@bestyhammar: But... if characters die in ME1 or 2, you CAN'T recruit them as war assets or as squadmates in 3.
In my main playthrough of the trilogy, I had a squadmate who's recruitable in 3 die at the end of 2, and as a result I missed out on all their content in 3. Conversations didn't happen or were handled by different characters, and it created a much different experience than my other playthroughs where that character lived.
I honestly felt like the whole "3 is the best place to start!" was more false advertising on EA's part. I played through ME3 with three different Shepards, and each playthrough was noticeably different due to choices I had made. I agree that BioWare dropped the ball in some areas with it (like the Rachni Queen), and it could've been done better in others, but to say nothing you did had any consequence is just flat wrong.
I'm super bummed right now, because I've been immensely enjoying this video series, and Vinny leaving is really hitting me hard. Still, I'm glad we got this.
Also, Jan's Saw Gerrera impression is really good!
I'm glad Vinny is going back and checking this one out! This was my favorite AC before the change with Origins; though, to be fair, the only other one I had beaten at the time was Unity, and I wasn't much of a fan of it. (I mainly pushed through because it came with my Xbox One and felt next-gen, even with all its technical problems.)
Like others had said, it's interesting to see the split on opinions on this series. I definitely feel for people who loved the older games and dislike the new direction the series has gone. That being said... I honestly loved Odyssey, and I'm loving Valhalla after 30 hours. I get that the series now is "Assassin's Creed" in name only, but it's the kind of open world game that really hooks me where others don't, and I'm surprised but delighted with how they're starting to emulate BioWare games with their choices.
And while Valhalla is certainly more of the current flavor of Assassin's Creed, I think for older fans it has a few things going for it, such as 1) the modern day plot seeming to actually matter again, though I'm unsure how it'll end up; 2) having actual Assassins and Templars factor into the plot; 3) adding back things like social stealth and some city-based parkour, and 4) being able to turn on one-hit assassinations. I'm not sure that's enough for fans, but I think it's at least worth noting.
I loved Odyssey, and with this looking like more of that, I'm all for it. I think I may not be worn out on the Ubisoft open-world design because I don't play many of their games; the only non-Assassin's Creed recent game I've played of theirs is The Division, and I didn't even play Origins.
Odyssey also scratched a bit of that BioWare itch I've been missing the past few years, and it looks like this'll do that too. I'm super excited to play on Series X this week.
That being said, the reintroduction of social stealth, hidden blade, and the Assassin Order itself in the storyline makes me wonder if Ubisoft is slowly making their way back to more traditional Assassin's Creeds. Maybe the next one from the Odyssey team will be more of a classic one? I honestly prefer this new approach, but I know fans like Vinny are disappointed with some of the changes the series has made.
I'm excited to see Abby play this game! I remember having an amazing time playing the first two of these with my brother watching for emotional support. Dead Space 2 remains one of my favorite games of all time.
It's funny, I've always liked 1 and 2 almost equally, but for different reasons. It felt to me like BioWare improved on most of the parts I found lacking of the first game (the kinda bland squadmates, the cumbersome inventory system, the awkward gunplay, and the technical issues/lack of polish), but wasn't quite as strong on some of the parts that I loved from the first game (the intriguing main plot and the sense of exploration, in particular).
I'm playing through 2 again (I had started a trilogy playthrough last year before Andromeda came out, and got back into it thanks to this series), and at the moment I would give 2 the edge. I enjoy the gameplay more (with the caveat that I typically prefer shooter gameplay over RPG gameplay), I love the varied cast of characters, and the loyalty missions are some of my favorite moments from the whole trilogy.
Particularly Tali's loyalty mission. Best Paragon interrupt in any of the games.
With this discussion here, I'm really curious to see what Alex's reaction to 2 will be. My guess is he'll like it more, due to the gameplay being better with the controller and it overall being a more polished experience, but we'll see! I do think 1 has a definite charm to it, as evidenced by those who prefer it over 2, and he may really connect with that.
That being said, I'm really enjoying this series, and I'm so glad you guys started doing it! It caused me to both get a year of premium membership and to get back into the Mass Effect trilogy and remind me why I love the series so much in the first place.
XII always has a soft spot in my heart. I remember getting the game in 2009 during the height of my FF craze, and playing it for six hours straight my first day with it. For whatever reason, while a lot of people bounced off the story and characters, I really enjoyed them and was drawn in. I think it was a combination of the game's Star Wars similarities, everyone's cool more antiquated way of talking, and being super FF crazy then. I eventually fell off it, though, and stopped playing after 25-35 hours.
I'm really interested in this remaster, though! I'm trying to purchase fewer games this year to get through my backlog, but once I'm buying new ones, this one's at the top of my list. I think the speedup could help me stay in the game. I'm curious, though, do your backup party members gain experience when they're not in use? Or do they only gain experience when they're active? I was bummed about that in the original game, though even if it is the same, the speedup seems like it would help with that.
MisterFrodo17's comments