Today, as my header says, I'm going tackle the combat, minigames and morality system in the games. I'm going to go through each one sequentially, giving my thoughts, as well as tips, to play the game in a way that maximizes your fun.
I'm going to state right here that I own the Xbox 360 versions of the games, and thus some of my problems and praises may not apply to the PC and PS3 versions. Though, since we are using the same game engine, I'm sure MOST of what I say still applies.
Mass Effect 1's combat system has a LOT of good ideas, though some are poorly implemented. The way the game is designed to be played is to give you tactical control over the battlefield, allowing you to flank your foes and use powers to dominate the battlefield. In practice, though, there are issues with the implementation.
First off, cover. The way it is supposed to work is that you use the control stick to press up against the wall, and you use the trigger buttons to aim your weapon from cover. In practice, however, it doesn't always work like that. Sometimes, when you want to press up against a wall, only to lift your weapon and stand there like an idiot. You also need to click the control stick to crouch, and you can't move to certain cover unless you are crouched.
Cover is also pretty useless because your enemies don't fight from it. They run around the battlefield, shooting and flinging powers as they run and gun, forcing you to do the same. And if you try to fight from cover, especially in an enclosed area, you are going to get flanked and killed. This forces you to run and gun to survive.
And your companions are useless too. Both companions are tied to a single button on the d-pad, so you can't really send them around the battlefield tactically, since both are going to the same place. And for some reason, they tend to "blow their load" on their powers if you don't set them to "defense only" in the options menu. This becomes a real problem with you are fighting geth armatures in the early game, since their main cannon can kill you in one hit. So if you want to use squad powers when you want them, set the usage to "defense only" before you start the game.
Now, since you have to run and gun to survive, proper weapon and extra skill (remember the first game's post?) selection is essential. There are four factors to consider for weapon selection; aiming, recoil, heat generation and firing rate. It is these four factors that makes the Sniper Rifle all but useless. On every console version I've played, the Sniper Rifle reticule takes a LONG time to finally settle on where you are pointing it, even with the best rifle in the game and 12 points in the ability. It's pretty much "one shot at the start of a battle and then switch to another gun, and ONLY if you get the drop on your foes, which isn't often".
That means you have only 3 real choices in firearms. The pistol is the one gun that all classes can use without advance training. It a reasonable firing rate, reasonable damage output, and reasonable heat generation, and low recoil. It's a good backup weapon when your other guns are overheated.
The assault rifle puts a lot of fire down range, but also has the highest recoil after the useless sniper rifle. This one also has the highest heat generation after the sniper rifle, but one point in assault rifles gives you overkill, which mitigates the recoil and heat generation for a few critical seconds. More points in the skill reduces recoil, and better quality guns reduce heat generation. And with proper upgrades, recoil and heat generation become a thing of the past.
The shotgun, however, has great accuracy, has low recoil, and has high heat generation (though that's the nature of a shotgun, so I wouldn't hold it against it), but also a high damage output. It is only truly useful at close range, though.
My suggestion is to either give the assault rifle or shotgun skill to all but the Vanguard (as that class already has a good weapon), depending on your play style. If you like fighting from mid to long range, use the assault rifle. If you prefer close range combat, shotgun.
Be careful with close range though. The melee attack in this game is the same as the gunfire button, and can trip you up if you don't want to use it. More than once, I've wanted to plant a shotgun shell into an enemy's chest, only to elbow them instead, because they were too close.
As for your load out, go with Spectre guns. They are the best guns in the game, hands down. As for armor, Predator has the best shields and Colossus gives you the best damage protection. But since you have upgrades that upgrade your shields, you can go with the Colossus, then the Titan, Predator and then Mercenary, based on availability.
Biotic amps should be Savant, Polaris and Prodigy in that order. Omni-tools should be Savant, Nexus and Chameleon for Shepard, Tali and Garrus in that order, and Savant, Logic Arrest and Polaris for Liara and Kaidan in that order.
