The Sovereigns

Last night I completed Mass Effect just to make sure it didn't turn into just another game on the list of games I've reached the final level on but never actually completed. The final stages were pretty good. Fighting two Geth Armatures while on foot was pretty difficult, and so were the rocket turrets. I managed to "resolve an impossible situation using diplomacy" which means instead of fighting the final boss, you get him to back down in a very cool cinematic sequence. The ending was satisfying, apart from the hey let's leave the storyline open so we can make a sequel part. I'd like to take the time to play it again to see the things I missed before like getting to level 60, using different skills to overcome the objectives, follow a romance sub plot, be an arse hole instead of a paragon... oh and apparently I missed one codex entry. One! I think it was to do with the Salarians.

If a sequel is released then I'm sure I'll want to get my hands on it. I'd like to see more Quarians, find out what happens to the Krogan, find out what female Turians and Salarians look like (and Volus for that matter) as well as see what some of the races look like without all that bulky armour on. For example, why do the Taurians have those huge lumps on their backs? What is the natural posture for a standing Krogan? What do Quarians and Volus look like under those masks? The game was intriguing and, at times, compelling. There was still too much the world is about to explode but we can talk calmly for ten minutes while all that stops and waits for us to finish conversing for my tastes. Although the voice acting was fine, it didn't convey a sense of urgency when it could have done. A very enjoyable game though, I'd recommend it to almost anyone with an XBox 360.

After completing Mass Effect I thought I wouldn't have time to get into S.T.A.L.K.E.R. for the evening so I started a magic-centralised character in Dark Messiah. I don't have any of the massively damaging spells yet (lightning bolt, fireball, inferno) but so far it has been pretty interesting. I really like the freeze spell since you can use it to disable a whole gang of orcs and then blow them all up with a firetrap spell while they try to get up.

My sound was acting up in Gun, Dreamfall, and Call of Juarez but I think it's fixed now, I just need to test it out. I've also started downloading all my STEAM games. Since I'm not really playing Guild Wars now (I've always preferred single player games and now I have a big bundle to play through) it means I can leave STEAM to download all those Half Life games while I play other games I've already installed (i.e. the three listed above).

Oh and the relevance of today's post is that the big Reaper ship in Mass Effect is called "Sovereign", and so is the big demon trying to escape imprisonment via the prophecy of the dark messiah in Might and Magic.