Mass Effect Legendary Edition

Well, they have no choice but to drop Pinnacle Station. Demiurge lost the source files. The camera angles do stir the pot, but that's not an indicator the game will be buggy and unfinished. All they are doing is retexturing the game. I have done that myself, its not that hard and the games were already pretty solid on a technical level.

it is EA though. The camera angles aren't a issue until it was turned into a PR thing to take focus away from Pinnacle. If thats the PR play, they got nothing else to lead with.

They might pull it off, but far more likely they'll botch it.
 
Anyway....
IGN drops more behind the scenes info on ME: LE. (Descusions with Mac Walters, Kevin Meek and other people [re]-developing ME:LE)
https://www.ign.com/articles/mass-e...-a-remake-but-much-more-than-a-basic-remaster

Still, while Mass Effect: Legendary Edition isn’t quite the giant leap that fans might have hoped for — that will likely have to wait until the announced-but-still-untitled Mass Effect 4 is ready for release — it’s also much more than your typical remaster. Some substantial changes are coming to the trilogy, particularly the original game, and they are changes that are in many instances long overdue.

...

The changes are indeed numerous. Improvements include an auto-aim system, more consistent auto save points, and refinements to some of the more frustrating boss encounters, like the fight with Benezia. The infamous elevator rides, which could take more than a minute in the original game, now take fewer than 15 seconds and can be skipped to boot. The once clumsy inventory system is now more in line with that of the PC version, and according to Walters features additional improvements that are designed to smooth away the rough edges without “tearing the whole thing down.”

The gunplay, another point of contention in the original game, has similarly seen major changes. Class-based aim penalties have been removed, meaning that a Vanguard can now effectively carry a sniper rifle. You still can’t train up weapons that aren’t in your class, but “at least you won’t feel completely useless,” Walters says. “The old one I always complained about was that you lined up someone dead to rights with your sniper rifle and yet you still missed,” an experience to which many Mass Effect fans can surely relate.

...

If there’s any reason to pick up Mass Effect: Legendary Edition, it may be to experience the original game again with fresh eyes. Certainly, this is the most attractive the original game has ever looked, running at up to 4K and 60fps with tonemapping, subsurface scattering, depth of field, bloom, and all manner of other enhancements. Even the clumsy Mako, so long the bane of major combat engagements, is getting updated physics, as well as improved controls.




I think what I find most interesting is that apparently ME:LE work has been underway for 2 years. I suppose that makes me appreciate the work more, in the sense that there is clearly more of it than I thought there was.
There is also things brought up in this article that I/we have discussed before, like the move to stick with UE3 rather than porting to UE4. As well as staying with PS4/X1X consoles rather than next gen. Much of ME:LE will be riding on the already great skeleton that is there. It's obvious that the graphical updates don't need to be as drastic for these titles specifically because the art direction is distinct and good. And although they can be perceived as "dated" they can't really ever be perceived as "bad" - which to draw a parallel, is something that another company, Nintendo, is good at.

Other random personal thoughts:
I think all the graphical changes look good for the most part. But I didn't like the look changes they did to Virmire, at least from the stills photos earlier leaked. The old graphics were blue, gloomy, and cold with really wet (almost slimey) looking rocks and a shadowy sky, and then moved everything to warm colors in the remake. I think the old palatte looks better from the standpoint of making you feel dread. (Which is kind of an undercurrent of the series - dread of the unknown and extinction via a galactic level threat). Virmire is definitely one of the peak dreak moments in ME1.

Anamorphic flares seem fine - obviously they're in every screen shot because they're facing light sources and also they "look cool", but I assume the game isn't that level of flare-y while playing. What I've seen of LE in motion it's not (from all the video stuff).

Not sure how I feel about changes to ME:1 yet. Guess I'll have to find out like everyone else once we get there. People keep harping on how much needs to be changed in it (including in the article) and I mostly disagree. I feel that ME:1 is clunky but I never had a problem with it or playing it at all - I actually like a lot of the OP late game mechanics (spamming OP "force powers" while having a never over-heating pistol was always silly fun). The Mako is probably the only thing that I can understand why people would want to change since all the explorable planets can be long and frustrating, but I feel that's more of an issue with the terrain almost more than the Mako itself. If you want to collect everything (which I have multiple times) then those segments can take an inordinate amount of time for essentially cruising around in silence over spiky, difficult to traverse, terrain - while occasionally killing some mercs or a worm and reading some codex entries. Short of making those maps smaller with easier terrain, I'm not sure how you really remaster that (or just make the Mako be able to drive over anything). And for those of you who think I have nostalgia goggles on, I've replayed the ME series within the past year albeit with mods like MEHEM on.

I guess the only other thing that I would really acknowledge needs direct change in ME1 is the load elevators, but those are obvious and will be skip-able - but that's a relatively minor change/issue.
 
Last edited:
You linked a video, so that statement totally makes sense. :rolleyes:
By saying you can think for yourself you meant you don't need to watch any video, no? I linked the video so you can see another perspective, not because you can't think for yourself, which I explained in the post.
That is not what the fuck I said. If you are going to quote me, do it accurately. I didn't say that at all. Again, "progressive" and "woke" aren't the same fucking things. It's you who seems to be having trouble reading. You have trouble with the quote function on the forum apparently.
For fucks sake I was quoting myself. Saying almost the thing you intended as a retort to me.

