Mass Effect 2 Interview and Arsenal Update
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The interview comes at us from Neoseeker, where Casey Hudson fields the questions:
BioWare PR previously stated the game is primarily a "shooter" because people are scared of the word "RPG." Apparently this is why regenerating health was implemented as well. Adrien Cho recently said a lot of gamers crave depth, however, and ME2 will definitely go that route. Can you comment on this fear of RPGs and any gameplay elements (including health regen) that may have been implemented because of it?
I'm not much one for worrying about exact genre labels, but like its predecessor, Mass Effect 2 is most accurately defined as a shooter - RPG. The term (RPG) means different things to different people. To us at Bioware, it simply means that the game has a number of important pillars of gameplay, instead of just combat. To us, an RPG provides opportunities for exploration, non-linear story development, deeply customizable character and equipment progression, and of course intensely satisfying combat. Those are things that most players can appreciate, and they create a more well-rounded experience. That's why we're starting to see them creeping into games of all genres.
As for the shooter aspect, much of the moment-to-moment experience does revolve around combat, and that style of realtime, intense combat offers the key challenge in the game. Therefore it's useful to call out the shooter aspect when defining the genre of Mass Effect 2. Ultimately, labeling a game with a genre is an increasingly difficult thing to do, but shooter-RPG seems to best capture what this game experience is about.
And the arsenal update looks at the M-622 Avalanche::
Popular Manufacturer(s): Unknown
Training Required: Heavy Weapons
Rounds per minute: 50
Related weapons: None
Description: Cryo Round technology is used to modify standard weapon slugs. A cooling laser collapses the ammunition into Bose-Einstein condensate, a mass of super-cooled subatomic particles capable of snap-freezing impacted objects. Normandy's scientists have found a way to apply this technology on a large scale: by generating a mass effect containment "bubble", this proof-of-concept large weapon technology is effective against armor, shields, and biotic barriers. It is nicknamed the "Cryo-Blaster."
