Mass Effect 2

"It's the way that Mass Effect 2 expands upon the narrative established in the first game that marks a true breakthrough for interactive storytelling.  Gerald Villoria, GameSpy.com
"When you are playing it, you can't imagine doing anything else. Engrossing, captivating, stunning.  Wesley Yin-Poole, VideoGamer.com
"Mass Effect 2 far exceeded our expectations and is without question one of the best games we've played.  Chris Buffa, GameDaily.com

IGN.com 10 of 10
Mass Effect is one of my favorite games of the past decade. Despite its technical shortcomings, BioWare's first in what it promised to be a trilogy took the role-playing genre to new cinematic heights. Mass Effect 2 is a better game in near every way. From the very first scene, you will be hooked. And the farther you dive into this epic action role-playing game, the better it gets. It fulfills the promise of its predecessor while continuing to push the boundaries of what we should expect in a videogame...This is the continued saga of Commander Shepard. It's the future, and all sentient life across the galaxy is in peril. An advanced race of machines known as Reapers is intent on wiping the slate clean. Shepard, a distinguished soldier, has faced this threat and emerged triumphant once, but victory is far from assured. Now Shepard must take the fight to the enemy -- a mission that is dubbed suicidal from the outset. Things don't look very promising, but Shepard has a plan. It involves recruiting the best and brightest from around the galaxy and somehow convincing them their lives are worth sacrificing for the greater good...An emphasis has clearly been put on ensuring that the combat in Mass Effect 2 never grows stale. Side quests each have their own unique areas to explore -- and you'll have to explore the galactic map, talk to random characters, and find key items to even trigger many of them. The combat zones themselves, however, have been cleaned up to be more straightforward and compelling, rather than repetitive labyrinths. New gameplay twists are introduced frequently with some large quests eschewing combat entirely. There's a great focus on exploration and discovery here and BioWare has made sure that the reward for doing so is worth the effort...Games like Mass Effect 2 don't come around often enough. Look at any aspect and you can be sure it's great. It's incredibly personal while still retaining a sense of epic sweeping scale. The combat and mission design are outstanding. The visuals, voice acting, soundtrack, and direction are miles ahead of the competition. Perhaps most impressively, Mass Effect 2 manages to fulfill its incredible ambition while only suffering from very few technical hiccups. The only real caveat I should mention is that some of the revelations and plot twists won't be quite as powerful if you haven't played Mass Effect 1, but that isn't any reason to skip this fantastic videogame. - Erik Brudvig

Game Informer 10 of 10
The second chapter in the Mass Effect trilogy is more of an enigma than the first, weaving enough moral ambiguity, ghost-like images, and misleading plot twists to make the writers of the TV show Lost take note. Who are the Collectors? What interest does the mysterious Illusive Man have in Commander Shepard? Where are the Reapers? Why has Cerberus come out of the shadows? Why is mankind the only species in the universe being hunted?...Lost has teased its viewership for years with mystifying answers that lead to even more questions, but in Mass Effect 2, the scribes at BioWare slowly pull the curtain away to reveal the answers you seek. By the time the credits roll, most questions are addressed, Commander Shepard's role in the universe is cemented, and the last image that appears on screen makes the wait for Mass Effect 3 seem unfair...The shift away from RPG-style customization may sound like a major setback, but the new format keeps the focus on the action. The combat scenarios deliver more excitement, not to mention a wider breadth of enemy types. Teammates no longer mindlessly shoot walls like they did in the first game. Rather than acting like flashbang victims, they demonstrate intelligence on the battlefield as they take cover, advance, and unload everything they can on the enemy...With its amazing storytelling and combat, it may seem BioWare can do no wrong, but this journey is littered with unpleasant minigames tied to planet mining, computer hacking, and lock bypassing. Each of these diversions are as mind-numbingly dull as they are repetitive in design. Given how heavily they tie into the gameplay, you'd think BioWare would have given them the same care that clearly went into the rest of the game. Although unwanted, the minigames don't derail the experience. The only element of this finely sculpted game that stands out as a grievous error is the last boss' design -- its look screams X-Men more than it does Mass Effect...The loss of RPG elements may hit some people hard, and the repetition in minigames may lead to yawns and tired eyes, but none of these faults hold Mass Effect 2 back from being a work of bold ambition, and one of gaming's most exciting sequels. - Andrew Reiner