That's exactly my point. This guy is viewing it through a modern lens, but more than that he is confusing progressive messaging with wokeness. The two are not the same. I don't know how I can be any clearer about that. Progressive ideology is one thing. These "woke" assholes and the agenda they are pushing is entirely different and counter to what they claim to hold dear. These are people that want to right perceived injustice with more injustice. These are the people who think syrup is racist and climate change is due to systemic racism.
Now you are just walking in circles arguing about something we agree about. LOL. It's like you can't fathom being in agreement. :D

Wokeness and progressivism seems to be indistinguishable to the anti-sjw camp these days.

You really are having trouble with reading today. I did not give any examples of it in gaming because I have no examples to give. Certainly nothing first hand. The games I've played recently do not have examples of wokeness in them. Ghost Recon Breakpoint doesn't have it, Cyberpunk 2077 doesn't have it, Destiny 2's creators are certainly "woke" but the game itself doesn't really have any of that in it. Doom Eternal? Not there either. I'm not going to give examples of games that are supposedly infested with wokeness that I've only heard about second or third hand. I remember people saying the same shit about Andromeda and I played it for myself, and while I saw a few examples of that sort of thing, it was hardly the woke dumpster fire people claimed it was. Again, I'd rather only work off of first hand experience on that and with games, I don't have it.
But you said it ruined modern entertainment. I thought you had examples from gaming as welll, since we are in a gaming forum, TV and Movies are kind of irrelevant here. I have a few examples, but I don't think those games would be great even if we take away the woke. Like Wolfenstein New Colossus, Youngblood, XCOM: Chimera Squad. And to an extent Horizon zero Dawn, but that was good despite the wokeness, it only gave me momentary pause a few times. I fear in the forbidden west it will be more pervasive.
Yes, I've heard that as well.
So wouldn't you agree that Mass Effect would absolutely be labelled woke if it came out today?
 
it is EA though. The camera angles aren't a issue until it was turned into a PR thing to take focus away from Pinnacle. If thats the PR play, they got nothing else to lead with.

They might pull it off, but far more likely they'll botch it.
Who cares about pinnacle station? The Camera Angles were brought up to generate buzz on twitter. It doesn't matter why you get exposure as long as you get it. I just hope that is the extent of the "artistic" changes. I can live with that much pandering.
 
By saying you can think for yourself you meant you don't need to watch any video, no?
Not what I meant.

Wokeness and progressivism seems to be indistinguishable to the anti-sjw camp these days.

I don't have this issue.

But you said it ruined modern entertainment. I thought you had examples from gaming as welll, since we are in a gaming forum, TV and Movies are kind of irrelevant here. I have a few examples, but I don't think those games would be great even if we take away the woke. Like Wolfenstein New Colossus, Youngblood, XCOM: Chimera Squad. And to an extent Horizon zero Dawn, but that was good despite the wokeness, it only gave me momentary pause a few times. I fear in the forbidden west it will be more pervasive.

Sorry, I don't have examples of it in gaming. As I said. Nothing I've played has it. I hear people bitching about it, but the only thing I've played recently that has it to any real degree is Andromeda.

So wouldn't you agree that Mass Effect would absolutely be labelled woke if it came out today?
People might be screaming about how woke it is, but that doesn't make it true. I wouldn't think the trilogy was woke if had come out this year for the first time.

Who cares about pinnacle station? The Camera Angles were brought up to generate buzz on twitter. It doesn't matter why you get exposure as long as you get it. I just hope that is the extent of the "artistic" changes. I can live with that much pandering.

On this we can agree.
 
Anyway....
IGN drops more behind the scenes info on ME: LE. (Descusions with Mac Walters, Kevin Meek and other people [re]-developing ME:LE)
https://www.ign.com/articles/mass-e...-a-remake-but-much-more-than-a-basic-remaster

Still, while Mass Effect: Legendary Edition isn’t quite the giant leap that fans might have hoped for — that will likely have to wait until the announced-but-still-untitled Mass Effect 4 is ready for release — it’s also much more than your typical remaster. Some substantial changes are coming to the trilogy, particularly the original game, and they are changes that are in many instances long overdue.
Mass Effect 4? Are they trying to erase ME:A from history?
...

The changes are indeed numerous. Improvements include an auto-aim system, more consistent auto save points, and refinements to some of the more frustrating boss encounters, like the fight with Benezia. The infamous elevator rides, which could take more than a minute in the original game, now take fewer than 15 seconds and can be skipped to boot. The once clumsy inventory system is now more in line with that of the PC version, and according to Walters features additional improvements that are designed to smooth away the rough edges without “tearing the whole thing down.”
So the pc inventory will be virtually unchanged? Not exactly what I was hoping for.
The gunplay, another point of contention in the original game, has similarly seen major changes. Class-based aim penalties have been removed, meaning that a Vanguard can now effectively carry a sniper rifle. You still can’t train up weapons that aren’t in your class, but “at least you won’t feel completely useless,” Walters says. “The old one I always complained about was that you lined up someone dead to rights with your sniper rifle and yet you still missed,” an experience to which many Mass Effect fans can surely relate.
That's just stupid. That was kind of the point of the class system and it encouraged different playstyles. It kinds of gets moot if I can just whip out the sniper rifle as a vanguard. Who complained about this?

