Mass Effect was the story of a plucky commander uniting an oddball crew to save the galaxy.  Sure, there was a seedy underbelly, and folks tended to do some pretty shifty stuff at the fringes of civilization.  Part of the game involved confronting that from time to time, but we were led to expect a Gene Roddenberry happy ending for the most part.

ThatR17;s certainly not the case in the sequel.  While the first game encouraged the player to navigate a fairly well-defined good/evil moral course, Mass Effect 2 forces us to wade through some fairly gray areas.

Spoilers ahead.

I can see why some folks wouldn't care for this game. You canR17;t dual-wield weapons, the team deathmatch mode is sorely lacking, and the final boss is a pushover.

If that last sentence meant nothing to you, then youR17;ll likely enjoy it.

Ah, Wipeout.  ItR17;s only been ten years since the last proper release from the series game on home consoles.

IR17;ve come to realize something very sad about myself.

I canR17;t even get laid in a video game.

Now, back to the Sniper. Sure, everyone wants to play the Sniper. ItR17;s a class designed for the antisocial gamer. Sit on a hill, line up the scope, and nail someone who never saw it coming from half-a-mile away, right?

Not in this game. Most of the maps have you moving quickly, and at close-quarters. The Sniper's usual methods are actually a liability here. He needs to get solitary and keep his distance, and thatR17;s a hard thing to do in TF2.

Speaking of the Pyro, he's an odd one. His flamethrower is not only incredibly gratifying ("I'm on fire! Doktorr!"), it's a devastating weapon that covers a wide area. In a way, heR17;s the opposite of the medic. The Medic dispenses a short-range defensive buff to teammates, while the Pyro spits out a close-quarters dose of pain to the opposition.

Next, letR17;s consider the Medic. Your team does have one, right? If not, get one of the 4 guys playing Sniper to switch. More on that later.

You have three sets of classes: offense, defense and support. Use your Engineers to lock down vulnerable areas in your base, and leave the offensive stuff to the classes meant for it. That means Heavies and Soldiers. They take point, which means soaking up damage, and the MedicR17;s place is at their side.

Ah, the sentry: the gift that keeps on giving. In the hands of a good engineer, this little number is a mechanized fountainhead of suppressing fire and mayhem. Managed by an incompetent, itR17;s a just a big paperweight.

"The Enrichment Center once again reminds you that android hell is a real place where you will be sent at the first sign of defiance.̶1;

̵1;GLaDOS

Meet Alyx Vance. She's one of the main characters in Valve StudiosR17; Half-Life series. She's also something of a rarity in videogames in that sheR17;s an actual character, as opposed to the 2-dimensional caricatures of women that dominate the genre.

Of course, I'm playing Halo 3. The single-player campaign, while entertaining, really isnR17;t anything more than a training ground for the real meat of the game, which is the multiplayer.

There's a mishmash of a story involving the Covenant's invasion of Earth to retrieve the Ark, CortanaR17;s imprisonment with the Gravemind and of course, the great question: how is it Master Chief can fall from space at escape velocity and survive, but he dies if he slips off a 30-foot embankment?

Well, that last one is never answered, but the rest wraps up nicely. Stick around after the credits for a nice little bit of closure.

Tonight marks the release of Halo 3. IR17;ll risk the possible lynching by a crowd of angry, pitchfork-toting fanboys and say it: I never really got what the hype was about.

Sure, it's a competent first-person shooter, and the online capabilities are excellent, but c'mon, it's pulpy space opera with guns. It's good, but itR17;s not exactly the reinvention of the wheel or anything.

Anyhow, Master ChiefR17;s back, riding a wave of advertising hype and testosterone into the videogame equivalent of Return of the Jedi. And, of course, Jack ThompsonR17;s back as well.