I don't know I can say anything new about ME that hasn't already been said. It's a popular game series, the first one is over ten years old, and there are going to be more than enough reviews on here already that discuss its pros and cons. People will be bringing up how the first game has too much inventory management, or how levels progression is a little uneven (starting with too low of skills then gaining ground too quickly), or how solid characterization and story feels in ME 1 compared to others in the Shepard trilogy.

That being said, I still can't help but speak up and say: yes, these games are incredible. Yes, these games are worth being played. Yes, these games are worth talking about.

You can go to other reviews if you want to know how well the controls handle and other such game mechanisms. For me, it is sufficient to say the game is incredibly fun, and while aspects like inventory management might not be perfect, it never detracted me from my overarching, overwhelmingly positive gameplay experience. So I'm not going to talk about controls and graphics and the like. I'm going to talk about what means the most to me about the ME series: the story.

What makes the ME trilogy my favorite video games ever played is story. Don't get me wrong - I have a whole lot of fun shooting things. But there are lots of shooter games. That's not what makes ME special. What makes the game special is its characters, its plot, its world, its emotions. I consider ME an incredibly powerful story, perhaps even ranking amongst some of the most impacting stories ever told.

The first time I played ME 1, I remember having some slight challenges integrating into the universe. A lot of information about the universe is dumped upon you in a short amount of time. I would not say it is overwhelming, but it is something that, at least for me, was initially hard to keep everything straight. On my first mission, I already had to juggle information about geth and spectres and the Alliance and turians and human colonies like Eden Prime - and what was this about some Prothean ruin and what did it have to do with galactic matters? That said, I don't know how they could have handled information distribution any better, and one does find oneself emerging into the game, its world, and its lore seamlessly over the course of gameplay. You do successfully integrate into the world, and once you do, you become lost in it.

One of the things I appreciate most about the ME trilogy is that nothing is truly superfluous. Sure, there are side missions galore that seem to have nothing to do with the main plot. But I am impressed as a storyteller. Seemingly unrelated side missions tie into the overarching plot of the trilogy. By the time one enters ME 3, you realize that nothing introduced has been random additional information. Even simple events in the side missions get some growth, development, storytelling, and resolution. It's very satisfying to experience. You don't just meet some random guy Conrad Verner. You see where he ends up. You don't just help Rita's sister Jenna in the first ME game. You see her again. You see where she ends up. You don't just stop some random rogue VI on Luna. You see where even THAT ends up, too. Everything all ties together for the final efforts of the third game - and the way these get wrapped up gives a satisfying sense of closure, of completeness, of storytelling done right with a lot of careful precision and attention to detail.

That's only the side stories.

ME's main story is one that resonates with the heart. I feel that, of all the games in the Shepard trilogy, the first Mass Effect game has the best-structured story. The plot arc and its execution is impressively well-formed from a storytelling perspective, resulting in a narrative that is cohesive, memorable, and satisfying to experience. It is a well-formed adventure, making every step of the journey, start to end, engaging, enjoyable. Many stories have hiccups along the way, some portion of the story that does not carry through as well as the rest... but I feel as though ME 1 is solid from the second it starts to the second the story concludes.

As far as world-building and characterization are concerned, the first game is the least developed. Part of that's just the nature of being the first game, though - its purpose is to establish the story and characters; the other two games can then grow from it. I like to say ME 1 is best for plot structure, ME 2 best for characters, and ME 3 best for emotion. The player falls deeply in love with all the characters during the ME 2 missions, but might not be QUITE as gripped by the team in the first game. You are only just meeting the team, only just getting to know them, only just forming bonds with them. I still don't think the treatment of character is BAD in the first game - I did find myself latching onto Kaidan, Wrex, and Garrus readily enough in the ME 1 missions - and I did find myself quite emotional about certain impacting moments with characters - but character interactions only improve as the story continues. You don't *quite* get the howling-with-laughter moments in ME 1... but the first game is important for establishing these characters, helping you see how they tick, and helping you charge through Citadel space in an unforgettable adventure. You still have good times talking to the characters! You still can feel the essence of their personalities. You care about them by the time you get to Virmire! You still walk away from the first Mass Effect game feeling as though your experiences were memorable with the characters you met.

