver, and while you might get to a decent wave it'll be better for you to start off on Bronze as you'll get slightly more xp for completing Bronze than you would for getting to like wave 7 on Silver.

Though completing Silver gets you way more xp and credits than Bronze, it's just that you wont be able to do it when you first start.

 

[Pikaville]

An important note about the multiplayer:

When you start you need to play on Bronze difficulty. It doesn't matter how good you are, it matters how good your character is. Even a team of four level ones isn't going to complete Silver, and while you might get to a decent wave it'll be better for you to start off on Bronze as you'll get slightly more xp for completing Bronze than you would for getting to like wave 7 on Silver.

Though completing Silver gets you way more xp and credits than Bronze, it's just that you wont be able to do it when you first start.

Blasphemy.

I'm gonna try.

I did hardcore mode in ME1 with a sniper I wasn't able to zoom in with.

No scoped my way through the whole game. :D

 

[mood4food77]

Blasphemy.

I'm gonna try.

I did hardcore mode in ME1 with a sniper I wasn't able to zoom in with.

No scoped my way through the whole game. :D

lies, bull****, whatever you want to call

the sniper sucked in ME1 and you say you no-scoped it on hardcore? where **** killed you through rocks?

BLASPHEMY!

 

[LivewiresXe]

An important note about the multiplayer:

When you start you need to play on Bronze difficulty. It doesn't matter how good you are, it matters how good your character is. Even a team of four level ones isn't going to complete Silver, and while you might get to a decent wave it'll be better for you to start off on Bronze as you'll get slightly more xp for completing Bronze than you would for getting to like wave 7 on Silver.

Though completing Silver gets you way more xp and credits than Bronze, it's just that you wont be able to do it when you first start.

Yeah...I uh, say listen to this guy. When I first started, I was fiddling around with settings and accidentally set it to gold. It was me and a bunch of people at level 3-6. We barely made it half-way through wave 2 before just dying.

 

[F8AL]

So I'm assuming that when you take enough damage in the MP, you either die or you get downed and a teammate has to revive you or something?

 

[LivewiresXe]

So I'm assuming that when you take enough damage in the MP, you either die or you get downed and a teammate has to revive you or something?

Yeah, when your life runs out, you get put into a "Dying" state where you have to be revived (though you can revive yourself with a medi-gel), and where the enemy can Curb Stomp you to make the little meter of how much time you have until you're actually dead go down faster.

 

[Pluvia]

Blasphemy.

I'm gonna try.

I did hardcore mode in ME1 with a sniper I wasn't able to zoom in with.

No scoped my way through the whole game. :D

No Aidan the point is your character wont be good enough. It doesn't matter how good of a player you are, your character wont actually be able to get far because, unlike single player, you are deliberately hanicapped in a way that forces you to play as a team and stick on a difficulty setting you can handle.

For example, even if you were to use the same weapons as me it'd take you about twice as long to kill a normal mook, because my weapon power has been upgraded. Playing on Silver when you're a low level will just frustrate you as you'll have to watch your character die pathetically over and over, and you'll barely get an xp or credits for it because you'll never get far.

 

[F8AL]

Yeah, when your life runs out, you get put into a "Dying" state where you have to be revived (though you can revive yourself with a medi-gel), and where the enemy can Curb Stomp you to make the little meter of how much time you have until you're actually dead go down faster.

Thanks for the reply.

Also:

Origin ends offer of Battlefield 3 bonus with Mass Effect 3 early

http://www.joystiq.com/2012/02/17/origin-ends-offer-of-battlefield-3-bonus-with-mass-effect-3-earl/

Getting a game 2 weeks early =/= the price of a $50 PC game.

lolEA

 

[LivewiresXe]

Hmm...that's weird. Oh well, I don't care too much for Battlefield, and wasn't a fan of the beta so...meh. Plus, I already ordered ME3 the day after Christmas anyway, so it's all good.

 

[Pluvia]

Got my Asari Adept to level 20. Unlock a Krogan Soldier a few matches later.

Awwww yeah.

 

[O D I N]

Got my Asari Adept to level 20. Unlock a Krogan Soldier a few matches later.

Awwww yeah.

Krogan Soldier used Headbutt.

It was Super @#$%ING Effective!!

 

[Evil Eye]

Just recruited Tali, that who "the sun will kill you" idea was stupid IMO.

I really don't see how. It makes perfect sense to me. Lots of planets are that close to a star, and there was story stuff to explain why the radiation levels were so high that I forget but is probably noteworthy and important. At the end of the day this is supposed to be a science fiction series, not a generic third person shooter, and little details like this make that come alive. Not every planet you visit is going to be nor should be easily and safely navigated. It beat the hell out of the kinda generic/non-threatening Level X [type of hazard] Hazard warnings in ME1, which functioned almost the same in all ways but presentation (and you couldn't take refuge anywhere, unlike in ME2).

Plus it's just... well-implemented. There's TONS of shelter to take everywhere, and the effects take forever to break your shield. If every scenario was just take cover behind this chest high wall and wait for head shots the game would be bland as hell and not achieve its objectives. This was a good way to add a new dimension to level design and combat, with dodging both geth attacks and exposure giving you multiple variables to consider in a fight. I'm not going to tell you what you think is fun, obviously, but you'd be hard-pressed to make a good argument that it was poor design. And hey, I'm the guy that's not afraid to ream ME2 in a few areas; this is just one I don't see the merit of.