If there’s any reason to pick up Mass Effect: Legendary Edition, it may be to experience the original game again with fresh eyes. Certainly, this is the most attractive the original game has ever looked, running at up to 4K and 60fps with tonemapping, subsurface scattering, depth of field, bloom, and all manner of other enhancements. Even the clumsy Mako, so long the bane of major combat engagements, is getting updated physics, as well as improved controls.
Changing the mako physics will piss off as many people as it will please. If I were in their shoes I'd put in the old physics as an optional switch in the menu.
I think what I find most interesting is that apparently ME:LE work has been underway for 2 years. I suppose that makes me appreciate the work more, in the sense that there is clearly more of it than I thought there was.
There is also things brought up in this article that I/we have discussed before, like the move to stick with UE3 rather than porting to UE4. As well as staying with PS4/X1X consoles rather than next gen. Much of ME:LE will be riding on the already great skeleton that is there. It's obvious that the graphical updates don't need to be as drastic for these titles specifically because the art direction is distinct and good. And although they can be perceived as "dated" they can't really ever be perceived as "bad" - which to draw a parallel, is something that another company, Nintendo, is good at.
Well it all depends on how many people were working on it. It's not like it was in full blown development for two years. More like a few texture artists and coders on and off for the most of it I assume.
Other random personal thoughts:
I think all the graphical changes look good for the most part. But I didn't like the look changes they did to Virmire, at least from the stills photos earlier leaked. The old graphics were blue, gloomy, and cold with really wet (almost slimey) looking rocks and a shadowy sky, and then moved everything to warm colors in the remake. I think the old palatte looks better from the standpoint of making you feel dread. (Which is kind of an undercurrent of the series - dread of the unknown and extinction via a galactic level threat). Virmire is definitely one of the peak dreak moments in ME1.
I never saw Virmire as gloomy or slimey to me it always seemed like a tropical paradise, which was a great contrast to what you were doing there. If anything the remastered version seems more gloomy to me.
Anamorphic flares seem fine - obviously they're in every screen shot because they're facing light sources and also they "look cool", but I assume the game isn't that level of flare-y while playing. What I've seen of LE in motion it's not (from all the video stuff).
I'm pretty sure those are confined to cutscenes. At least I hope.
Not sure how I feel about changes to ME:1 yet. Guess I'll have to find out like everyone else once we get there. People keep harping on how much needs to be changed in it (including in the article) and I mostly disagree. I feel that ME:1 is clunky but I never had a problem with it or playing it at all - I actually like a lot of the OP late game mechanics (spamming OP "force powers" while having a never over-heating pistol was always silly fun).
What definitely needed changing was the inventory system but unfortunetaly it seems they are not touching that. The animations need upgrading, IDK if that will happen or not. And I'd not be against it having the shooting mechanics of 2/3, except for the damn thermal clips. In fact I Wish they removed the whole thermal clips idiocy from the whole triology and just have overheating in all 3 games. Of course this is beyond the scope of this remake, as that would need the complete re-balancing of the games. Anyhow just putting this out there to say how much I hate thermal clips.
The Mako is probably the only thing that I can understand why people would want to change since all the explorable planets can be long and frustrating, but I feel that's more of an issue with the terrain almost more than the Mako itself. If you want to collect everything (which I have multiple times) then those segments can take an inordinate amount of time for essentially cruising around in silence over spiky, difficult to traverse, terrain - while occasionally killing some mercs or a worm and reading some codex entries. Short of making those maps smaller with easier terrain, I'm not sure how you really remaster that (or just make the Mako be able to drive over anything). And for those of you who think I have nostalgia goggles on, I've replayed the ME series within the past year albeit with mods like MEHEM on.
I actually loved the Mako exploration. The physics were unusual but perfectly predictable after you got used to it. You just needed to play by the rules. So I already dread how they changed it.
I guess the only other thing that I would really acknowledge needs direct change in ME1 is the load elevators, but those are obvious and will be skip-able - but that's a relatively minor change/issue.
I never understood the amount of complaints about elevator rides. There was like 3 elevators in the whole game. One on the citadel, one on noveria, and one on feros, which you only needed to ride like once anyway.
 
Mass Effect 4? Are they trying to erase ME:A from history?

They've more or less indicated that. At least that is how I read it. Sounds like ME:A will now be treated more as an offshoot.

That's just stupid. That was kind of the point of the class system and it encouraged different playstyles. It kinds of gets moot if I can just whip out the sniper rifle as a vanguard. Who complained about this?

I understand it changes the class system, but I always thought it was dumb in the first game. One of the worst aspects of it. ME2 did it better, with ME3 being the best where classes didn't matter much for weapons. So I'd say it is a welcome change to make it more like those games.

