Regardless of how long you have been gaming, Mass Effect will be part of your identity as a gamer. You either have played the series, or are aware of it because of secondary exposure. But one thing is for sure, you know what Mass Effect is. For any discussion that pertains to Mass Effect, the immortal question will always remain “Which one is the best and why?”
The rankings of games are – of course – entirely personal to you, which means that our ‘best’ may not indeed be your best Mass Effect game. This is evident by the personal play-style of players and their opinions of the characters there-in.
Some people loved Wrex, others could never do business with a Krogan. Some played entirely as a hero, whereas others took a devil-may-care approach to their playthroughs. Whatever your opinions on the characters, one thing is for sure, you will have a favourite in the series. So here we attempt answer, what is the best Mass Effect game?
4. Mass Effect Andromeda
Delivered by an entirely different team to the rest of the series, Mass Effect: Andromeda is a lighter-toned game which makes use of the open-world elements that saw a boom in the 2010s.
Set within the Andromeda Galaxy, the player plays as either Scott or Sara Ryder as they join the initiative to populate new worlds. While on the face of it, the concept is an interesting one, Mass Effect: Andromeda doesn’t deliver on it.
Mass Effect as a series lives and dies on its ability to tell a story and it does this by developing interesting characters and keeping players engrossed, Mass Effect: Andromeda does not do this. The combat in Mass Effect: Andromeda is more complex to understand and nuanced than the all-important personal relationships. The plot is bogged down with awful writing and the game world is too vast to be interesting – as players of Assassin’s Creed will be familiar with.
The customisable combat and the infrequent endearing conversations with the crewmates can – for some – offer enough of a reason to stick with it. But when comparing Mass Effect: Andromeda with its predecessors and games within the same sphere, it falls at every hurdle. Definitely the worst Mass Effect game to date.
3. Mass Effect 3
Whether it was using a dead child’s ghost to determine the fate of the galaxy, or those horrifically bad few minutes in the original ending, Mass Effect 3 does have a great deal to answer for upon the altar of bad gaming history.
That said, the third act of Mass Effect 3 is one of the best third acts in gaming history. It is spread thinly among signature sacrifices and cohesive climaxes to extremely important narrative arcs. Mordin’s story, of course, comes to mind for one of the best in the series, and possibly gaming overall.
Mass Effect 3 is the culmination of the long-awaited Reaper threat. The Reapers have arrived and are murdering their way across the stars, and only you and your motley crew can assemble once more to finally repel them. Mass Effect has always been the story of good versus evil, and the Reapers have been on their way since before the first game.
Your motley crew is mostly made up of new characters and therefore the loss or victories throughout can sometimes feel slightly hollow, but it does give players a chance to get to know a whole new range of characters in order to once and for all, defend the galaxy from ruin.
For most people, Mass Effect 3’s ending is the only reason it is not the best in the series. Lacking cohesive continuity from the series as a whole, means that Mass Effect 3 leads to a much-maligned ‘decision’ which – on the face – seems wide-reaching, but in practice, is nothing more than choosing a different coloured sweater. It’s a shame that Mass Effect 3 got the treatment it did, but it doesn’t remove the overall impact of one of the best sci-fi game series ever made.
2. Mass Effect
Let’s get this out of the way now. Mass Effect as a game is not going to be judged here for its age. The game released originally in 2007, and it was met with widespread praise and universal acclaim. However, for most, there were a few criticisms, primarily relating to the combat.
The combat in Mass Effect is largely derided due to its mathematical basis. In theory, it works as a RPG hit/miss chance ratio, however in practice, it translates into putting your rifle to the back of an enemy’s head, firing, and missing entirely. It was maddening. There of course are ways to negate this, however in the early game, you will find yourself missing more often than you hit. Mass Effect tries to have the best of both worlds by offering third-person action-filled shooting, in the same space as a chance-based RPG style combat system where no shot is guaranteed – it doesn’t work more often than it does.
The next criticism has to be the Mako. The Mako is another example of a great mechanic, improperly exercised. The idea of a ground-based people-carrier which is capable of travelling across planet surfaces in order to reach quest markers that otherwise would be impossible to achieve. The use of the Mako conveys an image of a vast and unending planetary landscape however this comes with more cons than pros. Namely, the Mako is a ridiculously inefficient turret which is – inexplicably – allowed to move around the world(s). The physics that underpins the Mako’s movement is maddening and can – more often than not – see you careening miles past your objective marker or getting stuck on jagged and unrealistic mountainry. The Mako is a wonderful idea, and the initial feel of controlling the vehicle is something to behold, but once you pick up speed and start to bounce around the planet surface, regret quickly sets in. It’s a damn shame. Also, the Mako is hideous, don’t @ me. 2007 could have delivered a far more visually impressive planetary navigation vehicle.
1. Mass Effect 2
For most, this probably isn’t a surprise. Mass Effect 2 is a much tighter, more refined and accessible game and attempts to tie both the first and third game together, but inadvertently results in offering a de-facto conclusion for anyone who loves a cliffhanger ending.
Mass Effect 2 exists in the same space that Spiderman 2, The Last Jedi and Halloween Kills occupies today, namely, the centre of a trilogy. When your product exists within the middle of a trilogy, your only job is to create a story that strings both , the introduction and the conclusion together. This means that there is no need to retread old ground with regards to the environment or to conclude any existing narrative points.
In the second instalment, the focus shifts more inward towards Shepard as a character and their experiences and relationships. The ever-present threat of the Reapers and Collectors are still there, but they don’t have the same impact that they will have later in the series. In the second game, they are nothing more than a narrative vehicle, and the game benefits from this greatly. Bioware have a reputation for delivering and developing fantastic characters – as stated previously – and Mass Effect 2 is no different. The loyalty questlines that feed into your relationships with the crew members are the cherry on top of the cake with Mass Effect 2.
There are 12 distinct members in Mass Effect 2 that are crew members, all with the associated accoutrements of unique personalities and loyalty missions.
It can be easy to get hung up on the characters in Mass Effect 2 because they are so paramount to the world-building in the series thus far, but we mustn’t forget that Mass Effect 2 also revamped and tightened the combat system, even if it didn’t get its final refinement until the much-maligned last entry in the series.
Mass Effect 2 is unique in its placement and because of this, it can put more time into world-building from a personal point of view as opposed to the grand-scale of galactic story-telling which would came later in the 3rd entry. Mass Effect 2 is the ultimate sci-fi send-up, which combines tight combat, focused story-telling and universally appealing loyalty questlines to develop and explore relationships which will be tested, and possibly ended later in the story.
ME2 stands as a masterpiece of sci-fi storytelling, blending heart-wrenching drama, thrilling action, and unforgettable beauty. It remains Bioware’s crowning achievement in the series, a level of excellence they have yet to surpass. Even with whispers of a new Mass Effect on the horizon, the general consensus is clear – no one truly expects Bioware to outdo their extraordinary accomplishment with Mass Effect 2. It set the standard for sci-fi RPGs and continues to inspire awe to this day.
Mass Effect as a series has something to offer everyone, whether it’s an expansive sci-fi opera, a thrilling action-packed tale, or a tightly woven—albeit imperfect—sci-fi RPG. From unraveling the complex dynamics between governments and private organizations to delving into political corruption, or exploring themes of love and loss on a deeply personal level, the series masterfully tackled these topics with remarkable effectiveness. Its versatility and depth continue to captivate fans across the galaxy.
