Intro:

This is my favourite game ever, and after replaying it on Insanity difficulty to get the trophy, I can honestly say I remember why it's my favourite game ever. From the characters you meet to the story and the gameplay improvements from Mass Effect 1, this game is superb, and I love it dearly.

The review will be split into sections, and I will go over my experience with the game and how I found each part.

Combat & Gameplay:

The combat and gameplay are very different to Mass Effect 1. The combat in ME1 was very simple in its execution and the cover system was not that great. Both of these parts are vastly improved in ME2.

In ME1 you had an individual recharge tier for each power. So you could use lift and throw to lift an enemy off the floor and throw them off the planet if you were on one. I enjoyed that very much. In ME2, the powers are on an overall timer per character. If you use a power that has a recharge time of 3 seconds, you can use another ability in 3 seconds, but some abilities have 12-second timers. So, you need to plan and think about what you need. When I first played the game I did not like this, but as I played on I appreciated it.

I played the Insanity playthrough with the soldier. For 1 reason, the game is impossible to complete as a biotic character. You can also get through it as the infiltrator, but the soldier is the best for Insanity due to the adrenaline rush skill, which slows down time. Not only does it give you access to most weapons, it gives you different ammo types as well. I highly recommend the incendiary ammo for the squad.

Powers:

You have 6 different classes to choose from:

• Vanguard: Combine combat and biotic powers
• Solider: Combat focused
• Sentinel: Mix of biotics and tech
• Engineer: Tech based
• Adept: Biotic powers
• Infiltrator: Combat and tech

I usually play as a vanguard because you have the coolest abilities, such as Biotic Charge and Cryo ammo. If you freeze the enemy and then charge them, they explode into pieces.

Each class has their own powers and skills. I’ve played with them all, and I still love the Vanguard the most. The Sentinel is pretty good as well. Try them all out and see which is your favourite.

Story:

Spoiler alert!!!!

The game starts with one of the best openings I’ve ever played. You’re on the Normandy and on a mission, but you’re attacked by an unknown ship. They blow up the Normandy, and Shephard dies in the attack.

Shepard’s body is recovered and brought back to life by Cerberus, controlled by the Illusive Man, one of the all-time bad guys.

You then go on a set of missions to stop the Collectors (who blew up your ship) and recruit a team to stop them.

I will not mention any more of the story as you should experience it yourself.

Missions:

The mission structure in ME2 is very linear in its approach. While you can explore space, scan planets and land on some, they are not big missions and usually take 10 minutes to complete.

The squad mates you gather, will each have a Loyalty mission you need to complete to keep them alive at the end of the game. These are all very different missions and require you to do something for each squad member.

The main missions are broken up and you are forced to do certain missions when you have completed a number of main missions.

I like the overall structure of the missions as it allows you to do what you want and when, but it reminds you that you’re there to do a job and stop the collectors from harvesting more human colonies.

And the Final mission........what a great mission and execution. Be careful who you pick when given the chance. If you pick incorrectly or even if they are not loyal, they will die. And this will carry over into ME3.

Tech:

The game was originally made in Unreal Engine 3 and runs flawlessly on my PS5. I had no crashes or lag and had an excellent time.

Final Score:

This is my favourite game ever, so it gets a big old 10 from me. I just love everything about it and I replay it a lot.

10/10