Smack Down vs. Raw 2011

WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2011 (also shortened to WWE SvR 2011^[2]) is a professional wrestling video game developed by Yuke'sand published by THQ for the PlayStation 2 (PS2), PlayStation 3 (PS3), PlayStation Portable (PSP), Wii and Xbox 360 systems. It is the seventh game in the WWE SmackDown vs. Raw series and the final game under the SmackDown vs. Raw name.^[3] It is the sequel toWWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010 and is succeeded by WWE '12. It was released on October 26, 2010 in North America, October 28, 2010 in Australia and October 29, 2010 in Europe. The game is based on the two brands of WWE, Raw and SmackDown.


Modes

The game's new "WWE Universe" mode replaces the career mode from previous games. The mode builds storylines, and integrates cut scenes and rivalries between wrestlers based on the matches that are wrestled. These cut scenes appear randomly before, during, and after the match.^[2][5]

Road to WrestleMania mode has been modified to include new features such as backstage roaming, mini-quests, and further interaction with other Superstars. Playable storylines involve Rey Mysterio, John Cena, Christian,and Chris Jericho. Along with that is the new storyline in which players choose Kofi Kingston, John Morrison, Dolph Ziggler, R-Truth, or a created superstar in a quest to end The Undertaker's undefeated WrestleMania streak.^[2][6] Create A Superstar mode now includes pre-loaded attribute points for created superstars, while in Create A Finisher mode, a new finisher position is the "Corner" , in which finishers can be created in corner position (Cannot be used during the Royal Rumble match) . Also attributes such as speed and trajectory can now be modified by single increments rather than 25% increments. The number of available created finishers has been expanded to 130 as well.^[2] Online mode also returns - each new copy of the game contains an Online Pass allowing one user to play the game online for free. Players who rent or purchase the game used will obtain a trial of Online Pass.^[7]

A new feature called "Match Creator" allows players to create new match types. In addition, Story Designer mode now has newcutscenes, usable sound clips from announcers and wrestler entrance music, support for up to fifteen created superstars, 'branching' story paths depending on which character won the match and the ability to include championship belts in cutscenes and event triggers based on a wrestler reaching a certain state.

Development

Greg Miller of IGN gave the PS3 and Xbox 360 version of the game an eight out of ten. He praised the game's Universe Mode and the wrestler animations, but criticized the limitations of Road to WrestleMania mode and the inaccurate commentary. In addition, he stated that the grappling system could be "frustrating at times." ^[12] GameSpot's Chris Watters rated the Xbox 360 version a seven out of ten, lauding the game's customization options, while finding fault with the game's collision detection and the lag during online multiplayer games. He also claimed that the series was starting to "show its age."^[13]

GameZone's William Haley criticized the game for not progressing much beyond its predecessors, claiming that the game targeted the "lowest common denominator." He called the WWE Universe feature, online multiplayer mode and creation tools "compelling", but also wrote that "the foundation upon which they are built is so decrepit that it completely invalidates the meager value this game has to offer."

Halo

Halo is a science fiction video game franchise created by Bungie and owned and published by Microsoft Studios. The series centers on an interstellar war between humanity and a theocratic alliance of aliens known as the Covenant. The Covenant worship an ancient civilization known as the Forerunners, who perished in combat with the parasitical Flood. The original trilogy of games center on the experiences of the Master Chief, John-117, a cybernetically-enhanced human super-soldier, and his artificial intelligence (AI) companion,Cortana. In this setting, the term "Halo" refers to Halo megastructures: large, habitable ringed structures, similar to the Orbitals in Iain M Banks' Culture novels, or to smaller versions of Larry Niven's Ringworld.^[1][2]

The series has been praised as being among the best first-person shooters on a video game console, and are considered the MicrosoftXbox's "killer app".^[3] This has led to the term "Halo killer" being used to describe console games that aspire, or are considered, to be better than Halo.^[4] Fueled by the success of Halo: Combat Evolved, and immense marketing campaigns from publisher Microsoft, its sequels went on to break various sales records. Halo 3 sold more than US$170 million worth of copies in the first twenty-four hours of release, breaking the record set by Halo 2 three years prior.^[5][6] Halo: Reach, in turn, broke the record set by Halo 3, selling $200 million USD worth of copies on its first day of release.^[7] The games have sold over 40 million copies worldwide, and all Halomerchandise has grossed more than $2 billion.