I don't think it's comparable to the GOW1 thing, which I did hate, for a lot of reasons. In Gears, the kryll would kill you instantaneously instead of after having a considerable amount of warning time -- this in addition to how downright arbitrary and edgy the game's recognition of when you were safely in light or in about-to-die dark made it an unfair challenge full of cheap deaths. The fact that your AI partner had absolutely no appreciation of the dark and would repeatedly get himself killed, which would also cause you to restart (unlike in Mass Effect, where it doesn't end unless you die yourself). Added together, and it was infuriating, but ME2's spin on that kind of level design didn't have any of those problems.

Spoiler

Though...I had some conversation with Jack after the argument that seemed to calm her down. Er...after that Jack/Miranda fight, if you pick to side with one, is it possible to regain the other's loyalty?

Spoiler

I did something similar. I sided with Jack, and then when Miranda was being a ***** about it, I convinced her to change her tampon by using a persuasion option (renegade I think). That, in addition to doing her loyalty mission, presumably left Miranda loyal, because I had her leading squad 2 and left the Collector homeworld with no casualties.

I'm guessing you did the exact same thing in the other direction, which means you didn't take a disloyal Jack with you to the battle.

 

[LivewiresXe]

Evil Eye response:

Spoiler

Yeah, that's entirely possible. I guess I just thought she wasn't loyal because even though I used the Paragon discussion thing, she was still kind of pissed at me after.

 

[Evil Eye]

Shepard: "She's a big girl. She can take care of herself."

 

[O D I N]

I really don't see how. It makes perfect sense to me. Lots of planets are that close to a star, and there was story stuff to explain why the radiation levels were so high that I forget but is probably noteworthy and important. At the end of the day this is supposed to be a science fiction series, not a generic third person shooter, and little details like this make that come alive. Not every planet you visit is going to be nor should be easily and safely navigated. It beat the hell out of the kinda generic/non-threatening Level X [type of hazard] Hazard warnings in ME1, which functioned almost the same in all ways but presentation (and you couldn't take refuge anywhere, unlike in ME2).

Plus it's just... well-implemented. There's TONS of shelter to take everywhere, and the effects take forever to break your shield. If every scenario was just take cover behind this chest high wall and wait for head shots the game would be bland as hell and not achieve its objectives. This was a good way to add a new dimension to level design and combat, with dodging both geth attacks and exposure giving you multiple variables to consider in a fight. I'm not going to tell you what you think is fun, obviously, but you'd be hard-pressed to make a good argument that it was poor design. And hey, I'm the guy that's not afraid to ream ME2 in a few areas; this is just one I don't see the merit of.

I don't think it's comparable to the GOW1 thing, which I did hate, for a lot of reasons. In Gears, the kryll would kill you instantaneously instead of after having a considerable amount of warning time -- this in addition to how downright arbitrary and edgy the game's recognition of when you were safely in light or in about-to-die dark made it an unfair challenge full of cheap deaths. The fact that your AI partner had absolutely no appreciation of the dark and would repeatedly get himself killed, which would also cause you to restart (unlike in Mass Effect, where it doesn't end unless you die yourself). Added together, and it was infuriating, but ME2's spin on that kind of level design didn't have any of those problems.

I like you.

Could not have said it better myself, on both the ME front, and why the Gears level is far inferior.

Spoiler

In regards to the Loyalty 'diffusions', if you have high enough Paragon or Renegade, you can keep the Loyalty of both members during the initial fights. Otherwise, you need to pick a side, and then convince them otherwise. I remember the first time played I was trying to pork Miranda, and for some dumb reason I sided with Jack (I think it was because I *just* did her mission). Well... Miranda wanted nothing to do with me... So I went after Tali instead. Anyway, just like you, high enough persuasion, told Miranda to "DEAL WITH IT" and "LOYAL UP".

 

[Grey Belnades]

Here's another (potiental) leak: this one regard's

Spoiler

the Prothean's voice

.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=eK99_T61alc

 

[Pluvia]

Spoiler

I did something similar. I sided with Jack, and then when Miranda was being a ***** about it, I convinced her to change her tampon by using a persuasion option (renegade I think). That, in addition to doing her loyalty mission, presumably left Miranda loyal, because I had her leading squad 2 and left the Collector homeworld with no casualties.

I'm guessing you did the exact same thing in the other direction, which means you didn't take a disloyal Jack with you to the battle.

Actually,

Spoiler

you can only persuade Miranda and Legion back, because they're logical and not emotional. Jack and Tali can't be persuaded back.

Edit:

My mistake:

Spoiler

you can regain her loyalty apparently, but she refuses to talk to you from then on.

Edit Edit:

Or maybe not:

Spoiler

the Internet has no answers for this. I'm going to make another playthrough soon anyway so I'll test it myself.

 

[F8AL]

@ EE: Yeah, I guess. I understand but I just don't like it. >.>

And I can't believe I'm almost done ME2, just gotta finish Jack's and Tali's loyalty missions, some more side assignments and get the IFF thingy.

I also played two matches of the MP in the ME3 demo, it seems like a ****tier version of horde mode from the Gears series IMO. I do plan on giving it another try and playing it with more friends.

 

[Pluvia]

Actually you're not as close to the end as you think, as you may have noticed you're missing a teammate.

 

[F8AL]

Actually you're not as close to the end as you think, as you may have noticed you're missing a teammate.

I'm playing a used copy of the game.

(I'll buy a new one soon.)

And how does that work out? I download the stuff and the extra character appears somewhere?

 

[LivewiresXe]

Used or not, he's still right, F8AL. He wasn't talking about DLC.

 

[F8AL]

I am now intrigued.

Sorry for all my stupid questions.

 

[Pluvia]

Indeed. The DLC characters are added to the far right and left of the screen, but you're missing someone in the middle.

 

[F8AL]

Indeed. The DLC characters are added to the far right and left of the screen, but you're missing someone in the middle.

How do I get this character?

 

[Pluvia]

Just continue the plot they'll appear through normal story progression.