Medi-gel is your healing ability, but the problem with it is that it has a long cooldown; if you use it to bring back your health, you have a long wait to use it again. A step back from KOTOR and Jade Empire, if you ask me.
Grenades in this game are pretty much useless as well. They are thrown sidearm, have a low blast radius, and are very hard to replenish. And they are only useful if you choose the Paragon path in the Feros mission.
Which brings me to the alignment system. The Paragon path is all about protecting the innocent, working together toward a common goal, and doing things the right way. The social skill you get is charm, which, at certain levels, gives you discounts at the stores.
Renegade is all about ruthless determination. Renegade choices are about getting things done no matter the cost and forcing people to aqueous to your desires. The social skill you get is intimidate, which gives you more credits from merchants when buying the gear you sell.
These two morality choices affect the ending you choose, and what is said about you and the human race. But as more info will spoil the ending, I won't go into details.
Now, I feel like I'd be doing new players a disservice if I didn't tackle the two things that aren't fun, but are unfortunately very prevalant; the the QTE hacker minigame, and the damn Mako. Anyone who has played Shenmue, Indigo Prophesy or Resident Evil 6 knows the pain of QTE, so I won't go into it. As for the Mako, that's another "cool idea, but poor implementation". It controls like a brick, and despite what the pre-release and in game codexes say, this thing flips over at the slightest bump on the ground. I've actually had to start the section over when the damn thing flipped over and got stuck. Add to that to the fact that killing things with the Mako only nets you 75% of the xp you would get on foot, and you're better off getting the side quests with the Mako out of the way just after picking up Liara and doing all the fighting on foot, unless you are fighting a thresher maw.
Don't get me wrong; this game is fun. And going with the tips I've given you makes the game more fun.
This game fixes a lot of the problems I had with ME1's combat system. First off, you no longer have to put points into a gun; they are as accurate as your aim is. As such, the sniper rifle is a LOT more viable choice of weapon. In fact, this is my preferred extra gun for all but the soldier and vanguard, for the reasons I've already covered.
Next, the cover mechanism is much easier to drop into; it is tied to the run button, instead of the control stick. This is important because your enemies now fighting from cover, and you will get killed if you try to run and gun. And since your squadmates now have their OWN button to move them around the battlefield and are no longer retarded about power usage, you now have the tactical control over the battlefield that the ME1 wanted you to have.
And as I explained before, the classes are a LOT more distinct, so your game will be different each time, as will your squad choices. Some squadmates are better against machines, others against armored targets, and others work great for biotic detonations. Others are just weapons specialists. Whom you pick is determined by the mission and who compliments your class choice.
This game isn't without its flaws as well; the planet scanning you need to do to upgrade your health, weapons, powers, damage protection and heavy weapon ammo capacity is dull, but can be made less painful by using the wiki for planets rich in resources that you need.
And yes, I mentioned heavy weapons; these replace the grenades, and are far more useful. They are just as limited as grenades, yes, but they hit harder and are easier to aim. That said, some are better than others, so choose based on your preferences.
I also need to mention the Hammerhead tank. It fixes all the problems with the Mako; smooth controls, no longer lose XP when using the cannon, and no longer integral to the game.
The mini-games are a lot more fun too; "Connect the wires" and "match the symbols". Both are simple, and while both are times, neither are QTE.
The Paragon and Renegade meters have also been streamlined; you don't have skills to put points into, so your Charm/Intimidate score is based on your alignment meter. We also gain interrupts; Paragon interrupts stops fights and cools tempers, where Renegade interrupts either intimidates with threats of violence or outright commits acts of violence.
Finally, we get to my preferred load out. This time, it's very different between the squadmates and Shepard. For Shepard, I go with the Kestrel armor from the Aegis Pack, with the Kuwashii Visor replacing the headgear for the soldier and infiltrator, and the archon visor from the Equalizer pack for the other four.