Strong sales of the games led to the franchise's expansion to other mediums; there are multiple bestselling novels, graphic novels, andother licensed products. Beyond the original trilogy, other "Halo" games have branched off into other video game genres, including Halo Wars, a real-time strategy game produced as developer Ensemble Studios' last project. Bungie also contributed the expansion Halo 3: ODST and a prequel Halo: Reach, their last project for the franchise. A new title, Halo 4, is currently in development, as well as a high-definition remake of the first game entitled Halo: Anniversary.

The cultural impact of the Halo series has been compared by writer Brian Bendis to that of Star Wars.^[8] The collective group of fans of the series is referred to as the "Halo Nation"

Story

In the past, an intelligent race called The Forerunners used their advanced technology to protect life, but were caught off-guard by an alien parasite known as the Flood. The Flood, which spread through infestation of sentient life, threatened and overran many worlds in the galaxy before the Forerunners could attempt to contain the threat. A group of Forerunners conceived a final solution—using an installation known as the Ark, they built seven large ring-shaped megastructures known as Halos. The Halo Array, when activated, would destroy all sentient life in the galaxy—depriving the Flood of their food. Delaying as long as they could, the Forerunners finally activated the rings and disappeared.^[10]

Tens of thousands of years later in the 26th century, humanity—under the auspices of the United Nations Space Command or UNSC—colonize many worlds thanks to the development of faster-than-light "slipstream" travel. Tensions escalate between the older and more stable "Inner Colonies" and the remote "Outer Colonies", leading to civil war. The UNSC creates an elite group of enhanced supersoldiers, known as Spartans, to suppress the rebellion covertly.^[11] In the year 2525 the human colony of Harvest falls under attack by a theocratic alliance of alien races known as the Covenant. The Covenant leadership declares humanity heretics and an affront to their gods—the Forerunners—and begins to methodically exterminate human worlds. The Covenant's superior technology and numbers prove decisive advantages; though effective, the Spartans are too few in number to turn the tide of battle in humanity's favor.

In 2552, the Covenant arrive at Reach, the UNSC's last major stronghold, and launch an invasion of the planet. The last Spartans and UNSC military are unable to stop the Covenant from bombarding the surface with plasma. Following directives to avoid leading the Covenant to Earth, the artificial intelligence (AI) Cortana aboard the fleeing UNSC ship Pillar of Autumnselects coordinates that lead the ship to a Halo installation. The Covenant follow, damaging the Autumn and leading its crew to take the fight to the ring's surface. The Covenant accidentally release Flood imprisoned on the ring; in order to nullify the threat, the ring's AI caretaker, 343 Guilty Spark, enlists the help of the Spartan, Master Chief. Before the pair can activate Halo's defenses, however, Cortana reveals that Halo's activation would mean their own destruction. Master Chief and Cortana instead detonate the Autumn's engines, destroying Halo and preventing the escape of the Flood. They and a few other human survivors return to Earth, warning of an impending Covenant attack.

Soon after, a Covenant fleet arrives at Earth. Most of the fleet is destroyed, but a single ship under the command of one of the Covenant's Hierarchs, the Prophet of Regret, breaks through the human defenses and invades the African city of New Mombasa. Before the humans can assault Regret's carrier, he retreats through a slipspace portal, pursued by the Master Chief aboard the human ship In Amber Clad. Regret travels to another Halo installation, where the Master Chief kills Regret. Inner turmoil in the Covenant leads to civil war between the various member races. Learning that the activation of the Halo Array (a central tenet of the Covenant religion) would lead to their extinction, the Covenant warrior Arbiter and his brethren ally with humanity to stop the rings from being fired. The aborted activation of the ring puts all the Halo installations on standby: the remaining rings can be activated remotely from a location known as "The Ark".

