Wow, I'm unoriginal. You would have thought the topic of this blog, Mass Effect 2, would have produced something clever out of me. Oh well. I wanna talk about the characters of Mass Effect 2 and how the second game to the best sci-fi video game franchise of all time will handle characters from the first.
My first thought: don't worry. Remember that Bioware is a quality developer. Don't expect Shepard to step out of the Normandy for a piss only to have it blown up with his crew inside. I expect to see a quality handling of things in terms of what happens to each. My second thought: change is good. As you can see from the trailer for ME2, the only confirmed character returning is Tali. That leaves the fate of your other crew members up in the air, and this is a great thing. With this, Bioware can do what it does best: use characters we care about to enhance the narrative of a game. Think about it. Bioware can do more with letting your former squad do its own thing and can add side missions and even add to the main plot.
With the old characters not joining you, you can meet them in other situations which will feel more natural than forcing the characters to come along with you. Here are a few scenarios to elaborate what I'm talking about. Ashley, who I don't think will return as party member, could be relocated (she is a soldier after all) and you might meet up with her in your travels. This presents a "woman scorned" side mission that would fit well into your morality. Or Wrex working for an opposing corporation on a main story mission. This presents a "I let you live once, don't make me regret that" type thingy. The point I'm trying to make is that Bioware can do more and better by bringing in new characters than recycling the old ones. In ME1, it was like Band of Brothers, we knew their background and we could trust them to stick with us. In ME2, it's gonna be more like The Dirty Dozen, we have little idea about these dangerous individuals, let alone if you can even trust them. It works better. You have to honestly ask yourself who from the original group would accompany Shepard on this suicide mission. Ashley, the Carth Onasi guy (Caleb? Calik? Fuck if I know...), Liara, and to some extent, Garrus, were all upstanding people of the law. Would any one of them be willing to get their hands dirty? Only Wrex, Tali, and to some extent, Garrus would be able to stomach the shit Shepard wants to do to beat the Reapers, though it might be more interesting if Garrus were to take over the Citadel Security Force (the way he handled shit I would expect it to be quite different if he did). Tali we know is returning, but her main deal will be to report to her home world (Conclave? Colony? Fuck I don't pay attention...).
A few quick notes. One, I am really interested in Legion, the Geth that dresses up like Shepard. In my opinion, it has something to do with the Reapers. Remember that Shepard beat Sovereign, the galaxy's only Reaper and stopped more from entering our universe. This has to have some religious implications for the Geth, who probably see Shepard as a "God-killer" or something. I expect it figures leaps and bounds into how you dealed with Saren too. Second, Captain (or Counselor) Anderson. Remember that ME1 gave you a choice between appointing Anderson or Udina (more like Udouche-bag) to the Counsel's post. The choice for Anderson was obvious, but I expect it comes back to bite you somehow. Remember that Anderson was and still is a soldier, and he may not appreciate his new desk jockey roll in government service. Just a thought. Finally, Cerberus. It's awesome that Shepard works for them instead of the Counsel. They are so much cooler with Martin Sheen as Illusive Man and Yvonne Strahovski as Miranda Lawson ( She > Ashley and Liara 8 days of the week). All we know is that they played a huge role on Noveria and I'm sure your actions there will have major implications. Hooray for smoke-filled-room corporate handlings!
That's my take. Please leave a comment giving me your take (and helping out with the names of people and places maybe?). Don't forget to vote in the poll too. Thanks for reading! :D
Very good blog. I think you hit the head of the nail. The Normandy 'sploding is not small deal. Something is gonna happen that is gonna tear the crew apart in some way. A couple things I want to say:
ReplyDelete-The Wrex scenario you thought of is actually really awesome, and I think very likely. It would be cool to see if you could talk him out of it like you do on Virmire.
-I could care less about Ashley. Is she genetically engineered to be the best woman ever created like Miranda Lawson? No.
-Kaiden is his name.
-I think Legion will either be a big enemy or an ally. And I think the whole religious thing is why the Geth are still attacking you in ME2 (They were obedient to Saren, and now he is gone, so they must have some other motivation).
-Udouche-bag. Lolcats.
-I think there will be pros and cons to who you picked to be on the counsel. For me Anderson is the counsel, because I chose not to save them in the end. That should be interesting...
-I don't think Shepard is exactly working for Cerberus. I think they are going to offer him some type of ultimatum. Think about it. Why would he need to ally with Cerberus if he is not only Alliance military but a Spectre? There has to be something else there.
-Tali comes from the Flotilla.