Changing the mako physics will piss off as many people as it will please. If I were in their shoes I'd put in the old physics as an optional switch in the menu.

Would be a nice option. I remember it being a bit too "floaty" but didn't find it too bad. Some fine tuning could be done but the floaty/bouncy mechanics kind of go hand in hand with the very rough and often very vertical terrian. Like you said, they need to tread carefully here.
 
They've more or less indicated that. At least that is how I read it. Sounds like ME:A will now be treated more as an offshoot.
I just really hope the new game won't be a prequel, that would be awful. Plus I hope it won't be centered around one of the known characters, that would be even worse.
I understand it changes the class system, but I always thought it was dumb in the first game. One of the worst aspects of it. ME2 did it better, with ME3 being the best where classes didn't matter much for weapons. So I'd say it is a welcome change to make it more like those games.
Why is it dumb? The point of the class system is that there are differences in abilities. What is dumb is that a bionic soldier could use a sniper rifle with the same efficiency as a trained sniper. The class system / abilities in ME2 were so neutered they might not even exist. Basically you choose wether you had incendiary, shock, or freeze ammo. Plus every class had one special ability, and one extra ability that is completely independent of class.
Would be a nice option. I remember it being a bit too "floaty" but didn't find it too bad. Some fine tuning could be done but the floaty/bouncy mechanics kind of go hand in hand with the very rough and often very vertical terrian. Like you said, they need to tread carefully here.
The mako had mass effect dampeners so it would float over the rough terrain. So it kind of makes sense that it is floaty. Plus the planets could've had lower gravity than earth. The issue is not with the vehicle is that the maps were basic low res heightmaps, those always get weird. If they updated the heightmaps to 4x resultion and smoothed it out they'd not even have to touch the physics at all.
 
Well, what else are they going to do? Those guys make a living doing crap like that.
What's funny is that Yong is also a raging sjw on twitter. But I guess profits > principles.
 
I just really hope the new game won't be a prequel, that would be awful. Plus I hope it won't be centered around one of the known characters, that would be even worse.

Why is it dumb? The point of the class system is that there are differences in abilities. What is dumb is that a bionic soldier could use a sniper rifle with the same efficiency as a trained sniper. The class system / abilities in ME2 were so neutered they might not even exist. Basically you choose wether you had incendiary, shock, or freeze ammo. Plus every class had one special ability, and one extra ability that is completely independent of class.

The mako had mass effect dampeners so it would float over the rough terrain. So it kind of makes sense that it is floaty. Plus the planets could've had lower gravity than earth. The issue is not with the vehicle is that the maps were basic low res heightmaps, those always get weird. If they updated the heightmaps to 4x resultion and smoothed it out they'd not even have to touch the physics at all.
I agree with this. The first game handled the weapons loadout with the ability to add an off class power to your build. So you could add lift or singularity to your Soldier build to make an effective biotic sniper if you wanted to. Now that any class can use any weapon there will basically be no point in picking the Soldier class since its various unique abilities like Immunity are outclassed by Barrier and the Engineer's innate shield boost. Not to mention reductions in cooldowns on those classes while Adrenaline Burst is still on a 60 second cooldown.
 
I just really hope the new game won't be a prequel, that would be awful. Plus I hope it won't be centered around one of the known characters, that would be even worse.

It looks like it will take place in the same galaxy as the first game as a sequel.

Which would allow them to continue on with ME:A if they wanted to. I suppose they can do a main trilogy and do ME:A 2 as an off shoot between releases to tie up the story there. I wouldn't be opposed to that. Even if that game is shorter and smaller in scope. I've already forgotten some of the vague/unsolved stuff but would be interested in seeing them finish off that arch regardless. I imagine something similar to Assassin's Creed Rogue. Full size game, but smaller in scope than the "main line" games.

Why is it dumb? The point of the class system is that there are differences in abilities. What is dumb is that a bionic soldier could use a sniper rifle with the same efficiency as a trained sniper.

It didn't work out well in practice. The accuracy nerfing from playing a different class was just awkward and physics defying. It also meant some classes could only use 2-3 weapon types which is a bit limiting. ME3 had the best weapon system by far.

The mako had mass effect dampeners so it would float over the rough terrain. So it kind of makes sense that it is floaty. Plus the planets could've had lower gravity than earth. The issue is not with the vehicle is that the maps were basic low res heightmaps, those always get weird. If they updated the heightmaps to 4x resultion and smoothed it out they'd not even have to touch the physics at all.

That would help but I'm doubting they plan on redoing the maps. I can see it being tweaked a bit. But I am hoping it is just that, tweaked. I don't want to see it completely changed.
 
It also meant some classes could only use 2-3 weapon types which is a bit limiting.
I don't know why not being able to aim well with a weapon is physics defying.
There is no real benefit to try out different classes in ME2 and ME3 as all can use any weapon. In ME1 different classes were more unique to play. In later games they all play mostly the same as you have to rely primarily on weapons, and not abilities. Which meant I didn't even feel like playing as any other class but infiltrator in the later games.
 
I just really hope the new game won't be a prequel, that would be awful. Plus I hope it won't be centered around one of the known characters, that would be even worse.