The Covenant begin a full-scale invasion of Earth and excavate a Forerunner artifact in the African desert that creates a slipspace portal to the Ark. The Master Chief and Arbiter travel through the portal to kill the last High Prophet, Truth, and discover the installation is building a new Halo ring to replace the one destroyed previously. In order to destroy the spreading infestation led by the Flood intelligence Gravemind, the Master Chief activates the incomplete ring—as the Ark lies outside the Milky Way Galaxy, the blast destroys the Flood but spares the galaxy at large. Because the ring's construction is incomplete, the resulting pulse destroys the ring and damages the Ark. The Arbiter escapes the explosion, but the Master Chief and Cortana are left drifting in space, trapped in the severed rear half of their ship. The Master Chief cryonically freezes himself as he and Cortana wait for rescue. In the legendary ending, the rear half is seen floating towards an unknown planet.

Mass Effect

Mass Effect is an action role-playing game developed by BioWare for the Xbox 360 and then ported to Microsoft Windows by Demiurge Studios^[3]. The Xbox 360 version was released worldwide in November 2007 published by Microsoft Game Studios. The Windows version was released on May 28, 2008, published by Electronic Arts.^[8]

The game takes place in the year 2183, with the player, assuming the role of an elite human soldier named Commander Shepard, setting out to explore the Galaxy on a starship, the SSV Normandy. The titular mass effect is a form of inertia-suppressing technology, allowingfaster-than-light travel.

A sequel, Mass Effect 2, was released on January 26, 2010, and takes place two years after the events of the first game. Mass Effect 2 also directly uses players' completed save data from the first game to influence events and storylines within the second game, basing certain events and narrative threads on decisions and actions that the player made in the first game.

In addition to the sequel, and a third in development to complete the trilogy, BioWare plans to release episodic content online to fill in the story between each game, though these episodes are not essential for understanding the main plot line.^[9] The first downloadable content package, Bring Down the Sky, was released on March 10, 2008 (with a PC version released on July 29, 2008) The second downloadable content package, Pinnacle Station, was released on August 25, 2009 for the PC and Xbox 360.

Story

"Mass Effect"

Project Director Casey Hudson explained the term "Mass Effect" as follows:^[17]

Inside the game universe, mass effect is a newly discovered (for humans) physics phenomenon that has properties along the lines of other physics forces such as gravity and electromagnetism. It’s what physicists in real life are currently calling "dark energy", as an explanation for the accelerating expansion of the universe — which has only recently been discovered and flies in the face of the previous notion that the universe’s expansion should be slowing down because of gravity.

Hudson explains that certain creatures are evolved to sense and manipulate mass effect much like some real-life creatures such as sharks and electric eels can sense and manipulate electromagnetism in peculiar ways. Some humans are preternaturally capable of these abilities, which can be enhanced viabrain implants, and the trained manipulation of Mass Effect is referred to as "biotics".

The game's technology centers around a fictional substance called "element zero", or more informally "eezo". When element zero is exposed to an electrical current, it creates a "mass effect field" which alters the mass of anything inside the field; a positive current causes increases, and a negative current decreases. This allows the creation of "kinetic barriers," science-fiction style artificial gravity, and faster-than-light travel, amongst other things.

[edit]Setting

See also: Races of the Mass Effect universe

Mass Effect is set in the year 2183. Thirty-five years earlier, mankind discovered a cache of technology on Mars, supposedly built by a technologically advanced but long-extinct race called the Protheans. Studying and adapting this technology, humanity has managed to break free of the solar system and has established numerous colonies and encountered various extraterrestrial species within the Milky Way galaxy. Utilizing alien artifacts known as Mass Relays, the various space-faring races are able to travel instantly across vast stretches of the galaxy. Within the game, humanity has formed the Human Systems Alliance, one of many independent bodies that make up the collective of "Citadel space".

