Like most RPGs, you can play Mass Effect any way you want. Like most RPGs, no matter what your actions, the main quest is pretty “linear”. You can be good or evil and you’ll still complete the main quest in the intended way.
The added “push” for Mass Effect is that your character has a reputation at the start when you create him/her. Choose from “War Hero”, “Sole Survivor” or “Ruthless”. That is the basis of my statement, that you should play it 3 times. Yes the majority of the game will be the same, the sidequests will be the same, but with each reputation you choose, a different and unique sidequest will show up when you next dock at the Citadel after heading out to space.
It might be me just imagining things, but it appears that Mass Effect seems to be easier to resolve situations without bloodshed if you have a high intimidate skill early on in the game. For instance, this is my 3rd playthrough and this time around I’m playing a “ruthless” character. This time I slotted points into my Intimidate skill (to be “in character”) and when I ran across the same sidequests as before, suddenly I could resolve the situation without fighting or killing anyone, even if I intimidate them to be “in character” to be ruthless or a “bad ass”.
As an example (Spoiler alert!), there’s this mission to go to a biotic cult compound talk to Major Kyle. On my first playthrough, I had to kill him and then fight off the whole compound. On my 2nd playthrough I was a “War Hero” so my character was “good”, and I had a maxxed out my “Charm” skill at the same point in this sidequest too. Even so, it still ended in a bloodbath at the compound. Only my 3rd time around, I intimidated him and the situation ended up with him surrendering peacefully.
My only gripe for now, is that it’s so hard to get “Renegade points”. To complete the quests in Feros for example, and to get xps, you need to finish the food, water and power sidequests. When you complete those, you get “Paragon points” instead. So if I don’t do those quests at all, how do I get the equivalent “Renegade points”? The quests just remain…. undone. No xps, no paragon points, definitely no renegade points.
Well I’m still trying to be a bad guy, or at the very least, “ruthless”, to get the job done no matter what the cost, but Renegade Points seem harder to come by than Paragon ones.
Mass Effect is one of the few games I replay more than twice. It’s definitely worth the money, and every time I replay through with a different character, I do find something new to do.
And before any of you suggest it, no I have not played it with any cheats yet. No I do not have a walkthrough. Yes it’s “less efficient” but you have more fun finding out stuff and exploring.
