Mass Effect 360 By BurlRed on Dec 06, 2007 - Updated Oct 15, 2011

When it comes to space-themed role-playing games, BioWare is the king. After creating the stellar Star Wars-themed Knights of the Old Republic and its sequel (which, while still fabulous, didn't quite live up to the original), the American developer has outdone themselves with the Xbox 360 Title Mass Effect.Mass Effect is, in essence, a good old-fashioned space opera. You play as Shepard, a member of an elite military team that essentially works to maintain good in the universe. Unsurprisingly, you have to save the universe from an unspeakable and ancient evil. The story is nothing new, but still fantastically executed. The most amazing thing about the story is its open-endedness; you can spend hour after hour going on sidequests that flesh out the backstory. You also have a multitude of choices in your actions (aided by a simply stellar dialogue system), which shape how your character is perceived. You have two alignment statistics, paragon and renegade, which increase based on your good or bad deeds, respectively.When you're not engaging in dialogue and other RPG-ish activities, the game is a great third-person shooter. You have a multitude of weapons you can specialize in, as well as magic-like abilities; when you have a squad of NPC helpers, you can command them around with ease. Graphically, Mass Effect is one of the prettiest games out there. When my friends first saw me playing it, they first assumed I was watching a movie. It provides some of the best visuals currently available on the Xbox 360. Aurally, the music is fantastic and the voice acting is first-rate.All in all, Mass Effect is pretty much a must-own title for the 360.