Scenes where colours were previously muted and the lighting was deliberately darker have been illuminated, draining them of their atmospheric impact – what the game gains in clarity and vibrance, it loses in generating a sense of mood.
Mass Effect 1 was always the least technically refined of the trilogy, but here it's been given a new lease of life, with smooth, high-resolution textures and overhauled lighting, albeit at the expense of some of the game's moodier moments. What's amazing is how well the game holds up BioWare's tinkering with and tightening up of the core mechanics makes the experience feel fresh, without compromising what made your first tentative steps into an exciting sci-fi universe as the first human Spectre, Commander Shepard, so memorable all those years ago.
Naturally, the game to benefit the most is the first Mass Effect, which, given its vintage, shouldn't come as much of a surprise. Mass Effect Legendary Edition also sees all three games lovingly remastered, draped in high-resolution textures, given a frame-rate boost, a nice bit of lighting here, a little extra spit shine there, and a plethora of quality-of-life changes. All three titles hang together beautifully as part of a collection, and as a complete saga – steeped in deep and complex lore, myriad alien races, and intergalactic politics, framed by a looming threat that could spell the end of all known life – there are few franchises out there that match Mass Effect for sheer narrative intrigue and cinematic spectacle. It’s exciting to see how the series evolved, too, honing its third-person cover shooter action with each iteration, focusing on the essential elements while stripping away any fripperies. From the first game’s battle against the deadly robotic geth and rogue turian Spectre Saren to the sequel’s race against time as the Reapers bear down on humanity and the escalating drama of the third game’s finale to cap things off, Mass Effect Legendary Edition houses all of those memorable moments under one roof.
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