I'd hate for my first blog post to be centrally about a single video game, but I figured since that really has been all I've played the past two months, it will have to do.
 
I purchased Mass Effect 2 after reading positive review after positive review (including the video review on this site) on February 14th.  Yes, Valentine's day.  Before then, I had be trudging through Mass Effect 1 all over again.  According to my last save before I started up again, I had not played that game since I got it on Christmas three years prior.  I remembered liking it though and I remembered playing it non-stop.
 
Now, without needing to restate everything wrong with the first game, I did want to mention that I honestly honestly enjoyed Mass Effect 1.  It was a Sci-Fi RPG that didn't bore me like the Knights of the Old Republic games that, while I admire the game as a game, I could never get into.  The combination of RPG elements - EXP, money, equipment - mixed with the Action elements - cover-based shooting - seemed to flow really well.  Landing on unknown planets and driving the Mako around, climbing straight up mountains was quite fun.
 
Mass Effect 1 was also a toil.  Now, in its defense, I did it to myself.  I'm a self proclaimed achievement whore and while I will not be chasing down the point scores of some of the masters (editors of this site included), I do chase down the points in a few specific games - Borderlands, Resident Evil 5, etc.  But I have not gained an S rank in any game in my library.
 
So, Mass Effect 1 became my quarry.
 
To achieve 'S' rank (every achievement) in Mass Effect 1, I would have to beat the game 4 times, completely.  Not rush though, no no... 75% of all side quests and main missions.  A daunting task if you consider that while Mass Effect 1 is a good game, it certainly is not perfect.  And so the point of this post...
 
While the stark differences between Mass Effect 1 and Mass Effect 2 are obvious, they are both so different that it is like playing two separate games set in the same universe.  If I want a Baulder's Gate-like experience with equipment and leveling, I play Mass Effect 1.  If I want a Gears of War-style action experience, Mass Effect 2 fills that void.  And it is the Renegade and Paragon choices that make actually playing those two games multiple times feasible.  Believe me, if it was any other game, the idea of playing through it 4 times would be ridiculous.  Especially considering I've got games on my shelf that I haven't played once (Fallout 3, Assassin's Creed) and even more that I have not even opened (Metriod Prime 3).
 
Kudos to you, BioWare.  
 
I do not want to know the details of the deal you struck with the Devil, but you have already taken the first 3 months of this year away from me... ._.