Mass Effect 2: The Return of Garrus

Nov 4, 2009

Mass Effect 2 was introduced to the world with a tease that Commander Shepard might not have survived the time between the first game and its sequel. We soon learned that not to be true, and development studio BioWare has since rolled out a steady stream of character reveals that introduced us to a few of Shepard's new friends that would be joining him on this supposed suicide mission. One question lingered: What happened to the old crew? Not to worry. They're all coming back in some form -- assuming you managed to keep them alive in Mass Effect -- to round out a complete cast of 10 total supporting characters. Recently, I got the chance to see this for myself in a new demo that showed off the triumphant return of the turian we know as Garrus.

The demo opened with the crew disembarking on Omega. This region was described as a kind of antithesis to the Citadel, and it's easy to see why. Flames dancing across the walls and garish techno music rocking the halls are your first introduction to this lawless colony built out of an asteroid. Anybody looking for a good time on the edge of moral boundaries -- or beyond them -- would do well to start their search here. Shepard needs information, naturally, so the first destination is a bar called Afterlife.

This drinking establishment is where you can find the asari in charge of the operation. Approaching her suddenly proves to be a bad idea as it causes her posse to draw arms and scan Shepard for weapons. The go-go dancers keep dancing, of course, while Shepard and a potty-mouthed boss figurine trade barbs. With no info coming easily, the demo follows Shepard downstairs for a drink. One sip and everything goes blank.

At this point Project Director Casey Hudson is quick to point out that the demo is skipping ahead in a non-sequential fashion. The spiked drink is an example of a non-directed part of the game. It's the beginnings of a sub-plot that isn't necessarily pointed out to players that don't do a bit of exploring, Hudson explained. Anybody curious enough to try a drink at the Afterlife bar will find themself whisked away into an unmarked side-quest on a hunt for the bastards that slipped you a Mickey. Other side-quests like this might be waiting for anybody that does a bit of poking around.

That side-quest wasn't part of our demo, unfortunately. Instead, the demo continued with the re-introduction of Garrus. "I thought you were dead," the oft-heard line in Mass Effect 2, is amongst the first things out of his mouth. The mangled, scarred, almost robotic jaw-line on Shepard tells part of that tale without any elaboration needed, though it seems word of Shepard's supposed death has reached nearly every corner of the galaxy. That jaw, we're told, has a few potential looks -- a system arising from a great trauma experienced at the outset of the story. BioWare won't get any more specific than that, and I'm not sure I want them to just yet. Sounds like we can expect Mass Effect 2 to open with a bang.

There isn't much time for catching up with Garrus. There is just enough, in fact, for a gratuitous camera pan to showcase his awesome armor. It's the same shiny blue as it was in Mass Effect, and he's still sporting the fancy Last Starfighter-inspired monocle, but the visual overhaul the armor has seen makes it look so much better. While you're oohing and aahing at his outfit, he informs Shepard that he is in the midst of a coordinated assault. It's time for Shepard to do his thing. The fight breaks out, first with little grunts but then escalating to a massive mechanical beast called YMIR Mech and a boss named Jaroth.

The battle played out and I quickly learned two things. The first is that though you get heavy weapons that can dish out massive amounts of damage, so do the enemies. Rockets can end up flying everywhere. Combine those with biotic attacks and good old-fashioned machine guns and you have quite the dangerous cocktail. It also looks fantastic. The visual effects have really been ramped up for the sequel. There's not just more on the screen -- it's flashier and faster. The game runs without a hitch and without any of that nasty texture pop-in that plagued the last game, even after a quick load into a new area.

The second thing I learned is that the battle system feels even more refined than it did when I last played Mass Effect 2 at E3 over the summer. Yes, there's an auto-regeneration system in place now, but that doesn't make it a cake walk. Ammunition levels must be maintained through picking up drops from downed enemies. Medi-gel is still needed, too, as you can't cast the Unity revive power without it. Moving in and out of cover, lining up head-shots, activating powers and commanding the squad mates all feels like second nature. There's a lot less fumbling around now. It's simply better.

That last line pretty much describes all of Mass Effect 2 for me so far. Now that the team has tackled the technical issues, it's just better all around. The only lingering question in my mind is how well BioWare is going to weave the choices you make in the first game into this sequel. There's the potential for a truly special and personal story...or a bit of a letdown. Either way, it's hard not to get excited about late January 2010 when we finally get to continue Shepard's story.

Check back with IGN tomorrow for an exclusive interview with Mass Effect 2's Project Director, Casey Hudson, as well as more videos and some cool news.