Imagine a world, in that world is a gamer, a gamer that for the life of him can not finish and RPG. That gamer is me. Let me start at the beginning, everyday I keep an eye on the Frugal Gaming twitter feed waiting for a bargain that takes my fancy. They posted news that the fan favourite Mass Effect 2 was just £9.98 at Curry's while stocks last. Despite this being a absolute steel for most gamers, it was still quite a difficult decision whether to risk wasting 10 pounds on yet another role playing game I dislike and put down after 4 or 5 hours. I played numerous RPG games this generation alone ranging from the highly acclaimed Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, Mass Effect, Fable 2 and Fallout 3 to the not so highly acclaimed like Infinite Undiscovery (I still don't understand the title of that game). As of now I'm still yet to finish one.

It could just be the simple concept of RPG's that doesn't appeal to me, I'm quite partial to a more linear game, having the freedom to almost do what you like is slightly scary, I have know idea where to start or what to do next. Having such big worlds to explore, or even planets in terms of Mass Effect, gives me the 'what do I do now' feeling. I've sunk hours into some RPG's especially Oblivion and Fallout 3 but just when I think I'm getting somewhere I hit a stumbling block and don't know what to do next then consequently give up.

Well after the consideration I did pick it up, but only under the promise that no matter what, I will finally finish an RPG! Even if I have to sink to the lows of guides on the internet or YouTube videos, I will see them credits roll. So I bought it home today and started it perhaps 3 hours ago. I can't believe I'm writing this, but I'm enjoying it! The first game was really entertaining at the start and just like It's sequel, I enjoyed the start, but then I became stuck on a level that basically consisted of sand dunes and you scouring the surface in a buggy. Hopefully though, no such level will reappear. The main characteristics that really appeal to me in Mass Effect 2 are the storyline, which has started off just great, the witty one liners in the dialogue and the sexy females, Ashley in the first and now the lovely Miranda the second.

So there you have it, there's no hiding now, I have to finish it, and to be truthful I really want to, there's a satisfaction in finishing games, something you feel when you see the final cut-scene, or find out why that plot twist happened. Not finishing an RPG is a tick missing off the list, being in it for the long haul and feeling the satisfaction is lacking and hopefully it's only an amount of time before that happens. I'll keep you posted on how the adventure into the Lazarus project goes!

Imagine a world, in that world is a gamer, a gamer that for the life of him can not finish and RPG. That gamer is me. Let me start at the beginning, everyday I keep an eye on the Frugal Gaming twitter feed waiting for a bargain that takes my fancy. They posted news that the fan favourite Mass Effect 2 was just £9.98 at Curry's while stocks last. Despite this being a absolute steel for most gamers, it was still quite a difficult decision whether to risk wasting 10 pounds on yet another role playing game I dislike and put down after 4 or 5 hours. I played numerous RPG games this generation alone ranging from the highly acclaimed Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, Mass Effect, Fable 2 and Fallout 3 to the not so highly acclaimed like Infinite Undiscovery (I still don't understand the title of that game). As of now I'm still yet to finish one.

It could just be the simple concept of RPG's that doesn't appeal to me, I'm quite partial to a more linear game, having the freedom to almost do what you like is slightly scary, I have know idea where to start or what to do next. Having such big worlds to explore, or even planets in terms of Mass Effect, gives me the 'what do I do now' feeling. I've sunk hours into some RPG's especially Oblivion and Fallout 3 but just when I think I'm getting somewhere I hit a stumbling block and don't know what to do next then consequently give up.

Well after the consideration I did pick it up, but only under the promise that no matter what, I will finally finish an RPG! Even if I have to sink to the lows of guides on the internet or YouTube videos, I will see them credits roll. So I bought it home today and started it perhaps 3 hours ago. I can't believe I'm writing this, but I'm enjoying it! The first game was really entertaining at the start and just like It's sequel, I enjoyed the start, but then I became stuck on a level that basically consisted of sand dunes and you scouring the surface in a buggy. Hopefully though, no such level will reappear. The main characteristics that really appeal to me in Mass Effect 2 are the storyline, which has started off just great, the witty one liners in the dialogue and the sexy females, Ashley in the first and now the lovely Miranda the second.

So there you have it, there's no hiding now, I have to finish it, and to be truthful I really want to, there's a satisfaction in finishing games, something you feel when you see the final cut-scene, or find out why that plot twist happened. Not finishing an RPG is a tick missing off the list, being in it for the long haul and feeling the satisfaction is lacking and hopefully it's only an amount of time before that happens. I'll keep you posted on how the adventure into the Lazarus project goes!

You will enjoy Mass Effect 2 its a very awesome game.

I think it maybe actually converting me. I'm enjoying it so much.

Mass Effect 2 isn't really an RPG, more like an Action game with RPG elements.

I think it's a good introduction to RPGs for me. It's like a easy first step.

