It’s no wonder why Mass Effect 2 was one of the most highly-anticipated titles in recent memory. The original was a groundbreaking game that featured engaging third-person-shooter combat, a thrilling, operatic storyline, and a memorable cast of characters led by the inimitable Commander Shepard, a fully-realized protagonist the likes of which we had never seen. Mass Effect fulfilled the abundant potential of sci-fi RPGs and gave fans an unforgettable gaming experience. And, as we stood up and applauded, Bioware promised us an encore that would be bigger and better than we could imagine.

They delivered. Mass Effect 2 is one of the transcendent RPG experiences of our time, and quite possibly the finest gaming sequel ever.

In fact, calling ME2 a sequel is something of a misnomer—it’s really a continuation. Which is why, while it’s certainly possible to enjoy the game without having played the original, ME2 is infinitely more rewarding if you’ve finished ME1 and you import your character. In fact, the importing process is the first of many clues that this is how the developers mean the game to be played. Far beyond incorporating your character’s face, name, and class, ME2 “remembers” Shepard’s history, attitude, and most significant decisions. And it’s not just for show; throughout the game, you will encounter or receive messages from characters who reference how you helped or hurt them in Mass Effect. But, more than that, entire sequences will be affected by your decisions in the original game. It’s something unprecedented in gaming: a choice you made months or years ago will determine which former companion you meet while investigating a human colony, or the current makeup of the all-powerful Citadel Council. It all adds up to create a deep, immersive experience in which that most clichéd of role-playing mantras rings especially true: your decisions have great impact and long-term repercussions.

Imported-character coolness aside, the most powerful reason to play the original first is the fact that Mass Effect 2’s storyline directly follows the events of ME1 and, while the game does a serviceable job of making sure you’re not totally lost, it may still feel like you walked into the movie an hour late. The cliff notes: After saving the galaxy from the genocidal species known as The Reapers, a mysterious new alien threat emerges. The Collectors, true to their name, are insectoid creatures that are kidnapping humans on a massive scale, wiping out entire colonies, and, yes, blowing up the Normandy and killing the protagonist. But, seeing as how the Commander isn’t exactly the type to stay dead, all it takes is a little bio-engineering from the mysterious group known as Cerberus to put Shepard and a hand-picked team of new allies and old friends on the path to kicking ass and taking names.

If that doesn’t sound like the most original plotline you’ve ever heard, it’s because it’s not—though it certainly doesn’t disappoint, either. But, like the devil, the genius is in the details, and ME2 gets all the details right to present and develop what may otherwise have been a pedestrian story in compelling ways. You’ll encounter panicked survivors driven insane by a sudden, relentless attack, who can now only mutter repeatedly as if in a waking nightmare. You’ll come across personal logs where the now long-dead wrote down their final thoughts with resignation or despair. Of course, normal conversations do the storytelling heavy-lifting, but these aren’t like any RPG conversations you’re used to. Characters often sit, stand, move and touch in the middle of dialogue—you know, like actual human beings do. Occasionally, if you’re enough of a Paragon (good guy) or Renegade (bad guy) you’ll be given the chance to interrupt the conversation with a sudden action. Perhaps you’ll want to stop one of your companions before he or she kill an old enemy in cold blood. Or you might enjoy leaving your boot print on an informant’s throat if he isn’t talking fast enough. You can say it all and do it all, and it will all be presented in an engrossing cinematographic style.

That’s a big part of what makes your interactions with your teammates so satisfying. But the biggest reason you’ll spend hours seeking them out in their little corners of the new Normandy is that they’re all interesting, complex individuals with stories to tell. Some are personal: will the Asari justicar’s dedication to her code hold true when her hunt for evildoers becomes personal? How far will the Drell assassin go to keep his son from following in his footsteps? Some—the best—speak to the larger moral and philosophical questions that the Mass Effect games (and sci-fi in general) is so adept at posing. Should the Salarians who helped genetically cripple the Krogan now attempt to reverse the cruel genophage, even if it means unleashing a potential threat on the galaxy? Should the Quarians take the fight to the Geth who killed and exiled them, or seek to make a new life for themselves elsewhere? (Or, as it’s also known, Battlestar Galactica—but we’ll get to that later.) Each companion’s individual side-mission will have you exploring these and other issues. Completing them won’t just unlock a new skill for each one, they’ll make you to appreciate your comrades on a whole other level. And, maybe, help you get one of them naked in the engine room…

Mass Effect 2 also revamps many of the most unwieldy aspects of the original.

