Switch Commander Shepard’s default head with Peter Weller’s Robocop chrome dome, and I’d be much happier with the above. A bit before this weekend, BioWare put out another one of its Mass Effect 2 character trailers, this time showcasing the hip and in charge Commander Shepard.
Careful not to put too much of a personality into the man that we pull the strings for, this spotlight doesn’t do much other than confirm the personalities of four others: the space frog, the space toad, the space psychopath, and the space witch. Still, it’s exciting to see Sheppard talk. We were under the impression that the dude was a zombie until a few months back. And in some ways, dude totally is a zombie. Watch out.
My Cmdr. Sheppard is a woman (a no-nonsense, badass, amoral, almost sociopathic, soldier), so I don't feel any connection to all these trailers with the male Sheppard.
I'd be happier if they were revealing other known characters like Jacob, Garrus, or Mordin. Looking at the Bioware site there's supposed to be 10 squad members so I'd like to know who the tenth is then especially since this comes out in a week
they need to do one of these for dr. chakwas. that was a sexy, middle-aged woman. that would make my big, throbbing erection for mass effect even bigger and throbbier.
Why is everyone in these trailers seemingly selecting the renegade dialogue?
I couldn't even stand playing full renegade, even if I aimed to do so. Everyone is just so intolerable.
Oh, except for, "Because it's a big, stupid jellyfish." Classic.
Though like some other people here, I'm using female Shepard for my game.
So Brad, are you the only one on staff who's pumped for Mass Effect 2, or do you just have dibs on all the Mass Effect 2 news?
Also, I'm getting kind of tired of reading all the comments insisting that a female Shepard is the only way to go. I know you all had a fun time playing as a female character. That's great. But it's not the only way to play the game. It's actually a lot of fun playing as a man in the game too.
I really don't like these marketing tools that keep trying to force "default Shepard" down our throats. Why even give char customization options when, if we use there, are playing some sort of "Bizzaro Shepard"
Maybe its just me, but I like the idea of my squad-mates respecting me. All these interview-style videos (except Thane's because he's awesome) have just annoyed me. Everyone basically says, "Shepard brought me along, but he (or she in my case) is a douchebag so I'm just going to do what I want." Obviously this is just their character and I'm guessing it won't actually affect the gameplay, but it still bothers me and makes them less desirable to me for my team.
It was the same with ME1 and I don't get how they're "forcing it down our throats." Scared your gag reflex will kick in? It makes perfect sense from a marketing standpoint to have a consistent lead character.
The Renegade had the best dialogue in ME1. The Paragon was "Can't we all just get along" goody two shoes garbage.
1. Just because it was in ME1 doesn't mean I liked it then either.
2. "Forcing it down our throats" is a figure of speech, meaning "overwhelming us with images and media related to Default Shepard." Case in point: ME2's god awful box art (which honestly is quite gag-inducing).
3. Just because it is make sense for marketing doesn't mean I have to like it, or that it is necessarily a good idea. Case in point: The Dragon Age trailers with Marilyn Manson music. Good Marketing? Probably. Good Idea? No.
Would it be so hard to have a mysterious Shepard with a helmet? Or have trailers and obnoxious boxart that do not feature Default Shephard and his stupid buzz cut? Why emphasize a "default" character when you have extensive character customization as one of your selling points?
That's fair enough, though I feel I should perhaps explain myself a little better. I liked Male Shepard because the voice actor was pretty much emotionless. Jennifer Hale's voice acting was technically better but I didn't like it because it felt like I was the puppeteer of an already formed character. Not to mention she always seemed a bit bored and somewhat oddly judgemental.
With male Shepard and his emotionless voice I was able to imbue him with my own traits and that made for a more immersive and therefore enjoyable experience.
I completely understand, however, that others might prefer a character with more obvious personality, but my immersion level dropped with a character I couldn't imbue with my own personality.
All this talk about male vs female Shepard is just glossing over the main point...the Mako sucks...balls. IT'S THE FUTURE, GIVE ME A VEHICLE THAT FLIES!
@mwuest
"All this talk about male vs female Shepard is just glossing over the main point...the Mako sucks...balls. IT'S THE FUTURE, GIVE ME A VEHICLE THAT FLIES!"
Yeah. Voice acting be damned... just give me a vehicle that I want to drive, DAMMIT!
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Contest:
12:40 PM on 01.18.2010 | 
Why is everyone in these trailers seemingly selecting the renegade dialogue?
I couldn't even stand playing full renegade, even if I aimed to do so. Everyone is just so intolerable.
Oh, except for, "Because it's a big, stupid jellyfish." Classic.
Though like some other people here, I'm using female Shepard for my game.
Also, I'm getting kind of tired of reading all the comments insisting that a female Shepard is the only way to go. I know you all had a fun time playing as a female character. That's great. But it's not the only way to play the game. It's actually a lot of fun playing as a man in the game too.
and @widowhams: That's not funny.
I'm not saying that Jennifer Hale isn't a good voice actress (hell I'm actually a fan of hers) but I wasn't that impressed with her Shepard.
That plus for some reason female faces always came out looking weird to me in the original Mass Effect, can't fathom why.
Yes you are :)
I was absolutely in love with female Shepard's voice, brilliant.
I get what you're saying but respectfully I disagree by lightyears.
It was the same with ME1 and I don't get how they're "forcing it down our throats." Scared your gag reflex will kick in? It makes perfect sense from a marketing standpoint to have a consistent lead character.
The Renegade had the best dialogue in ME1. The Paragon was "Can't we all just get along" goody two shoes garbage.
1. Just because it was in ME1 doesn't mean I liked it then either.
2. "Forcing it down our throats" is a figure of speech, meaning "overwhelming us with images and media related to Default Shepard." Case in point: ME2's god awful box art (which honestly is quite gag-inducing).
3. Just because it is make sense for marketing doesn't mean I have to like it, or that it is necessarily a good idea. Case in point: The Dragon Age trailers with Marilyn Manson music. Good Marketing? Probably. Good Idea? No.
Would it be so hard to have a mysterious Shepard with a helmet? Or have trailers and obnoxious boxart that do not feature Default Shephard and his stupid buzz cut? Why emphasize a "default" character when you have extensive character customization as one of your selling points?
That's fair enough, though I feel I should perhaps explain myself a little better. I liked Male Shepard because the voice actor was pretty much emotionless. Jennifer Hale's voice acting was technically better but I didn't like it because it felt like I was the puppeteer of an already formed character. Not to mention she always seemed a bit bored and somewhat oddly judgemental.
With male Shepard and his emotionless voice I was able to imbue him with my own traits and that made for a more immersive and therefore enjoyable experience.
I completely understand, however, that others might prefer a character with more obvious personality, but my immersion level dropped with a character I couldn't imbue with my own personality.
"All this talk about male vs female Shepard is just glossing over the main point...the Mako sucks...balls. IT'S THE FUTURE, GIVE ME A VEHICLE THAT FLIES!"
Yeah. Voice acting be damned... just give me a vehicle that I want to drive, DAMMIT!