You seem to be playing only a specific subset of RPGs namely the action type. (not implying that this is a bad thing, just an observation)
I also highly suggest also trying out the more traditional style of RPGs like Dragon Age, Witcher are the most recent ones that come to mind, to see if they appeal.
There is a whole plethora of very good older RPGs but you would need a PC for them and usually some tweaking to run older games, but worth looking into as those are the unparalleled classics that are simply not made anymore (Baldurs Gate series, Planescape, Arcanum, Fallout 1,2, Never Winter Nights series)
 
Good luck with finishing ME2

" Mass Effect 2 isn't really an RPG, more like an Action game with RPG elements. "

" @Tennmuerti: Thanks for the suggestions, I've always thought of Dragon Age as a hardcore RPG that only the fanatics play. I've thought about picking it up a couple of times but after I've finished ME2 I'll be sure to pick it up and give it a try. "

" @Callum_NCFC said:

" @Tennmuerti: Thanks for the suggestions, I've always thought of Dragon Age as a hardcore RPG that only the fanatics play. I've thought about picking it up a couple of times but after I've finished ME2 I'll be sure to pick it up and give it a try. "

Dragon Age is a step in the right direction if you are looking to get into RPGs, but by no means is it a "hardcore" RPG. I also suggest looking into Black Isle/Bioware's back catalog if you want to see an example of some more RPGs. Oh, and maybe Mount and Blade-- that's pretty hardcore. "

Dragon Age?  Yeah Shale is awesome.

Yep, cool. I'll have a look around see where i can pick up a new copy, cheap then. Thanks.

You might like games like Deus Ex or System Shock 2. I don't know if you've played them or not, but you should give them a try if you haven't.

 @Callum_NCFC:  
I bought Dragon Age on sale, and saved many moneys. There was a card inside that told me that I could help myself to some free DLC (among them Shale), but the fine print on the card claimed that it was expired. I was, however, able to download it for free without hassle.
Dragon Age is the first RPG in ages that I've been able to finish in one "sitting" (as in: not playing any other games until I finished it), and I - like you - get bored with games that are to open. So you should definitely check it out

"It could just be the simple concept of RPG's that doesn't appeal to me, I'm quite partial to a more linear game, having the freedom to almost do what you like is slightly scary,"

" Mass Effect 2 isn't really an RPG, more like an Action game with RPG elements. "

" Mass Effect 2 isn't really an RPG, more like an Action game with RPG elements. "

of course it's an rpg rofl. you have a say in pretty much all of the shit that happens in that game. you create a character, you live out that character. idk how you personally define role-playing but that seems to be pretty close to the mark.

" @SpiralStairs said:

" Mass Effect 2 isn't really an RPG, more like an Action game with RPG elements. "

of course it's an rpg rofl. you have a say in pretty much all of the shit that happens in that game. you create a character, you live out that character. idk how you personally define role-playing but that seems to be pretty close to the mark.

but WHATEVER that game is essentially a masterpiece so go and buy it, original poster. "

as already said mass effect 2 minus the strong focus on story is not an rpg

one of things that has disappointed me the most about Mass Effect 2 is that they got rid of a lot of the rpg elements of the first game and turned it into more of a shooter

oh snap!

Well that's easy enough, because ME2 isn't an RPG.

" @Toms115 said:

" @SpiralStairs said:

" Mass Effect 2 isn't really an RPG, more like an Action game with RPG elements. "

of course it's an rpg rofl. you have a say in pretty much all of the shit that happens in that game. you create a character, you live out that character. idk how you personally define role-playing but that seems to be pretty close to the mark.

but WHATEVER that game is essentially a masterpiece so go and buy it, original poster. "

Mass Effect 2 is not "essentially a masterpiece".  It is a mechanically sound and graphically gorgeous third-person shooter with non-combat segments.  The player does not "create a character"; rather, the player choses the appearance of a predefined character and then proceeds to navigate a wholly linear sequence of events (I refrain to use the word "storyline") while making wholly aesthetic decisions along the way which have absolutely no long-term consequences.  Any decisions imported from the first Mass Effect are similarly superficial.  Character classes play nearly identically save for a few powers unique to one or two of them, and leveling up comes down to choosing which (mostly unnecessary) skills to increase first.  Player decisions are highly limited, with at best two or three options for some situations; most of the time you merely choose the tone of your voice, which does nothing except impact your purely cosmetic good/evil slider. The consequences of these aforementioned decisions are minuscule, and do not fundamentally change the world in any significant way.  Choice of character does not significantly alter the experience the player has, nor does it have any major impact upon gameplay. "

would you like to take the time to thank the academy, or are you just going to skip that part?

after wading through all of the bullshit, i found this snippet to be the most interesting, to me at least.

" Choice of character does not significantly alter the experience the player has, nor does it have any major impact upon gameplay. "

and why would it? why would creating your character have any sort of inherent effect on gameplay and its related elements? it is the exact wording of your post that leads me to the conclusion that you are placing too much of your attention on areas where not all of it need be. in a piece of narrative driven television or film, do you treasure its ability to bring forth emotion, believability in character and plot, or do you treasure the fidelity of the cameras? in a piece of narrative driven written word, do you treasure those same things - emotion, believability in character and plot - or do you treasure how many pages there are? similarly, these things (in the context of video games, of course) should be applied to narrative driven video games. that's not to say that mass effect is at all broken on a fundamental gameplay level, it's pretty well done, but it's just not where the gold lies; it's in the narrative. that's also not to say that these things aren't desirable, you know, fidelity of camera work, length of piece of fiction, and well done gameplay elements etc. it's even more desirable in video games as you have to control what happens on-screen, which is not really the case for tv/film or literature, but when you misplace too much of your attention on not-as-important areas and less of it on thematic levels, you really need to stop what you're doing and re-asses your critique abilities.

is mass effect 2 essentially a masterpiece on a gameplay level? i don't really give a shit, but it's damn near perfect as bringer of narrative.

good on you, OP. 

" I think it maybe actually converting me. I'm enjoying it so much. "

3rd person action cover game does not equal an rpg 
hell games like gow almost hve more weapon options...