Mass Effect Preview April 23,2007 - Intergalactic Space has always been a source of intrigue, mystery and adventure. Yet, as dozens of games have blasted off into the infinite boundaries of space, very few—if any—gave players any source of freedom or incentive to explore the many worlds. While BioWare exceptionally took the Star Wars franchise and made one of the best RPG titles in recent years, their ultimate outlook on space was miniscule and inferior to the galaxy’s vastness. BioWare is destined to make Mass Effect one of the most illustrious titles ever conceived, by not only giving players the chance to coordinate their own paths and groups, but also considering how many lives are controlled by your fate. Will you help the many citizens rise up against an alien civilization hell-bent on exterminating all organic life, or do you watch as innocent people die under your wake?

The year is 2148. Humans have uncovered a mysterious trace of intergalactic space travel known as the Mass Effect, which was left behind by an ancient alien civilization millions of years ago. By gathering the Mass Effect, humans have inadvertently linked up with the alien beings that are destined to destroy all forms of organic matter. Sounds like humans are still too nosy for their own good. In any case, it is now up to Commander Shepard (who players control in the game) and the Specters, who have been classified as “Navy SEALs in Space,” to help rid the galaxy of these alien menaces. To help better understand the types of illuminated characters you will be interacting with throughout the game, here is a quick breakdown on the various types of human and alien life forms you will encounter in Mass Effect.

Commander Shepard: An elite Specter soldier with almost unlimited resources. With a long stay in the Specter program, Commander Shepard has authority over everyone in the division. Both male and female character models, as well as fully voiced dialogue, have been included in the game, allowing players to choose what type of soldier they wish Shepard to be.

Chief Gunnery Ashley Williams: Fast-tempered and hard pressed, Ashley is not afraid of engaging in combat or standing up to the men. Ashley has long been a part of Shepard’s team and as a former combat marine; expect her bite to be much worse than her bark.

Salarians: The epitome of alien life forms, the Salarians have technological intelligence over any organic being in the galaxy. Many of their technological inventions are being used across the entire galaxy. Salarians typically have large eyes and look strikingly similar to aliens featured in the Roswell incidents.

Turian: The Turian race is strict on military combat and discipline, and many lack any sense of formidable charm. Looking like overlarge insects, the Turians pride themselves on their battle skills.

Volus: While somber in their interior, the Volus have no reliable source of oxygen in the galaxy. They are often seen wearing giant suits of armor and helmets when away from their home planet (located near the outskirts of the galaxy).

Krogan: These reptilian adversaries have a deep-seeded hatred for anything that moves in the galaxy. Not much is known about these foes except that they take great strides at hating anything with intelligence.

Geth: A machine race of AI robots created to serve as laborers and soldiers in times of war. But after nearly 300 years of servitude, the Geths eventually rose up against their creators and spread across the galaxy in swarms. In solidarity they lack any sense of combat prowess and are often weak and dumb, but while standing in packs they can think together and prove to be a much bigger threat.

While character development has always been a key aspect in previous titles, BioWare has also been known for their cunning and impressive dialogues, and Mass Effect is no exception when it comes to making choices for your team. Deriving similarities to both Knights of the Old Republic and Jade Empire, players have the choice of either becoming good or bad throughout the entire game, with either path resulting in the most important, if not catastrophic, conclusions. But while the other titles focused more on choosing the lines of text you wished to say, Mass Effect’s incentive on dialogue is based on human interaction. BioWare has incorporated a new “dialogue wheel” of sorts to help make conversations, as well as important choices, more fluid and paced.

When engaging in conversation with another inhabitant, a set of key words are displayed on screen, and each word corresponds to another portion of that wheel. Depending on which choice you take, more options open up relating to that key word. So if you choose to be nice, all of your future dialogue choices will be admirable as well. You wont find yourself switching back and forth between good and bad, as was the case in Knights of the Old Republic. Making sure that the dialogue wheel feels more emotional than behavioral is the key aspect BioWare is trying to initiate in Mass Effect. As Project Director Casey Hudson states, “It’s very much like trying to capture the way you have a real-life conversation: You react on an emotional level and then very quickly you kind of figure out how your words will come out.”

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