Mass Effect 2 is the second instalment in what is promised to be a trilogy of games from legendary development outfit BioWare. The title is a sci–fi laced action RPG. You step into the heavily armoured boots of one Commander Shepherd, the main character from the first game who, after dying (in some amazing opening cinematics involving a rapidly deteriorating battle cruiser), is brought back to life to take on a new threat that promises to wipe out humankind.

We‘re not being fair to the plot – it is so tightly interwoven with branching narratives and twists and turns a–plenty that any paragraph summary wouldn‘t do it justice – such is the care and attention to detail poured into this project at every opportunity. Mass Effect 2 is really like no other game on the market at the moment – a sophisticated action RPG that marries the complexities of science fiction scenarios and wraps them tightly inside a gameworld that incorporates the best run and gun shooter ethics; topped off with the freedom of exploration and discovery normally afforded to perpetual worlds found in MMORPGs.

A conversation wheel allows you to choose what you wish to say to any of the in–game characters you meet. Be kind or be ruthless – the choice between Paragon and Renegade means your actions will have consequences. Sometimes a Quick Time Event where you pull either the right or left trigger during conversations will have physical in–game consequences. At one point we found ourselves being harassed by a pushy female reporter – next thing we had given her a solid right hook that left her with a heavily bruised face – but gloating how she caught our psychotic behaviour on film. We didn‘t have to do it – we were just given the opportunity, so we took it.

These twists and turns are everywhere. In one of the first nightclubs we entered we were randomly poisoned by a bartender who hated humans (which in itself took a little unravelling), so we decided to get our own back by forcing him to drink his own ju–ju juice. Again we didn‘t have to, and there‘s a good chance we wouldn‘t have ever even stumbled across this barman (he was one of about six in a multi–floor nightclub called After Life). But we were given the opportunity, so we took it. It‘s this feeling of depth, freedom and unpredictability that goes a long way to making this game so utterly compelling.

The first 8–10 hours of gameplay has Shepherd travelling multiple galaxies in his starship, the Normandy 2, recruiting his team for the mission ahead. Whenever you deploy into a ‘hot zone‘ you‘ll select two AI team mates who will follow you and follow rudimentary directional orders in typical duck and cover shoot–outs similar to Gears of War – and just as slick.

Much of the shooting strategy comes from selecting the right weapons and right ‘biotic‘ powerups in order to defeat the types of enemies you face. Some weapons are better at taking out shields, some biotic powers such as dragging a foe through the air into your line of fire work better than simply setting them alight with incendiary rounds (a personal favourite). There‘s a whole host of weapons and power ups available via the two bumper buttons – with further upgrades available via resource collection.

The game is also gorgeous to look at – benefitting from a much more polished presentation than the first offering. The level of detail is amazing – down to buying models and pets for your own personal on–board cabin (we have a thing for alien fish). You can even play a selection of tunes from your bedside alarm clock.

Mass Effect 2 is bursting with fantastical sci–fi scenarios worthy of Dr Who or Star Trek episodes: The prison warden who sells prisoners; the plague that infects every race bar humans, the core plot of an ancient race called The Reapers who harvest all organic matter every 50,000 years – this is adult sci–fi storytelling woven through a fantastic looking game that‘s also great to play.

We‘re over 600 words in and we haven‘t even talked about the different class systems, the truly personalised experience where you can import your ME 1 saved game to alter the character traits of the sequel‘s main protagonist or the mysterious online content that‘s available (we‘d know more if EA had kindly provided us with a code..).

For many, the ultimate game is about freedom of choice and Mass Effect 2 goes a long way to fulfilling that aim. The first authentic 10/10 game of 2010 and a very early hot favourite for game of the year. A work of art and a breed apart, Mass Effect is in full effect. Now if you‘ll excuse us, we‘ve got planets to explore.

Games2c Rating: 10/10