When your entire game builds to a final, bombastic mission as in Mass Effect 2, it's hard for any downloadable content set after that point to not feel like an afterthought, and that's certainly true of the "Overlord" DLC from a structural standpoint. But when even your afterthoughts pack more fun and emotional resonance into a couple of hours than many games manage in their entirety, who's complaining?
When Commander Shepard and his crew were first called in to investigate a powerful virtual intelligence that had gone rogue, I was worried that "Overlord" would suffer from the same tacked-on feeling as did its predecessor, "Kasumi's Stolen Memory." Maybe you didn't hear, but I recently saved the galaxy -- why am I suddenly thrust into the role of interstellar IT guy?
I needn't have worried. While "Overlord" has little bearing on the whole of ME2, it's far more self-contained than "Kasumi," with its own arc and own emotional wallop. It's a fitting conclusion for a game head-and-shoulders-and-most-of-torso above others in its class in terms of storytelling.
Sadly, this is the last Mass Effect 2 DLC, but [Update: Sorry gang, totally misread that line. There may be likely be more DLC, just no new characters.] BioWare has taken the opportunity to throw a little bit of everything in and see what sticks. Want full-bore action? You got it. Want to solve tile-shifting floor puzzles? No problem. Want to do some light vehicle-based platforming? Well, you probably didn't know you wanted to do that, but it's here nonetheless. You won't be bored, let's put it that way.
Overlord doesn't jam new characters into your game or add a load of new weapons, but it more than makes up for that with a haunting little story of family, betrayal and sacrifice. Note to other game developers: If you're able to pack that into two hours, you'll always have my seven bucks.
@(Unverified) I don't doubt that its probably planned to be the "final" DLC .... unless it makes an (explicative deleted) amount of money, then I'd wager there will be a few more bits and pieces. 0
Either way there will probably at least one more DLC before ME3 hits the store shelves to get every one back into the "ZOMG Mass Effect 3 is coming !!!!!" mindset
@Scuffles I don't think so. I've seen Casey Hudson go on record saying "We have DLC planned for all the way up to the release of ME3" and also "we are making DLC right now for people who yet to finish ME2, later we will start making DLC that assumes everyone has beat ME2 and will start bridging the gap between ME2 and ME3"
if anything, this might be the final piece of DLC that takes place before the ending sequence of ME2, but this should not be the final piece of DLC for ME2.
@MGTrey GOTY or "Mass" edition is a given, I'd say. Probably slip it in the Oct/Nov releases, unless they somehow feel like waiting to receive their GOTY awards in January first. :)
@Faceless Troll I think Bioware exaggerated on that part but this did remind me of the old Mass Effect Missions but i hope that they bring out a 10+ hour DLC
@Debley I'd settle for 5+ hour. With games like Borderlands pumping out DLC that lasts for several hours I don't think there's any legitimate excuse for making them this short. :)
Honest question, How is Mass Effect 2? is it worth it for $40? What free DLC is there? (I know there is some, with the cerberus code - just not sure on exactly what it is lol)
Also, I got Dragon Age on PS3 - will I be able to use the blood dragon armour on ME2 on 360, even tho I used it for dragon age on PS3? :/
@Faenix The Cerberus network includes Zaeed and his loyalty mission, the Firewalker stuff (vehicle missions) and a few other tidbits. I'd say it's worth getting new, but that depends on how much you like 3rd person shooters and whether or not you liked the first. (It's also better than the first one, but some of the events might be hard to follow without reading up on the previous game.)
ME2 is worth more than 40 bucks without any free DLC (though it does come with some free stuff if you buy it new). Basically, stop asking dumb questions and go buy this game already!
@Faenix I'm not 100% shure on this but I think those things are linked to the email address you used for the Bioware Social Network thingy and as such you'll get those extras in all 2/4 systems possible.
Just so you know, though, there are only a few missions that involve vehicles. The free Firewalker download adds five, but there isn't much to them. The core game has no vehicle missions whatsoever.
blood dragon armor is universal for Mass Effect (not for Dragon age)
meaning, you can buy dragon age on PC and apply your BDA for ME2 on xbox or PS3. Any system you play ME2 is interchangeable because the Blood Dragon Armor is tied to your Bioware/EA/Cerberus account.
Kind of a moot point though, because the Blood Dragon armor was crap anyway after 20 minutes. Plus it completely ruins the cutscenes because Shepard cant be normal and take his helmet off while in town.
@onan I would beg to differ. Anyone who plays Adept, engineer or sentinel (or even vanguard or any other class that benefits from "power damage" knows that BDA is the single best piece of full-body armor. way better than terminus, inferno and collector armors.
as for the shep face thing, that stops mattering after you've beat the game the first dozen times.
I actually just played overlord last night... after beating the game in the morning. It's short, but the quality is top notch, with good storytelling and atmosphere that varies from the original game. If this is a taste of where they want to go with ME3, it's going to epic. I like the short but fun pieces of hammerhead time especially, though I hope they don't go overboard with platforming or puzzles because that detracts from the atmosphere a bit by weakening the realism and straying from the story.
Kasumi was worth it if you had some discounted points and bought it early in your playthrough like I did, so you could actually use her character in-game (with me as an infiltrator and her on my team, they literally never know what hit 'em! :)). It's a shame you can't romance the DLC characters - she's cute, funny, and I had kind of crush on her by the end of the game. ;)
Overlord is worth it if you're just a fan of the series and enjoy seeing some of the higher quality stuff Bioware can do with this game. It really stands on it's own, and is actually a great way to get a "quick fix" if you've already beaten the game.
@RogueJedi86 They probably only do that for full games. And you couldn't just read the review? This is what they feared when they started the damn system.
I read it. It's short, but it's positive. Just noticing the lack of a number when they decided they were going to do it for all. I myself was fine with no numbers. Maybe I secretly wanted to get them caught up in their own inconsistency with the hope that it'd be corrected and my post would have meaning after they add a score. I don't know, I was just noticing the lack of a score when they said there would be scores.
Looking forward to getting this down the line. I just finished playing ME1&2 back to back and I'm a little burned out. It's good to know there's more just waiting for me when I'm ready.
Two years after Commander Shepard repelled invading Reapers bent on the destruction of organic life, a mysterious new enemy has emerged. On the fringes of known space, something is silently abducting entire human colonies. Now Shepard must work with Cerberus, a ruthless organization devoted to human survival at any cost, to stop the most terrifying threat mankind has ever faced. To even attempt this perilous mission, Shepard must assemble the galaxy's most elite team and command the most powerful ship ever built. Even then, they say it would be suicide. Commander Shepard intends to prove them wrong.
