I did not see this coming. Mass Effect’s “Bring Down the Sky” downloadable content was released the other day and I didn’t even notice. Best of all, the DLC is free. You know how it’s like with me and free stuff. Then again, everyone loves free stuff, especially when they’re related to video games.

When one speaks of Bioware, the first thing that comes to mind are role-playing games. With critically-acclaimed titles such as Baldur’s Gate, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, and Neverwinter Nights tucked under its belt, Bioware has truly established itself as one of the premiere RPG makers.
Mass Effect for the PC is the latest Bioware-developed RPG. While it shares some similar elements with the company’s previous releases, Mass Effect plays like a different beast because it’s also a shooter—a first for Bioware.

If you’re as cheap as I am, then you’re probably holding off on that PC upgrade for years. A couple of months ago, I probably would’ve said that despite the age of my current rig, it has yet to disappoint. While it can still manage to run Mass Effect, I noticed that I can only install a couple of games on my hard drive because of space restrictions.
Are the size of current games really growing? I decided to do a little more digging.
I looked at the games installed on my hard drive. What do Gears of War, Bioshock, and Mass …read more

I love shooters, whether they’re in third- or first-person view. It’s my favorite game genre. I also love Western role-playing games. I think they’re the closest we gamers can get to pen-and-paper RPGs. I never thought that these two major genres could be combined into a single, compelling experience.
Ion Storm did something similar in 2000’s Deus Ex. It combined FPS and RPG, but while multiple paths are available to the player, the role-playing elements are as hollow as protagonist JC Denton’s voice. The plot was all action, so like any Hollywood action flick, there was hardly time for meaningful characterization.
In …read more