![]() ![]() This fantastic futuristic space station was the introduction to the game's races: Turian, Asari, Elcor, Hanar, Volus, and more. Hell, it outstripped many games at the time period, becoming a flagship title for the Xbox 360.Īfter your first mission on Eden Prime, players are sent to the Citadel, the center of the galaxies commerce and politics. Mass Effect's presentation of scope and scale simply outstripped many other RPGs at the time. The ship speeds past Jupiter, before using a mass relay to teleport. This jumps to the player walking the deck of the Normandy, the ship that will become your hub and home for the rest of the game. Mass Effect is all about atmosphere, making the player feel like this is a playable movie. ![]() The camera pans back to show your version of Commander Shepard looking down at the Earth, as if to say, "This game is already bigger than you can imagine." That's followed with the building synths of the soundtrack-a callback to science fiction film soundtracks from the 80s-and the title card. Mass Effect begins with a view of the Earth from space, with a conversation between Captain David Anderson and human diplomat Donnel Udina, two characters who would later act as physical manifestations of your moral compass. Top 10 Anime Betrayals.įrom the opening moments, it was clear Bioware had improved on every facet over its previous games. The turn-based combat of Knights of the Old Republic was shifted towards an interface that resembled a third-person shooter players retained the ability to pause combat, but a cover system was introduced and the camera was over your character's shoulder, as opposed to the more free-form camera of previous games. The cinematic presentation was heavily improved over Bioware's previous offerings. The developer crafted a brand-new universe for players to explore part- Star Wars, part- Star Trek, part- Starship Troopers. Mass Effect was Bioware's moment to cement itself as prestige studio for console players. If Knights of the Old Republic and Jade Empire were the first steps, this was the game that represented Bioware breaking out into a full-on sprint. It was Bioware's largest project at the time, with significant work spent on building out Unreal Engine 3, a development team of over 130 people, and a story that was planned to span an entire trilogy. ![]() The team behind KOTOR took the expertise gained on the Xbox and used that to kickstart development of their project for its successor, the Xbox 360. It also brought a host of fans like myself over to some classic PC RPGs.īuoyed by the success of Knights of the Old Republic, Bioware decided to make its next title for consoles as well. Bioware and the Xbox were a key part of a change in the gaming industry, showing fans, developers, and publishers that PC games could work on consoles. The studio followed that title with Jade Empire, and as a lover of classic Shaw Brothers and Jackie Chan films, I was ready. ![]() I was onboard immediately as a long-time Star Wars fan and simply jumped at the chance to finally be a Jedi. Phantasy Star IV: The End of the Millenniumīioware's Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic for the original Xbox was a watershed moment for me. The Complete List of the Top 25 RPGs of All Time I didn't get into the computer role-playing game (CRPG) genre until after Bioware's console entries. I owned a PC and I knew of Baldur's Gate, Icewind Dale, and Neverwinter Nights, but I never picked them up. I was a late convert to the church of Bioware, given the studio's long history. We're counting down the 25 best RPGs ever on USG! Go here to see previous entries, and also make sure to subscribe to Axe of the Blood God for the accompanying podcast segments! Some content, such as this article, has been migrated to VG247 for posterity after USgamer's closure - but it has not been edited or further vetted by the VG247 team. This article first appeared on USgamer, a partner publication of VG247. ![]()
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