Gun loadout is the Mattlock assault rifle for all who can use it but Shepard, and the Phalanx Pistol for all who can use it but Shepard. These two guns are great in the hands of companions, but not so much as Shepard; the Mattlock is a single shot, while the Phalanx removes the target reticule and replaces it with a laser sight. But companions are always accurate with their weapons, so the damage boost they get from these guns is worth it.
The shotgun you want is the Eviscerator, which does the most damage after the geth shotgun and the Claymore. However, the geth shotgun is a charged weapon, and companions don't charge it. It also won't charge from cover, so it's less useful in combat. I recommend the Eviscerator for all but Grunt and Vanguard Shepard, who can use the Claymore once it is unlocked.
The sniper rifle you want is the Mantis, which is a single shot, powerful gun. The other two are either high magazine/low individual shot damage, or a three round burst, which loses accuracy after the first shot. The best, though, is the Widow, which only Shepard and Legion get access to.
As for the SMG, use the Kassa Locust. It is the best SMG in the game, and since the Kasumi DLC can be played immediately after Horizon, it will carry you through the whole game.
And for all of them, make sure you fix your load out when the game "upgrades" your guns as you acquire new ones. In the vanilla game, those guns were better than the ones you start with (with a couple of exceptions), but with the DLC guns, you will want to fix them at the first available weapons terminal. This is only problematic on Haestrom, where the closest weapons terminal is after a large battle.
As for Shepard, I prefer the Carnifax pistol, which does more damage than the starting pistol, but still maintains the target reticule that the Phalanx doesn't have. For the Soldier and Vanguard, I prefer the Eviscerator. Vanguard upgrades to the Claymore on the Collector ship. All classes but the Vanguard, I go with the Mantis sniper rifle, unless Infiltrator, which I upgrade to the Widow. And the Soldier gets the Avenger, since I prefer my assault rifles to go full auto, until I can get the Revnant on the Collector ship.
As for Heavy Weapons, I go with the Grenade Launcher, then the Cain when I can get it. The missile launcher is good, because you don't have to aim it, and has the largest ammo capacity. But it also does the lowest damage. So I go with the grenade launcher, which does the second most damage, after the Cain.
Oh, and melee combat has it's own button, so you no longer have to worry about elbowing something that you wanted to shoot.
And this brings me to bonus powers. Unlike in ME1, you gain your bonus powers from your companions loyalty missions; whatever power they get, so does Shepard. As such, I have three powers that I prefer; Warp Ammo from Jack, which tears through barriers and armor, Energy Drain from Tali, which takes your enemy's shields and adds them to your own, and Samara's Reave, which does the same as Energy Drain, but for health.
Finally, I need to bring up Medi-gel. In this game, it is used to resurrect your allies and not to heal you. You gain your health and shields back through hiding on cover or the above mentioned skills. In game codex explains why.
Mass Effect 3's combat system brings back the best of both games. You have situations you have to run and gun, and situations where you have to fight from cover. For this reason, you gain a heavy melee attack and a melee combo. The heavy attack allows you to one shot (or nearly one shot, based on difficulty), any enemy that gets close to you. Melee combos are just that; combos you get from continually tapping the melee button.
Heavy weapons are different; they have limited ammunition, are found around the battlefield, and are dropped when they are empty. But there are a LOT more of them, and they are ALL useful.
Grenades return, but are far more plentiful and far more useful. What type you get is determined by your class, (or what you get instead of grenades, in the case of the Engineer and Vanguard. Engineer gets a sentry drone, and the Vanguard gets Nova. The wiki I linked to gives you more details) and you can get up to six of them. And you can replenish them at ammo caches that can be found on most battlefields.
Other than that, the game controls the same as ME2, with a couple of exceptions. Ammo powers no longer trigger global cooldown, so you could sit in cover all day switching out your ammo powers quickly. And the major change, the weight system. Which requires a full explanation.
The weight system means that weapons are no longer restricted by class. Want to build an Adept around the assault rifle? Go for it! Soldier with an SMG? That's good too. Sentinel built around only a pistol once again? That's good too.
