Mass Effect 3: Special Edition

     I enjoyed how the story of Mass Effect 3 unfolded. The game used the string of pearls approach, guiding the player along a linear path, interrupting periodically with areas of open gameplay and cinematic cutscenes. The folks at Bioware do a good job of disguising this technique by urging the player to hurry through intense moments using character dialogue. If I were on the way to rescue an ambushed platoon of soldiers for example, I could hear the soldiers bark out over the radio "we're not going to last much longer, we need an evac!" There usually was not a penalty for taking your time in missions like this, but it sure felt like I needed to hurry in order to save lives. Their is a lot of risk in using this rushed dialogue technique in video games, but if done correctly the reward is exciting gameplay. Bioware nailed it.
     Many people complained about the ending of the game, but I don't have a problem with it. At the end, the player is presented with a choice. I won't go into too much detail about what those choices were, but I can tell you that they left me feeling conflicted. Essentially you are forced to settle an argument that is made throughout the entire game, and the side that feels the most "right" is one that you have been fighting against for the entire journey. In the game's final moments you decide the fate of yourself, Earth, and future civilizations. Heavy stuff.
     You can tell that Bioware spent a great amount of time developing the background for each galaxy, each planet, and each alien race (they even went as far as talking about the diets of certain races). This brainstorming into the Mass Effect universe showed through in the artistic detail of each alien species. 
     The graphics for Mass Effect 3 were as expected, good but not great, and I'm okay with that. My experience isn't ruined by a few large pixels. I know the Wii U trails other major consoles when it comes to graphic performance. I am now convinced that the console makes up for what it lacks in the graphics department with the new technology of the Gamepad.
     I chose to buy the special edition and play the game on Wii U to see how the game had been adapted for different technology. Mass Effect 3: Special Edition uses the Wii U Gamepad as the player's omni tool: a digital multi-tool that lets the player control NPCs on the battlefield and see incoming threats. At first I was skeptical of buying the game in this format. I feared that I may get a "diet" version of Mass Effect 3 that had to remove key features in order to support this technology. The truth was exactly the opposite. The Gamepad enhances the battlefield experiences and I found myself relying on the omni tool in crunch situations. In fact I would panic at times when my tool would lose signal or go offline (certain points in the story made it believable that your map should be offline i.e. while underground or after an EMP). The story does an excellent job of describing the omni tool as well. Instead of giving the player an added sense of awareness without explanation, (like a minimap) the omni tool is presented as a perk of being in the alliance military.
     I no longer see the Wii U as a console that can't handle the modern game as well as other consoles, but as one that can take that game and expand upon it. I look forward to exploring this further with Deus Ex: Human Revolution Director's Cut.