The Human Systems Alliance is a rising power in the galactic stage. The only war they have participated in was the "First Contact War" in 2157. A human exploration expedition was activating dormant mass relays (which was a practice considered unsafe by Citadel races, as it resulted in the Rachni Wars described below). The turians attacked the small fleet and proceeded to capture the closest human world, Shanxi. The turians proceeded to starve out the remaining humans and occupy the planet. Facing starvation the human garrison surrendered to the Turian Hierarchy. One month later, the human Second Fleet responded by annihilating the turian fleet around Shanxi. In response the turians prepared for full scale war. The Citadel Council saw that humanity would either be annihilated or annexed by the turians and stepped in. The humans were then given an embassy in the Citadel Council.

Citadel space, as a whole, is ruled by a conglomerate body of governments known as the Council, which is made up of members of the three prominent alien races: the asari, a race of unisexual aliens which closely resemble blue-skinned human females; the short-lived salarians; and the raptor-like turians. Other alien species seen in the game include the reptiliankrogan, the four-eyed, humanoid batarians, the aquatic hanar, the methodical, monotonous-voiced and quadrupedal elcor, and the environmentally suited quarians and volus. Dozens of other aliens are asserted to exist throughout the galaxy, but are not seen or mentioned in the game.

Much history and exposition is related by the "Codex," an in-game encyclopedia whose entries expand as the player investigates new locations and asks questions of its residents. Three historical wars, predating human presence in Citadel space, are of particular relevance to players.

1. The "Rachni Wars" began around 1 CE; these insectoid aliens were discovered when Citadel explorers opened a dormant mass relay and accidentally introduced them to the galaxy. Over almost a century of conflict, the rachni came close to overwhelming the Citadel races, until the salarians discovered the krogan, a warlike species who had evolved redundant organ systems, a tendency to aggression and incredibly high birth rates to survive conditions on their homeworld of Tuchanka. The salarians "culturally uplifted" the krogan, gifting them with advanced technology, medicine and access to planets unplagued by nuclear winter, toxins or an overabundance of vicious predators. The flourishing krogan joined the war against the rachni and pursued it to completion, eventually exterminating the species entirely by about the 3rd century CE.
2. The "Krogan Rebellions" began about 700 CE and stemmed directly from the uplift during the Rachni Wars. The now-uplifted krogan displayed an aggressive colonization policy, eventually claiming worlds already populated by other Citadel races. Diplomacy failed, with the krogan literally daring the Council to stop them; and even with the turians (then Citadel newcomers) on their side, the Council once again found itself on the receiving end of a losing war. The final solution came in the form of the "genophage," an artificially induced and true-breeding genetic mutation created jointly by the salarians and turians. It causes pre-natal neural failure in all but 1 in 1,000 krogan pregnancies, resulting in stillbirths and miscarriages. Though the genophage was deployed before 800 CE, krogan culture is still struggling to adapt to it in the "present" day (2183 CE).
3. Finally, the "Geth Wars" were the result of efforts by the quarians to build robots for labor and military purposes. The geth were deliberately designed so that each individual was a relatively limited hardware platform, relying on wireless networking to achieve higher processing power, but the quarians tweaked their programs extensively, allowing the geth to evolve into true artificial intelligences. The terrified quarians ordered the destruction of every geth once they realized what they had done, and the geth, defensive of their lives, declared war against their creators. The geth won: in 1895 CE the quarians made the decision to abandon their home planet and have since resided largely aboard the "Migrant Fleet," a flotilla consisting of 50,000 starships. The geth, for their part, have not been seen since the end of the war, and their current agenda is completely unknown.

The game takes place primarily in two locations: the prototype frigate SSV Normandy, and the Citadel, a gigantic, ancient space station supposedly built by the Protheans and which currently acts as the center of galactic civilization. Throughout the game, however, the player may navigate the Normandy to various planets, moons and other destinations.