Why is it dumb? The point of the class system is that there are differences in abilities. What is dumb is that a bionic soldier could use a sniper rifle with the same efficiency as a trained sniper. The class system / abilities in ME2 were so neutered they might not even exist. Basically you choose wether you had incendiary, shock, or freeze ammo. Plus every class had one special ability, and one extra ability that is completely independent of class.

The mako had mass effect dampeners so it would float over the rough terrain. So it kind of makes sense that it is floaty. Plus the planets could've had lower gravity than earth. The issue is not with the vehicle is that the maps were basic low res heightmaps, those always get weird. If they updated the heightmaps to 4x resultion and smoothed it out they'd not even have to touch the physics at all.
As I understood it, the terrain was procedurally generated which is part of why it was so awful. The gravity thing would make sense except that all the planets had the same exact gravity and the driving was identical on all of them. I will agree with you on the whole prequel thing. I hate those.
It looks like it will take place in the same galaxy as the first game as a sequel.

Which would allow them to continue on with ME:A if they wanted to. I suppose they can do a main trilogy and do ME:A 2 as an off shoot between releases to tie up the story there. I wouldn't be opposed to that. Even if that game is shorter and smaller in scope. I've already forgotten some of the vague/unsolved stuff but would be interested in seeing them finish off that arch regardless. I imagine something similar to Assassin's Creed Rogue. Full size game, but smaller in scope than the "main line" games.
Two thoughts: 1.) They still have the original endings of ME3 to contend with. Getting around those from a narrative perspective won't be easy. There are two possibilities for achieving this. They could choose a canon ending to the trilogy and go from there. Or they could retcon ME3 in some way and change the ending. They could pull time travel, alternate universe BS or almost anything to achieve that. Honestly, I wouldn't care so much about the how if it meant we got to go for another game as Shepard. How that game would look narratively is a bit troubling though.

Secondly, Mass Effect Andromeda won't get a sequel. It just wasn't popular enough and while I would like to see a sequel to it, I think people would rather see another installment with Commander Shepard. I'm torn on that. I'd love to see the endings of ME3 erased / retconned or changed to allow a sequel, but at the same time I am one of those who thought the idea and concept of Andromeda was the best way forward for the series given how ME3 ended. I also thought Andromeda, for all its faults was a good setup for future titles.
It didn't work out well in practice. The accuracy nerfing from playing a different class was just awkward and physics defying. It also meant some classes could only use 2-3 weapon types which is a bit limiting. ME3 had the best weapon system by far.



That would help but I'm doubting they plan on redoing the maps. I can see it being tweaked a bit. But I am hoping it is just that, tweaked. I don't want to see it completely changed.
It remains to be seen how BioWare handles the Mako and those planetary maps. If they change the terrain to make it look and work better for Mako exploration, that would be fine. It would also justify the nearly two years it took to make this remaster happen.
 
I don't know why not being able to aim well with a weapon is physics defying.
There is no real benefit to try out different classes in ME2 and ME3 as all can use any weapon. In ME1 different classes were more unique to play. In later games they all play mostly the same as you have to rely primarily on weapons, and not abilities. Which meant I didn't even feel like playing as any other class but infiltrator in the later games.

Shepard is military. He/She was also special forces and not being able to shoot worth a shit doesn't make any sense. I never liked the reliance on abilities in the first game personally. In ME2 and ME3, I always used a soldier or infiltrator.
 
Shepard is military. He/She was also special forces and not being able to shoot worth a shit doesn't make any sense. I never liked the reliance on abilities in the first game personally. In ME2 and ME3, I always used a soldier or infiltrator.
So you are saying everyone who is military is an expert with sniper rifles? I prefer ME2 and ME3's gameplay over the first game as well. But I don't think making all three games uniform is a good idea. I like that the game gets you out of your comfort zone. If I'm allowed I'd just snipe my way through the game, making class choice pointless there too.
 
Jesus Christ. Do you ever do anything other than jump from A to Q and skip everything in between? I never fucking said that.
I asked a simple question. Why are you so mad? No you didn't say it, you implied that because shepard is military they need to be a marksman too. Saying THAT'S NOT WHAT I'VE SAID Is totally fucking useless to me. It gives no information whatsoever. So how about instead of you yourself jumping on the roof you say what you actually meant.
 
It didn't work out well in practice. The accuracy nerfing from playing a different class was just awkward and physics defying. It also meant some classes could only use 2-3 weapon types which is a bit limiting. ME3 had the best weapon system by far.
There are only 4 weapon types in the game: Pistol, Shotgun, Assault Rifle, Sniper Rifle. I don't wee the point in every class being able to use all of them. The pistol was the best weapon in the first game, anyway, and that was the weapon every class could use.
 
So you are saying everyone who is military is an expert with sniper rifles? I prefer ME2 and ME3's gameplay over the first game as well. But I don't think making all three games uniform is a good idea. I like that the game gets you out of your comfort zone. If I'm allowed I'd just snipe my way through the game, making class choice pointless there too.

