Mass Effect 3 Demo Review

So I played the ME3 demo on my XBOX360 yesterday, and I must say, I am impressed. I still haven't finished the first game (a failure on my part), but I enjoyed the changes to the combat system in ME3.

ME3 introduced Jane Shepard, a fan-created version of the main character John Shepard, as an alternative to the male character. The features of Jane (and I'm guessing John) are adjustable, allowing for a new level of customization. I will admit that while it was interesting to play as a girl, I did not care much for my dear redheaded Jane.

Now, the demo was broken into two parts. The first part is probably going to be the tutorial level of the game. It introduced the basic controls of the game, though I don't think it told me how to use the special skills, like the biotic skills that my class gave me. The combat and AI were just hard enough to pose a challenge but not too difficult as to sink the player in frustration. It also set the stage for the game in a series of cut-scenes that were not skippable.

The second half of the demo was an interesting escort mission that brought back characters from at least the first game. Again, the combat was not too difficult, though I had a bit of trouble finding ammo for my rifle. Nothing like finding yourself duking it out with the boss with nothing more than a pistol. Though I did find some ammo about half-way through the battle.

All in all, the demo for Mass Effect 3 was satisfactory. It did its job by introducing the story better than mere trailers, showed off the graphics and combat system, and allowing players to...well... play and get a taste of the game. I'm excitedly waiting for the release on 6 March, and you can bet that I'll be at the GameStop at midnight.