Mass Effect Trilogy Review: Innovative, Ballsy, and Boring

Playing all three Mass Effect games back to back was a daunting task, more so than when I decided to play all four Uncharted games. Going into the Mass Effect trilogy was intimidating, not because of the games themselves, but because of the sheer enormity of Mass Effect in the gaming community.  This trilogy created a create-as-you-go method of storytelling, where, while yes, you have a linear story guiding the games, you also get to drive the story's narrative in the choices you make, through dialogue and actionable consequences. The pedestal this series was raised on gave me hope that this series was something undeniable. Unfortunately, while interesting, the Mass Effect trilogy lacked overall substance. Playing all three of these games back to back was not only fascinating in seeing their evolution, but it also gave me an insight into how the games went from rough and poorly paced to having more substance, but still lacking. 

The Truest Meaning of Convoluted:  This was a unique experience, mainly because this series did one impactful thing: It made my choices count. The Mass Effect trilogy is filled with a lot of moments of pure boredom, some giggles, and high emotions during the third installment. When the Mass Effect trilogy was released, it was revolutionary for its time in the way it was approached, making it an undeniable experience for some. While the Mass Effect trilogy did one thing right by giving me absolute choice, this absolute choice would ultimately be its downfall. There was a lot that fell flat due to everything being left up to me; there was so much choice that it became overwhelming to a degree. Everything in Mass Effect 2 was approached in a way that, “If I want to do this, then sure, go for it.” It was highly recommended that I build up my team, form great bonds with them, and complete their companion quests, but I didn’t have to.  Nearly everything in Mass Effect 2 is optional; you have to complete a couple of missions here and there between story events, but otherwise, the majority is optional. This is where things get convoluted, where the choice not to do ANY of the companion quests or other quests is both the beauty of BioWare giving us absolute freedom as well as the price paid. Not doing any of the companion quests, and just the ones required,  will ultimately set your Shepard on a path for failure in the ending of Mass Effect 2 and most of Mass Effect 3. Now, you can be the only one left surviving in this series if you so choose, but there is so much amazing dialogue, banter, and rich, substantive qualities that this trilogy possesses. This is what gives this series its uniqueness and stands apart from the rest.  These games are meant to be played back-to-back: These games are meant to be played back-to-back, not separately or out of order. Playing Mass Effect 1 without playing the other games is an entirely different experience from playing Mass Effect 3. 3’s writing is more cohesive and well thought-out, while 1 is a shell and delivers crumbs to the player that (some) will later be fleshed out in 2 and 3. How you play 1 will influence how the others play out. Now, while this is fantastic, having a game that carries weight in each installment, I couldn’t get over just how much of the content of the series could have been covered in just two games.

Diving into what Mass Effect 3 is is the result of the choices you made in 2. The worlds of these games are built on the characters, not the story; the story pales in comparison to the relationships you have with the crew and all of the different characters in this series. The games looked at as a whole suffer because their concept is basic and overly simple, but when looking at the characters, that’s where the games turn into something meaningful.

 The Characters Create the Game: The characters in this game are incredible, from the way they were written to the interactions you can have with them in the companion missions and Mass Effect 3. I built up a love for them throughout the trilogy, so it made it so much more difficult when some of them died.  Much like Dragon Age: Inquisition, the characters are what give the game a soul, and BioWare is very good at making memorable characters that stuck with me.  The characters in Mass Effect 1, for the most part, didn’t hold the same weight for me as they did in 2 and 3; they mostly felt bland and uninspired in the first game. The only characters in 1 that had genuinely decent writing were Garrus and Tali. As the trilogy went on, the characters felt more like people I would sit down to have coffee with, instead of two-dimensional beings that are able to talk. I felt more of a pull towards the world of the second and third games. Being that those felt the most fleshed out in terms of the concept and character interactions. The entire series is based on the trope of the battle between good and evil; the Mass Effect trilogy handles it in a boring, almost overused way. While Sovereign was a great and unexpected twist in the first game, there was nothing that improved on that concept in the third installment. Yes, finding a shard of Sovereign is a nice callback, but it would have been nice to see Sovereign as the main villain in the final game as well. Know that the characters and their writing get better as you continue in the series; they get wittier and more conversational as well, bringing a certain vibrancy about them when you choose to do their missions or romance one of them. There were some tears by the end of Mass Effect 3. I got attached to several characters throughout the trilogy, the main one being Garrus. He’s the version of Solas that won’t leave you wondering if the relationship ending was your fault. By the time the Mass Effect trilogy ended, Garrus, Tali, Javik, and Thane were my favorite characters. Playing through the whole series at once gave me an immense appreciation for the flow of the trilogy and just how far we’ve come technologically.

It all boils down to one thing:  Consistency is key in a story, especially a trilogy. While the Mass Effect games are about the characters, and the games should ideally be played with that as the priority, I would have loved to have seen a more consistent storyline leading up to the end. I am more of a story-driven player than anything, so seeing how this trilogy played out left me more underwhelmed than I would have liked. The characters are guardians of this trilogy; they make the Mass Effect series what it is. It’s not the story, the atmosphere, or the combat; it's the human element that the characters possess. It's why I loved the series was because of how the characters were written, and the stories you can experience with them. If these characters didn’t have the incredible narrative design that they did, the games would have felt lost and without color.  Everyone will buy this trilogy for different reasons: the memes, the curiosity, or even just Garrus. No matter your reasoning for picking up these games, know you’re witnessing history encapsulated. You’re getting to see the progression of technology and how something has grown over time. That is something to treasure beyond all else.