The problem isn't skill, but the weapon deviation is inexplicable. Standing still and shooting with a sniper rifle in one class will result in a deviation that makes zero logical sense. You can aim at someone's chest from close range but the impact will be 4 feet to their right. And it just makes them entirely useless useless. Some specialization might make some sense. I never liked that system in the first game and will be happy if they remove it.
 
Jesus Christ. Do you ever do anything other than jump from A to Q and skip everything in between? I never fucking said that.
I asked a simple question. Why are you so mad? No you didn't say it, you implied that because shepard is military they need to be a marksman too. Saying THAT'S NOT WHAT I'VE SAID Is totally fucking useless to me. It gives no information whatsoever. So how about instead of you yourself jumping on the roof you say what you actually meant.
Ya'll just need to fight already. Solves everything.
 
ok I'm down for a fight but can we not aim for the face, I need to look presentable for my work zoom meetings, also can we go for the nuts or are those off limits?
 
The problem isn't skill, but the weapon deviation is inexplicable. Standing still and shooting with a sniper rifle in one class will result in a deviation that makes zero logical sense. You can aim at someone's chest from close range but the impact will be 4 feet to their right. And it just makes them entirely useless useless. Some specialization might make some sense. I never liked that system in the first game and will be happy if they remove it.


Honestly I don't mind the system in ME1 because ideally you would want to focus on using weapons that the characters could optimize best. It could just be altered to be like the other games, and have different classes be unable to equip certain weapons at all (which would be ok, too, IMO).
 
Honestly I don't mind the system in ME1 because ideally you would want to focus on using weapons that the characters could optimize best. It could just be altered to be like the other games, and have different classes be unable to equip certain weapons at all (which would be ok, too, IMO).

The system they used in later games works fine. There are weight limits and if you load up on guns, your cooldowns for abilities are much longer. Thus, it discourages an adept or sentinel Shepard from equipping four weapons at a time. Especially things like the M98 Widow or Revenant which are far heavier than other options in those classes. Everyone bitching about being able to equip all the weapons on other classes seemed to have forgotten that this was allowed in ME3 and Andromeda, and they used the same system to discourage it.
 

MASS EFFECT™ LEGENDARY EDITION​

GAMEPLAY CALIBRATIONS​

REBALANCING, TUNING, & MECHANICAL IMPROVEMENTS​


https://www.ea.com/games/mass-effect/mass-effect-legendary-edition/news/gameplay-calibrations



  • Combat Tuning (Mass Effect)
  • Additional Gameplay Improvements (All)
  • The Mako (Mass Effect)
  • Unifying & Modernizing the Trilogy (All)
  • Galaxy at War Rebalancing (Mass Effect 3)

“I don’t need luck—I have ammo.”​


Combat Tuning


Combat in the Mass Effect trilogy has evolved across the series, with each game’s experience being different. We wanted to make the experience better across the board, but we didn’t want to unnecessarily change what our fans have come to love about each game. That proved a unique challenge, as the first game is quite different from the second and third in terms of gameplay and combat. Mass Effect was heavily influenced by traditional RPG mechanics, like the randomness of a dice roll and pen-and-paper stat building. As a result, weapons in Mass Effect often felt less accurate and reliable than the gunplay in Mass Effect 2 and 3.


We heard the consistent feedback that it was pretty frustrating to take a few shots with an assault rifle and suddenly have the reticle enlarge to span a large portion of the screen, so we looked at tuning the mechanics to provide better handling without outright scrapping the spirit of the original games.


Combat on Virmire, Mass Effect


In the first Mass Effect, accuracy (including reticle bloom and weapon sway) has been tuned across all weapons to allow players to maintain more consistent firepower while still managing their shots/overheat meter. We’ve also improved the aiming down sights (ADS) camera view to be tighter on combat so that ADS is more accurate (like the second and third games), and we’ve improved the aim assist to provide better precision. These small behind-the-scenes changes collectively make combat much “snappier,” putting more control into the player’s hands.


Abilities have also been rebalanced in the first game. For example, the “Immunity” ability now grants a powerful defensive buff that lasts a brief period of time instead of being a small buff that lasts indefinitely.


The following overview lists gameplay changes we made specifically to the first Mass Effect, with the goal of bringing it a bit more in line with the rest of the trilogy:


  • Shepard can now sprint out of combat
  • Melee attacks are now mapped to a button press rather than automatically occurring based on proximity to an enemy
  • Weapon accuracy and handling has been significantly improved
    • Reticle bloom is more controlled
    • Weapon sway removed from sniper rifles
    • Aiming down sights/”tight aim” camera view has been improved
    • Improved aim assist for target acquisition
  • All relevant enemies now take headshot damagein the first game
    • Previously some did not, including humanoid enemies
  • Ammo mods (Anti-Organic, Anti-Synthetic, etc.) can now drop throughout the whole game
    • Previously, these stopped dropping at higher player levels
    • They are now also available to purchase from merchants
  • All weapons can be used by any classwithout penalty
    • Specializations (the ability to train/upgrade certain weapons) are still class-specific
  • Weapons cool down much faster
  • Medi-gel usage has been improved
    • Base cooldown reduced
    • Levelling benefits increased
    • Increased Liara’s bonus to cooldowns
  • Inventory management improvements
    • Items can now be flagged as “Junk”
    • All Junk items can be converted into Omni-gel or sold to merchants at once
    • Inventory and stores now have sorting functionality
  • Some abilities have been rebalanced
  • Weapon powers (i.e., those that are unlocked on each weapon type’s skill tree) have been improved:
    • Effectiveness/strength is increased (duration reduced in some cases)
    • Heat now resets on power activation

“If this is a war, I’ll need an army...or a really good team.”​


Additional Gameplay Improvements


Beyond general gunplay changes, we’ve made some specific changes to encounters, enemies, and how you engage in combat. We found a few opportunities to bring the first game in line with the second and third games, and we also found some systems across the whole trilogy that needed a tune up.