Characters

The player is assuming direct control of Commander Shepard, a veteran soldier^[18] who can be customized by the player. The character's appearance also varies based on the weaponry and armor the player uses.^[13] In addition to customizing Shepard's gender and appearance, players can also choose a back story for the character, which influences dialogue throughout the game, as well as which side missions will be available to the character.^[19]

The player's main character is almost always accompanied by two additional characters, providing support during battles and contributing to dialogue.^[20] These characters are not created by the player, and control over them is limited to directing squad movement and to the utilising of their technological/biotic abilities. While aboard the Normandy, the player may construct relationships between Shepard and these characters, potentially opening up further assignments. There are six characters met in the game who will join the fight; each has a detailed back-story and hence their own reasons for wanting to help. Two of the characters are human and the other four are aliens.

The voice cast of Mass Effect includes:

• Mark Meer and Jennifer Hale voice the male and female versions of Commander Shepard, respectively.
• Liz Sroka voices Tali'Zorah Nar Rayya.
• Kimberly Brooks voices Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams.
• Raphael Sbarge voices Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko.
• Keith David voices Captain David Anderson.
• Ali Hillis voices Dr. Liara T'Soni, while Jillian Murray was the model for her body structure.
• Lance Henriksen voices Admiral Steven Hackett.
• Marina Sirtis voices Matriarch Benezia.^[21]
• Fred Tatasciore voices Saren Arterius.
• Seth Green voices Jeff "Joker" Moreau.^[22]
• Steven Barr voices Urdnot Wrex
• Brandon Keener voices Garrus Vakarian.

[edit]Plot

The game begins aboard the experimental SSV Normandy, commanded by Captain Anderson and his executive officer, Lieutenant Commander Shepard. The Normandy is sent to the human colony of Eden Prime to recover an unearthed Prothean beacon. To assist, the Citadel Council, the galaxy's primary governing body, sent one of their top agents, Nihlus, a turianSpectre. He has also been assigned to observe Shepard, who is a candidate for Spectre membership. Spectres (agents of the "Special Tactics and Reconnaissance" office) are above the law and work directly for the Council. No human has ever received the title, and the human Systems Alliance, particularly Council representative Donnel Udina, hope that by achieving the title, humanity will receive increased stature in the intergalactic community.

Nihlus, Shepard, and biotic Kaidan Alenko land and meet Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams, who reveals that the Eden Prime colony is under attack by the robotic race known as the geth. The geth are led by a rogue turian Spectre named Saren Arterius, who kills Nihlus. After the battle ends, Shepard locates the beacon and receives a vision showing Protheans being overwhelmed by mechanical forces.

The Normandy and its crew are summoned by Udina to the Citadel. Unfortunately, Shepard is unable to convince the Citadel Council of Saren's treason without solid evidence. Citadel Security officer Garrus Vakarian and krogan mercenary Urdnot Wrex lead Shepard to a quarian mechanic named Tali'Zorah nar Rayya, who possesses a recording of a conversation between Saren and an asari Matriarch named Benezia, discussing their victory on Eden Prime. The recording also mentions an artifact called the "Conduit" and the return of a force known as the Reapers. Confronted with this evidence, the Council revokes Saren's Spectre status and makes Shepard the first human Spectre. Shepherd is ordered to hunt down Saren with the assistance of Kaidan, Ashley, Garrus, Wrex and Tali, his pilot Jeff "Joker" Moreau.

Captain Anderson steps down and passes Shepard command of the Normandy, who uses the ship to follow up on several leads provided by Anderson and Udina. On Therum in the Artemis Tau Cluster, Shepard finds and rescues the archaeologist Dr. Liara T'soni, Matriarch Benezia's daughter. Because of her biotic abilities and expertise in the Protheans, Liara joins Shepard's squad. On the colony of Feros, Shepard fights off forces whom Saren has sent to investigate the Thorian, a sentient plant-like creature that has the power to control individuals. From these agents, Shepard learns that Saren's flagship, Sovereign, also possesses unique mind-control capabilities. On Noveria, Shepard tracks down Matriarch Benezia while fighting off both geth and the Rachni, which were thought to have been extinct. Benezia is eventually defeated, and she reveals that she and Saren are being controlled bySovereign. Shepard is also confronted with a Rachni queen and must decide whether to re-exterminate the race or allow them to go free. Finally, in between missions, Shepard has the option of romancing a crewmember; a male Shepard may flirt with Ashley and a female with Kaidan, while Liara is available to both.

