Mass Effect 2
Playstation 3 owners know like no other what it is to wait for a game. The five year wait for Gran Turismo 5 was all but pleasant, but also the wait for a game that was one of the runners-up for Game of the Year 2010 tested their patience. However, the time has come and Bioware’s RPG Mass Effect 2 has found its way to their favorite console.
It doesn’t make sense to again talk about the story or the gameplay elements as just everyone knows by now what this is all about. What we will talk about is the extras we get compared to the PC and X360 versions. The PS3 version has a comic, all DLC that’s been released and finally an improved engine.
Mass Effect 2 starts with an interactive comic ‘Mass Effect Genesis’ by Dark Horse Comics. By means of this you get to know all about the Mass Effect universe and it also allows to make some important choices that later on will have an influence on how the game progresses. Of course these decisions won’t make an equally big difference as the save-files from the X360 and PC versions but it’s a nice addition that makes the entry point for the Mass Effect noobs a lot lower.
As said, all currently released DLC is present and this means six hours of bonus material. Through a voucher code that comes with each new copy, players can download the Cerberus package. This contains the aforementioned comic, Mass Effect Genesis, DLC Kasumi: Stolen Memories, Overlord and Lair of the Shadow Broker. A smart move from EA who deliberately chose to distribute these extras through the PSN store so that second hand buyers will have to pay the full €14,99 if they want this content. However, don’t forget to install the Cerberus package before starting the game as without download the comic won’t start and you’re bound to the standard choices.
Mass Effect 2 uses the same engine that will power Mass Effect 3, but to be honest, it doesn’t look much better than the X360 version. According to the latest articles there are some improved textures and a more stable framerate but these differences are minor. This of course doesn’t mean the game doesn’t look beautiful. Even a year after release the graphics are still up to date and even better than those from a lot of other games.
What seriously bothered me were the long loading times on the ship Normandy. It’s essential to create a good bond with the crew of the ship and that means you’ll often have to take the elevator to switch floors. This unfortunately becomes irritating due to these loading times.
To cut to the chase: Mass Effect 2 is a great game that’s better than its predecessor in all accounts. This sublime mix of genres and immersive storytelling completely sucks you in the Mass Effect world and spits you back out after 60 hours. So to conclude we can say that one of the best games is now also available on PS3 so go out and buy it! 
9.0