Combat in Noveria garage, Mass Effect


Without spoiling too much for new players, one example is the boss encounter on Noveria. The boss room has been slightly reworked, keeping it very familiar but making it less cramped. You’ll also be much less prone to being thrown around by biotic abilities.


Other targeted combat updates we’ve made include:


  • Squadmates can now be commanded independently of each other in the first Mass Effect, the same way you can command them individually in Mass Effect 2 and 3
  • Some boss fights and enemies in the first game have been tweaked to be fairer for players but still challenging
  • Cover has been improved across the trilogy
    • Additional cover added to some encounters
    • Entering and exiting cover is now more reliable
  • XP has been rebalanced in the first game (details below)
  • Ammo drops have been rebalanced in Mass Effect 2 (details below)

With combat comes XP. XP gained during the first game has been rebalanced for better consistency, especially towards the game’s end. Players who complete most aspects of the game should be able to more reliably get to higher levels on a single playthrough rather than needing to play through a second time to do so. Additionally, there is no longer a level cap on a first playthrough.


As a final gunplay change, we also tweaked ammunition in Mass Effect 2. We found that ammo was spawning too scarcely in the original game, so we’ve increased the drop rate for ammo in ME2, particularly when using a sniper rifle since that had a reduced ammo drop rate in the original release.


“It’s got heart, you know?”​


The Mako


But of course, we’ve got to talk about the (in)famous M-35 Mako. This legendary vehicle from the first Mass Effect has been “calibrated” to perform better than ever. In the original game, the physics tuning for the Mako made it feel too light and bouncy, even at times becoming uncontrollable, but it’s now a much smoother ride while still being “loveable” like before. (Yes, you can still drive off cliffs to your heart’s content).


Its functionally has also been improved with faster shield recharging and new thrusters added to the rear, allowing for a speed boost when you’re inevitably trying to scale up the side of a near-vertical cliff. (We all do it.) This boost’s recharge is independent from the jump jets on the vehicle’s underside, so you can use both at once or separately.


The Mako on Noveria's peaks, Mass Effect


These are the calibrations you can expect to experience when driving the Mako:


  • Improved handling
    • Physics tuning improved to feel “weightier” and slide around less
  • Improved camera controls
    • Resolved issues preventing the Mako from accurately aiming at lower angles
  • Shields recharge faster
  • New thrusters addedfor a speed boost
    • Its cooldown is separate from the jump jets’
  • The XP penalty while in the Mako has been removed
  • Touching lava no longer results in an instant Mission Failure and instead deals damage over time

“Well, what about Shepard?”​


Unifying & Modernizing the Trilogy


For the Legendary Edition, our goal was to tune up the trilogy and make it more consistent from game to game while honoring the things that made each unique.


For example, we’ve unified Shepard’s customization options in the character creator and even added some new options, like additional skin tones and hairstyles. You can use the same character creator code (seen bottom-left in the image below) across all three games, meaning your Shepard can now have a consistent appearance across the trilogy, or you can choose to change their appearance at the start of each title. Customization options and character appearances have also been improved with updated textures and hair models.





FemShep character customization, Mass Effect


We’ve also added the Mass Effect: Genesis comics by Dark Horse into the base experience before Mass Effect 2 and 3 as an optional experience so players can make choices from previous games no matter where they choose to start.


Of course, the Legendary Edition includes a variety of additional enhancements. Here are some of the things you can look forward to:


  • New unified launcher for all three games
    • Includes trilogy-wide settings for subtitles and languages
    • Saves are still unique to each game and can be managed independently of each other
  • Updated character creator options, as mentioned above
    • FemShep from Mass Effect 3 is the new default female option in all three games (the original FemShep design is still available as a preset option)
  • Achievements across the trilogy have been updated
    • New achievements have been added to the trilogy
    • Progress for some achievements now carries over across all three games (e.g. Kill 250 enemies across all games)
      • Achievements that were streamlined into one and made redundant were removed
    • A number of achievements have had their objectives/descriptions and/or names updated
  • Integrated weapons and armor DLC packs
    • Weapons and armor DLC packs are now integrated naturally into the game; they’re obtainable via research or by purchasing them from merchants as you progress through the game, rather than being immediately unlocked from the start. This ensures overall balance and progression across ME2 and ME3
    • Recon Hood (ME2) and Cerberus Ajax Armor (ME3) are available at the start of each game
  • Additional gameplay & Quality of life improvements
    • Audio is remixed and enhanced across all games
    • Hundreds of legacy bugs from the original releases are fixed
    • Native controller and 21:9 display support on PC, with DirectX 11 compatibility

