I think that overall, the first game had the better plot, but you hit the nail on the head by saying in the second game the characters are the story, and in terms of story they are dead even.
That said, I have to wonder how much of that focus on character was a result of losing their architect and mastermind head writer partway through and having to improvise the rest of the game, and I think that failing to meaningfully advance the plot much was kind of setting the third game up for many of the problems it suffered.
I agree with Spectral Time. I thoroughly agree with this review in the sense that the combat is leagues better and that the story is centered on the characters... but I still vastly prefer the first game\'s story and style. In ME 1, you\'re new to this whole galaxy, learning about cultures and digging for your place among them, earning their respect. In ME 2 you barely interact with them besides the main quartet of Krogans, Salarians, Turians and Hanar... I\'m kidding, the Asari. I think that there was only one Elcor NPC involved directly in a quest and you barely talked with the Hanar, and there is far less emphasis on choices regarding how you deal with this world.
I\'m curious to how you view the last boss. There was a lot of flak about a giant terminator fed with human goo. I thought it was a bit ridiculous but by then I was a bit okay-ish with the shift in genre and focus.
I\'m personally mixed about the final boss as well. It\'s certainly memorable and exciting, but it\'s also a tad goofier than I\'d like. Honestly the boss fights are an area where Mass Effect has never really excelled. The only ones I can think of that I really like are the Thresher Maw in Grunt\'s loyalty mission and the Mysterious Figure from ME 3\'s Citadel DLC.
I'm a geek.
I do think that the world of mass effect was always a big star for me personally, so even though we don’t have a ton of full NP Cs this time there’s still enough background characters of each species that you still get a feeling for them right to the end.
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Legendary Edition: The Same Game in 4K
Of the trilogy, this game received the least changes in the LE. If you've played the original version, you know exactly what to expect here. If you haven't, I'll give you the run-down.
ME 2 took a lot of the criticisms towards the first game to heart. The inventory management system is gone, every map you visit is distinct from the others, and the combat has been completely overhauled. If it weren't for the setting and returning characters you could be forgiven for thinking this was from a completely different series. This has pros and cons.
On the positive side, the game is more exciting to play. Combat feels faster and more dangerous, requiring you to take cover and make calculated use of your powers. In the first game it was generally a good idea to have a more generalized build in your party makeup, but here it's often better to tailor your party to specific missions. For example, if you know the mission you're going on will have a lot of robot enemies it's a good idea to bring squad members with tech-based powers. Powers feel much more impactful here, as they play a crucial role in stripping away enemy defenses.
The various types of guns have more strengths and weaknesses as well. Gone are the days of Pistol supremacy. Instead each type is better at taking down certain defenses, with their range and accessibility also playing a role in your choice. The new guns you find throughout the game are rarely straight upgrades either, but instead offer different strengths and weaknesses. For example, the first sniper rifle you acquire pack an incredible punch, but has extremely limited ammo. The second has much more ammo and greater shield-breaking capability, but it deals less damage overall. Which is better? That's up to you.
Another good pivot was in giving each class their own exclusive power. Further customization is offered by each power having a branching evolution upon reaching rank 4. Between that and the varying gun availability no playthrough of the game is likely to feel the same unless you choose to make it that way.
On the negative side, the lack of an inventory management system and introduction of a universal upgrade system do take some customization out of the game. ME 2 leans far more into the action side of Action RPG during combat than it does into the role-playing part. In addition, some firefights can feel like wars of attrition, where you're forced to wait behind cover until you have a free shot at your enemies. From a lore perspective, the addition of ammo (technically thermal clips, but really it's ammo) feels like a step backwards, even if it does make the game more exciting to play. A change I did notice between the LE and base version of the game is that ammo is much more plentiful in the LE. It still drops in the same spots, but you get more of it when you pick it up. YMMV whether that's a positive or a negative.
The story takes a very different approach from the first game. ME 1 was very event-driven and focused on finding out the Big Bad's plan. You're in the dark and solving a mystery that has galactic implications. In ME 2 you know the basics of what the villains are doing and where you need to go to stop them pretty early on. Instead the focus is on building a team and acquiring the resources needed to storm their base and take them down. There's also a major shift in tone. ME 1 was fairly balanced between light and dark. The galaxy is dangerous, but you're a capable hero backed up by a team of specialists who are dedicated to the mission. You have the backing of both Earth's and the larger galactic government, and the public admires you. In ME 2 things are more dire. The governments that were once your friends now view you with suspicion, your main backing comes from what's effectively a terrorist organization, the parts of the galaxy you visit are seedier and overrun with corruption, and your team is now a Ragtag Bunch of Misfits who have various hangups and issues that need to be resolved to focus on your main mission.
That last part in particular is important because the game ends up warping around it. In ME 1 the characters are a part of the story. In ME 2 the characters ARE the story. The vast majority of story missions revolve around recruiting them, and each one comes with their own Loyalty Mission once they're recruited. You get to know these people on a very personal level. The game wants you to build a connection with them, so that when you finally decide to begin the final level it hits with the most impact.
That final level is also a major part of the game's tone. It's established almost at the beginning that attacking the villains base is a Suicide Mission. And while plenty of games might try and make that claim, ME 2 is dead serious about it. Your choices will decide who lives and who dies. You can save everyone, lose your entire squad and your own life, and anything in between. BioWare did not pull any punches with this level. That's why the character focus of the game was so essential, because when they die it hurts. Not just because you care about them, but because it's your fault. You made a mistake somewhere, and they paid the price. On the flipside once you figure out how to save everyone and pull it off you feel on top of the world. You plunged into the heart of darkness and came out the other side victorious.
There are some cons to the approach the game took with this narrative though. The story can often feel disconnected to the greater plot of the Reapers from the first game, and so can the world. The galaxy-changing decisions you made in the first game don't seem to matter much this time, nor do your actions this time have the same far-reaching consequences. Some of this is naturally due to the constraints of the medium and hardware, but it does still feel like things should be more than cosmetically different. Some of this would be corrected in the next game, but certain element couldn't be.
Overall, I believe that ME 2's strengths vastly outweigh its shortcomings. It's combat is more fun than the first game's, it's characters remain as nuanced and complex as ever, the world continues to be expanded on in interesting and exciting ways, and the finale is one of the greatest ever offered in a video game. As far as this series is concerned, ME 2 continues to reign as king.
When it comes to the LE I would still recommend it over the original, but with less emphasis this time. The biggest thing it does is compile all the DLC together so that you don't have to purchase it for yourself. Beyond that very little changes. The biggest reason to get this version is because the rest of the trilogy is included, meaning its easier to import your save files from ME 1. This provides some in-game bonuses and determines whether or not certain recurring characters live. You can use the Genesis comic to customize the world state, but it has a more limited utility. Alternatively you can start a new game fresh and have the game decide that ME 1 Shepard was a full Renegade jerk. That can be amusing. Bottom line, the LE is the better version to get.