And by the time of ME 3? These characters resonate deeply within you; they are extremely three-dimensional, to the point they feel real.

An unforgettable story is part of the legacy of the ME franchise. It feels AMAZING stepping through ME 1 and ME 2 as a galactic hero. And then there are the characters - another astounding legacy of the ME franchise. The last thing that makes these games a sample of the finest storytelling is that the decisions you make critically matter.

As you're all going to know, RPGs allow gameplayers to make decisions that affect the outcome of your adventures. The ME trilogy is a series where your choices make *critical* differences... these are high-impact decisions, and what you choose profoundly alters your experiences in the game. Squadmates live or die depending on what you do. Civilizations could fall if you make the wrong move. These are not light choices to make... you CAN lose your teammates... nobody is safe. That level of high-stakes decision making is what makes the games so powerful to play. You are fully immersed into the world and what you do profoundly MATTERS.

The more I learn all the options you can select, and all the ways in which the story alters itself based upon your decisions... the more I'm in awe. I don't know that it's anywhere close to possible to experience all the ways the trilogy can go. The writers think of everything - if you romance X character in ME 1, then Q character in ME 2, then return to X in ME 3, and take them on Z mission, there will be unique dialogue. If you lose V character in ME 1, don't make W action in ME 2, lose R character in ME 3, and gain # amount of reputation points... then someone else might live. Who lives, who dies, who comes back into your life, how they come back into your life, what they say, how they say it, what they do, why they choose to do it... everything from the tiny-little-details (whether or not they sang a song to you during freetime) to the big impacts (like whether or not they even lived) is all accounted for and integrated into gameplay.

Maybe I can't say anything profoundly *new* about ME, but it's still worth saying. Of all the games I have played, of stories I have experienced, few have come remotely close to the immersive, engaging, and emotional world of ME. I could not recommend this story enough.