“Consider yourself reinstated, Commander.”​


Galaxy at War Rebalancing


As Commander Shepard, you’re tasked with the hardest mission of all: defeating the Reapers and saving the galaxy from annihilation. This comes to a head in Mass Effect 3 when the galaxy unites, but your choices from across the trilogy lead you there and determine who fights at your side. The Galaxy at War feature puts you in the heart of the Reaper War from the Normandy’s Combat Information Center, which has been rebalanced in the Legendary Edition. For example, Galactic Readiness is no longer impacted by external factors that aren’t part of the collection, like multiplayer or the old companion app for ME3. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean defeating the Reapers will be easy.





Sovereign's attack on the Citadel, Mass Effect


The more content you complete across the entire trilogy, the more likely you’ll be prepared for the final fights in its conclusion. If you only play Mass Effect 3, you’ll have to do just about every option available in the game to be eligible for an ending that doesn’t result in massive galactic losses. Playing the first two games and carrying over your progress is the most reliable way to get good results in the final hours of the Reaper War. For comparison, if you previously played ME3 with the Extended Cut (which included Galactic Readiness rebalancing), fully preparing for the final fight will be more difficult to achieve in the Legendary Edition. And on that note: the Extended Cut ending is now the game’s default finale.


However, readying your intergalactic armies will be made a bit easier by a number of critical bug fixes and backend improvements made to the Paragon-Renegade system in ME2; we resolved some legacy issues that inhibited accurate reputation stats from being displayed and outright prevented certain dialogue options from being selectable when they should have been. Because of this, key moments that have been notoriously difficult to achieve in ME2 (and impacted ME3) can now be completed more reliably, leading to better results in the story’s final act.


“You know, for old time’s sake.”​


Getting to go back to the roots of the Mass Effect franchise—our roots, as a team now celebrating our 25th anniversary—has been an incredibly nostalgic and emotional experience for us, and we’re sure a lot of you will feel similarly when you get to play Legendary Edition! We’ve heard from so many of you that you want a way to play the original trilogy today, either for the first time or the...well, let’s just say “again.” We don’t need to keep count.


Returning to where it all began, as members of our team revisited the work they did over a decade ago, has been a bit surreal, but it felt like the right thing to do; a passion project from us to thank you for the many years of incredible support. (And maybe to help tide you over until the next game, too!) There’s more to come, including a deeper dive into the visual changes we’ve made, so stay tuned for that, and our friends over at IGN put together a performance review if you wanted to see more from the remaster , too!


Also, thanks for requesting this so much that you practically willed it into existence! It’s meant a lot.


From all of us on the Mass Effect team,


Good luck, Commander.
 
Last edited:
All good stuff. I like how they made galactic readiness affected by every game. Sounds like they just allow you to ADS without weapon training in the first game, which I'm not entirely against. I do want to see the details of how the weapon specializations now work in the first game, though. The increased accuracy was the major reason to invest in those talents from the start in the original game.
 
Looks like the excessive and bad bloom was removed which is great (check snow on Noveria). Mid 2000s was the era of horrible bloom and bad cover shooters and I'm glad they're gone. No, I don't consider ME to be a bad cover shooter because it isn't bad and there is much more to it than that.
 
Last edited:
Looks like the excessive and bad bloom was removed which is great (check snow on Noveria). Mid 2000s was the era of horrible bloom and bad cover shooters and I'm glad they're gone. No, I don't consider ME to be a bad cover shooter because it isn't bad and there is much more to it than that.
ME2 and ME3 really were, but cover in the first game was superfluous. I'm glad they're keeping the gameplay of the first one largely intact with quality of life improvements.
 
It's looking good. If they port it to macOS (which they won't) it'll be day 1 for me. If not, then I'll just wait until it's sub $10 2 years from now.
 
I love that I'll be able to play through with a controller. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy KBM a lot of the time too, but I also love chilling back in my chair with a controller, it's so comfy.
 

MASS EFFECT™ LEGENDARY EDITION​

It's quite funny when the developers themselves don't understand the mako.
"now it handles more like a tank, than a floaty car"

But according to the lore it should handle like a floaty car, it has a mass effect field generator so it can be airdropped or traverse any terrain, especially on high gravity worlds.
 
It's quite funny when the developers themselves don't understand the mako.
"now it handles more like a tank, than a floaty car"

But according to the lore it should handle like a floaty car, it has a mass effect field generator so it can be airdropped or traverse any terrain, especially on high gravity worlds.
The eezo core in the Mako is used to both increase and decrease its mass so it can handle any type of gravitational conditions. Meaning it can also increase its mass to increase traction in addition to decreasing it to aid acceleration in high gravity. I always imagined that its mass should automatically adjust to allow easy traversal of the terrain while being driven, with the driver able to manually control it when necessary. Personally, I would have liked to see the gravity of each of the planets you land on be properly simulated, but that would not work well with the procedurally generated terrain.
 
Back
Top