But the downside to this freedom is that each class has a different weight capacity, which, while able to be upgraded via your class trait, does affect the cooldown rate of your powers. So trying to load out with the heaviest assault rifles, shotguns or sniper rifles as an Engineer or Adept restricts availability or your class' strength.
What you have to do for all the classes but the soldier is to balance what guns you want with power cooldown rate. The more under your weight capacity you go, the faster the cooldown rate for your powers, and vice versa. Weight of weapons can also be lowered through ultralight material upgrades for your guns, as does upgrading the guns at the armory on the Normandy. (Yes, weapon upgrades are back, and you have a LOT guns to choose from.)
There's another problem with the heaviest guns; reload animation. The heaviest guns (and any sniper rifle for that matter) have a LONG reload animation. So even the Soldier, who only has two powers that trigger the global cooldown, has to worry about weight in a hectic firefight.
This is why I go with a very specific layout for my classes. First off, I forgo a pistol on Shepard, since I can carry an assault rifle and sniper rifle with me, no matter the class. For all classes but the Soldier, Infiltrator and Vanguard, I go with Mantis sniper rifle and the Avenger assault rifle, as these are the lighest possible that function the way I like them (single shot and full auto, respectively). I put ultralight material in the assault rifle to lower my weight capacity, so I can use my powers more often.
The Infiltrator gets the same, until I can afford the Black Widow at the Spectre store, and can pick up the Kassa Locust late in the game. The Vanguard takes the Eviscerator shotgun in place of the sniper rifle, to be replaced with the Wraith from the Spectre office once I can afford it.
As for the Soldier, I replace the Avenger the Cerberus Harrier, which you get from the Firefight DLC pack, and I replace the Mantis with the Widow once I get it, and the Eviscerator until I get the Claymore.
As for companions, I go with the Harrier, Mantis/Widow, Eviscerator, N7 Piranha, Claymore, Tempest SMG/Kassa Locust, Talon Pistol, Carnifax Pistol and Phalanx pistol. I go with three shotguns, since the different shotguns fit better with certain companions roles; Vega is better with the Claymore, since he's a tank, where Tali is better with the Eviscerator, since it has a longer range. (Aria from the Omega DLC gets the Piranha, which is in the Groundside Resistance Pack, because giving her what amounts to a grenade launcher fits her power loadout.)
I focus on armor that boosts weapon damage for Shepard, so I go with the Hahne Kedar armor (with Armax shoulder guards until I can get Hahne Kedar versions after Rannoch), and Kuwashii visor. However, you can find artifacts artifacts around the galaxy that you can use to research character boosts that benefit your class in whatever way you want.
The health system is different though; instead of one long bar, your health bar is multiple smaller bars. You regenerate your health to fill up that bar, and require medi-gel to heal the rest.
Finally, extra skills are received the same way in this game, but this time, they are gained via an unseen "how much I like you" stat. I can only advise one skill this time; armor-piercing ammo. There is one abundant enemy that is a pain without it; the Cerberus Guardian, who carries a big wall shield. The only way to damage them is to either hit them through the "mailbox window", use the biotic power "Pull" to rip the shield out of his hands, or get behind them. But since they quickly turn to face you, the third is difficult to do. But with armor-piercing ammo? One point in it allows you shoot through the shield, damaging it directly. More points allows you to shoot through cover, to an extent. This extra skill is the best in the game, hands down.
Oh, and no tank and no mini games in this game. Mini games have been replaced with multiplayer, which functions the same as single player, except your squadmates are other players. Also, you get to play as other races, which have their own powers for multiplayer. See the wiki for more details.
The best part of all three games is that they teach you through gameplay. Yes, the first area is a tutorial area, but the whole time, you are running, shooting, using powers and getting exposition on the fly. It doesn't talk down to you, and doesn't hold your hand.
Remember though, that you can play your game any way you want, and ignore any tips I've given as necessary.
I'm going to finalize this with a blog on the companions, and then my thoughts on the whole story. Until then, happy gaming!
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