Combat is much improved. The “overheating” system from the original game, in which you had to periodically hold your fire lest your weapon became temporarily unusable, has been replaced with a system in which you pick up heat clips which basically function as ammo. Enemy AI is greatly improved; your foes are more dynamic and react to your decisions: stay behind cover and they’ll begin moving toward you, seeking to flank you. Move out in the open and they’ll just snipe away from behind cover. Powerful “bosses” have multiple layers of protection that you must overcome with the right combination of powers and ammo. It all adds up to frenetic, challenging battles that will test your tactics as much as your marksmanship.

Take him down

The character progression system has also been overhauled. You no longer have to train in weapon skills (you’re immediately proficient in whatever firearms your class can utilize), bypassing/hacking skills (you just have to be good at the much-improved mini-games), and charm or intimidate (they’re directly tied to your Paragon/Renegade scores). That leaves you with four or five class-specific powers or skills that take incrementally more squad points to develop as you level up. Once you reach the final level of each ability, you get to choose from two enhanced versions of it that offer distinct bonuses.

Also gone is the cumbersome inventory system that had you constantly checking your equipment to see if the newly acquired weapon or armor was better than your current setup. Instead, your team starts off with basic versions of five different weapon types, acquiring just one or two more powerful iterations of each firearm throughout the game but constantly upgrading them to improve everything from their damage capabilities to their ammo capacity. Armor works similarly: Shepard has only one basic armor type, but it can be upgraded in the same manner as your weapons, outfitted with parts that provide different bonuses, and customized in case you feel like saving the galaxy in a stylish pink. It’s streamlined without being simplistic, and you’ll find yourself making strategic choices. Use the rapid-fire sniper rifle, or the one that reloads slower but carries more punch? Equip armplates for some extra shielding, or an ammo pack that will let you carry more heat clips? Your playing style will dictate how you outfit the Commander.

But, perhaps the greatest improvement is in Mass Effect 2’s planetary exploration. There’s no more simply clicking a button to survey a planet, like in the original. You must now manually scan a planet from orbit, monitor the on-screen readings and launch a probe when a “spike” in the scanner alerts you to the presence of valuable materials. Those Mako treks through dull, desolate wastelands in search of a dot on a map are also a thing of the past. While the Normandy’s computer will alert you when an anomaly (read: side-mission) is present on a given planet, you must use the aforementioned scanner to pinpoint its location before landing. And, while Mass Effect featured a pathetic three different structures on which these missions took place, ME2’s dozen or so assignments on uncharted worlds all happen on unique original locations—and some offer refreshing gameplay challenges. One such mission will have you fighting blind against synthetic enemies that control a weather machine causing heavy fog. Another will have you lurking in the shade because a radioactive sun will fry your shields anytime you step into the light.

Mass Effect 2’s visuals easily match its fantastic storyline and gameplay. Shepard and company are some of the best-looking characters in any game to date, and you’ll catch every angry scowl or flirtatious smile in their finely-chiseled and animated faces. The environments, whether seedy nightclub or wasteland planet, are varied, detailed, and sculpted with special attention, not just to how a place should look, but to how it should feel. ME2 manages to combine the seemingly paradoxical: traditionally minimalist sci-fi aesthetics with eye-catching design elements that give many of the game’s locations a certain flair.

The game sounds great, too. The original had quality sound effects, and the sequel solidly improves on them. An excellent score further enhances the action-packed feel of the game’s best sequences. But it’s the voiceover work that truly shines. From Shepard’s commanding tone to the musical stylings of a “scientist Salarian,” every member of your team has a manner of speaking worthy of his or her unique personality. Some familiar voices round out the cast and provide a little Hollywood flair. Seth Green once again gives a scene-stealing performance as the aptly nicknamed helmsman, Joker. Martin Sheen is half Capt. Willard and half President Bartlett as the enigmatic Illusive Man. Even the Normandy’s new ship computer gets the star treatment—it’s voiced by Battlestar Galactica’s Tricia Helfer.

So I get to be the next Triple X?

While that particular casting choice was surely meant as a nod and wink to sci-fi fans, I would venture to say it’s more than that. BSG became one of the most acclaimed television shows in history by understanding that, beyond all the sci-fi trappings, great stories are told with meaningful dialogue, with depth of character—with heart. Bioware understood that lesson as well, and in ME2 they gave us a game that should transcend genre and even medium to be recognized as an especially fine entertainment experience. I don’t envy Tricia Helfer if she’s ever asked to choose between the Normandy and the Galactica, between Shepard and Adama, or between the world of frakkin’ Cylons and the world of Mass Effect 2.

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