After completing these missions, the Council informs Shepard of a salarian infiltration unit, which has uncovered Saren's main base of operations on the planet Virmire. Upon arrival, Shepard learns that Saren has discovered a cure for the krogan disease known as the genophage. Using it, he plans to breed an army of unstoppable krogan warriors. When Wrex finds out about the cure, he decides to betray the team. Shepard must either kill Wrex, have Ashley kill him, or convince him to trust Shepard's decision. Once this conflict is defused, Shepard agrees to assist the salarians in destroying the base by planting a nuclear improvised explosive device inside it. Shepard leads the infiltration team, while salarian Captain Kirrahe leads a diversionary attack with either Ashley or Kaidan as his deputy.

Inside the base Shepard discovers another Prothean beacon, which transfers its knowledge to him or her. Shepard is then confronted by Sovereign itself, which reveals to be a Reaper. Sovereign reveals the true terrible nature of the Reapers and their designs: The Reapers remain inert in the "dark space" outside the Milky Way Galaxy, waiting for millenia as organic life develops, discovers the mass relays (themselves constructs of the Reapers) and expands throughout the galaxy along those pre-existing routes. Once these races have reached a certain level of expansion, the Reapers awaken and purge all organic life. In truth, the Protheans never built the Citadel or Mass Relays, but rather were latest victims in a long succession of races systematically sowed and harvested by the Reapers as part of an inexorable cycle. Sovereign sees Shepard and the current civilization as no different from those before.

After planting the nuclear bomb and attempting to escape the facility, the team is attacked by Saren. He explains that he has allied himself with the Reapers to save organic life by making it "useful". Shepard refuses to accept Saren's plan and fights him off. However, both Ashley and Kaidan have become pinned down at their respective positions, and Shepard has only enough time to save one of them while the other to be killed in the nuclear detonation.

With the information Shepard's party has gained, Liara is able to pinpoint the Conduit's location on a Prothean world known as Ilos, a planet accessible only by a long-lost Mass Relay located deep within the hostile Terminus Systems. Shepard returns to the Citadel to request permission from the Council to pursue Saren, but Shepard's request is denied by the Council, who consider the existence of the Reapers too unclear to risk a war with the Terminus Systems. Ambassador Udina locks Shepard out of the Normandy, but Captain Anderson steps in and helps Shepard steal the ship back.

On the surface of Ilos, Shepard follows Saren into an ancient bunker and encounters a Prothean computer intelligence named Vigil, which explains the Reapers' methodology. Vigil explains that the Citadel Station is actually a huge mass relay, which the Reapers use to invade the galaxy en masse. During the last cycle of extinction, a few Protheans survived on Ilos via cryogenic suspension and then re-entered the Citadel via the Conduit, a miniaturized Mass Relay disguised as a statue on the Presidium. There, they sabotaged the process that would summon the Reapers. Saren plans to use the Conduit to sneak into the Citadel, where he can re-activate the Citadel's Mass Relay and bring back the Reapers.

Shepard pursues Saren through the Conduit while Sovereign and a massive geth force assault the Citadel. Sovereign lands on the central tower of the Citadel and begins activating the relay, while Saren uses the Citadel's defense systems to protect it. Shepard fights through Saren's army of geth and confronts him for the final time. Saren reveals that he has become increasingly brainwashed by Sovereign, even accepting cybernetic augmentation. Shepard can fight Saren or convince him to rebel. If convinced, Saren sacrifices himself by committing suicide, removing the Reapers' vital tool.

The Citadel Fleet has custody of the Council but is losing the battle; meanwhile, Joker contacts Shepard from the head of a human Systems Alliance fleet. Shepard can order the Alliance fleet to save the Council, go directly after Sovereign while risking the death of the Council or even ignore the Council entirely and condemn them to death. Regardless, Saren's corpse is reanimated by Sovereign who attacks Shepard via Saren while simultaneously fighting off the Alliance in ship form. Eventually, humanity prevails, and Saren's corpse is destroyed while Sovereign is dispatched by the Normandy.