I don't know I can say anything new about ME that hasn't already been said. It's a popular game series, the first one is over ten years old, and there are going to be more than enough reviews on here already that discuss its pros and cons. People will be bringing up how the first game has too much inventory management, or how levels progression is a little uneven (starting with too low of skills then gaining ground too quickly), or how solid characterization and story feels in ME 1 compared to others in the Shepard trilogy. That being said, I still can't help but speak up and say: yes, these games are incredible. Yes, these games are worth being played. Yes, these games are worth talking about. You can go to other reviews if you want to know how well the controls handle and other such game mechanisms. For me, it is sufficient to say the game is incredibly fun, and while aspects like inventory management might not be perfect, it never detracted me from my overarching, overwhelmingly positive gameplay experience. So I'm not going to talk about controls and graphics and the like. I'm going to talk about what means the most to me about the ME series: the story. What makes the ME trilogy my favorite video games ever played is story. Don't get me wrong - I have a whole lot of fun shooting things. But there are lots of shooter games. That's not what makes ME special. What makes the game special is its characters, its plot, its world, its emotions. I consider ME an incredibly powerful story, perhaps even ranking amongst some of the most impacting stories ever told. The first time I played ME 1, I remember having some slight challenges integrating into the universe. A lot of information about the universe is dumped upon you in a short amount of time. I would not say it is overwhelming, but it is something that, at least for me, was initially hard to keep everything straight. On my first mission, I already had to juggle information about geth and spectres and the Alliance and turians and human colonies like Eden Prime - and what was this about some Prothean ruin and what did it have to do with galactic matters? That said, I don't know how they could have handled information distribution any better, and one does find oneself emerging into the game, its world, and its lore seamlessly over the course of gameplay. You do successfully integrate into the world, and once you do, you become lost in it. One of the things I appreciate most about the ME trilogy is that nothing is truly superfluous. Sure, there are side missions galore that seem to have nothing to do with the main plot. But I am impressed as a storyteller. Seemingly unrelated side missions tie into the overarching plot of the trilogy. By the time one enters ME 3, you realize that nothing introduced has been random additional information. Even simple events in the side missions get some growth, development, storytelling, and resolution. It's very satisfying to experience. You don't just meet some random guy Conrad Verner. You see where he ends up. You don't just help Rita's sister Jenna in the first ME game. You see her again. You see where she ends up. You don't just stop some random rogue VI on Luna. You see where even THAT ends up, too. Everything all ties together for the final efforts of the third game - and the way these get wrapped up gives a satisfying sense of closure, of completeness, of storytelling done right with a lot of careful precision and attention to detail. That's only the side stories. ME's main story is one that resonates with the heart. I feel that, of all the games in the Shepard trilogy, the first Mass Effect game has the best-structured story. The plot arc and its execution is impressively well-formed from a storytelling perspective, resulting in a narrative that is cohesive, memorable, and satisfying to experience. It is a well-formed adventure, making every step of the journey, start to end, engaging, enjoyable. Many stories have hiccups along the way, some portion of the story that does not carry through as well as the rest... but I feel as though ME 1 is solid from the second it starts to the second the story concludes. As far as world-building and characterization are concerned, the first game is the least developed. Part of that's just the nature of being the first game, though - its purpose is to establish the story and characters; the other two games can then grow from it. I like to say ME 1 is best for plot structure, ME 2 best for characters, and ME 3 best for emotion. The player falls deeply in love with all the characters during the ME 2 missions, but might not be QUITE as gripped by the team in the first game. You are only just meeting the team, only just getting to know them, only just forming bonds with them. I still don't think the treatment of character is BAD in the first game - I did find myself latching onto Kaidan, Wrex, and Garrus readily enough in the ME 1 missions - and I did find myself quite emotional about certain impacting moments with characters - but character interactions only improve as the story continues. You don't *quite* get the howling-with-laughter moments in ME 1... but the first game is important for establishing these characters, helping you see how they tick, and helping you charge through Citadel space in an unforgettable adventure. You still have good times talking to the characters! You still can feel the essence of their personalities. You care about them by the time you get to Virmire! You still walk away from the first Mass Effect game feeling as though your experiences were memorable with the characters you met. And by the time of ME 3? These characters resonate deeply within you; they are extremely three-dimensional, to the point they feel real. An unforgettable story is part of the legacy of the ME franchise. It feels AMAZING stepping through ME 1 and ME 2 as a galactic hero. And then there are the characters - another astounding legacy of the ME franchise. The last thing that makes these games a sample of the finest storytelling is that the decisions you make critically matter. As you're all going to know, RPGs allow gameplayers to make decisions that affect the outcome of your adventures. The ME trilogy is a series where your choices make *critical* differences... these are high-impact decisions, and what you choose profoundly alters your experiences in the game. Squadmates live or die depending on what you do. Civilizations could fall if you make the wrong move. These are not light choices to make... you CAN lose your teammates... nobody is safe. That level of high-stakes decision making is what makes the games so powerful to play. You are fully immersed into the world and what you do profoundly MATTERS. The more I learn all the options you can select, and all the ways in which the story alters itself based upon your decisions... the more I'm in awe. I don't know that it's anywhere close to possible to experience all the ways the trilogy can go. The writers think of everything - if you romance X character in ME 1, then Q character in ME 2, then return to X in ME 3, and take them on Z mission, there will be unique dialogue. If you lose V character in ME 1, don't make W action in ME 2, lose R character in ME 3, and gain # amount of reputation points... then someone else might live. Who lives, who dies, who comes back into your life, how they come back into your life, what they say, how they say it, what they do, why they choose to do it... everything from the tiny-little-details (whether or not they sang a song to you during freetime) to the big impacts (like whether or not they even lived) is all accounted for and integrated into gameplay. Maybe I can't say anything profoundly *new* about ME, but it's still worth saying. Of all the games I have played, of stories I have experienced, few have come remotely close to the immersive, engaging, and emotional world of ME. I could not recommend this story enough.