The precise ending of the game depends on several factors, including the fate of the Council and whether Shepard has a higher Paragon or Renegade meter. If Shepard chooses to save the Council, the Council will thank the humans and let the humans join the Council. The other two choices will result in the death of the Council but humanity's ascendance to galactic leadership. Shepard is then asked to nominate Anderson or Udina as a human Council member. Regardless of the choice, Shepard expresses the opinion that the Reapers are still a threat and must be stopped.

[edit]Themes

Mass Effect's story primarily falls within the space opera genre and explores themes such as freedom of thought, space colonization, vigilantism, and artificial intelligence. The story, with its human-vs.-machine elements, has drawn comparisons to both Fred Saberhagen's Berserker novels and Battlestar Galactica,^[23] as well as to Frederik Pohl's Gateway novels.^[24] The elements of machine culling organic life are similar to Alastair Reynolds' Revelation Space. While the Citadel and its governing structure seems to draw influence from Babylon 5, with theSPECTREs being comparable with the Anla'shok (Rangers) of that same universe. According to Casey Hudson, the project director at BioWare, the films Aliens, Blade Runner, Star Wars, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and Starship Troopers all served as influences for the game.

Windows edition

[hide]Official system requirements[29]

Minimum Recommended Windows Operating system Windows XP or Windows Vista CPU 2.4+ GHz Intel; 2.0+ Ghz AMD 2.6+ GHz Intel; 2.4+ Ghz AMD Memory 1 GB (XP), 2 GB (Vista) 2 GB Hard drive space 12 GB of free space Graphics hardware NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT or higher, ATI X1300 XT or higher NVIDIA GeForce 7900 GTX or higher, ATI X1800 XL or higher Sound hardware 100% DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card and drivers 100% DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card and drivers – 5.1 sound card recommended Network Internet connection required for activation

A Windows version of the game ported by Demiurge Studios was released May 28, 2008, with aspects of the game rebuilt in order to address criticisms of the earlier Xbox 360 version. In addition unlike the Xbox 360 version, the Windows version also includes an extra DVD (Disc Two) containing different language versions of the game. BioWare has announced that no collector's edition of the Windows version is going to be released. However, CD Projekt, the Polish publisher of Mass Effectreleased a limited edition version. This edition features:

• Game in two language versions: original English and full Polish dubbing on two DVD discs. (Also features subtitles of the alternative language).
• Documentary of making Polish version.
• Instructions and a walkthrough in Polish.
• Mass Effect themed postcards.
• N7 T-shirt.
• Artbook containing concept art from the game.
• USB flash drive with Mass Effect logo.
• Mouse pad with graphic of the Normandy.
• Mass Effect key holder.
• Box containing all elements.

The European edition of the Windows version included a second DVD with the game localized for German, French and Italian languages. A localized Japanese version of Mass Effect is in development for the Xbox 360.

[edit]Differences between Windows and Xbox 360 version

For the Windows version of the game the following changes and gameplay improvements have been implemented.^[30][31]

• Streamlined equipment and item management
• New HUD control screen replaces power wheel for easier mouse input
• Ability to give both squad members individual commands
• Customizable hotkey system for biotic and tech powers
• Considerable decrease of texture pop-in
• Dedicated forward and reverse buttons replace view-dependent control of the Mako
• New minigame for decryptions

[edit]Franchise

Main article: Mass Effect (series)

Mass Effect was originally conceived as a trilogy, but EA has confirmed that Mass Effect "will be a franchise for [EA] for a very long time" indicating that the franchise may extend beyond the planned trilogy.^[32] The next title in the series, Mass Effect 2, uses much of the same game mechanics as the first title in the series. One of the first things known aboutMass Effect 2 was that players could import their Mass Effect save-files into the sequel and that decisions made by the player in the first game would continue to have influences on their character in the sequel. Players who have not played the first Mass Effect or choose not to import a save-file will start a new character in Mass Effect 2, will be brought up to speed on the story elements that have taken place thus far in the series.