Quick hit reviews

"Mass Effect"
I just recently beat Mass Effect and despite it's physics flaws and chugging frame rate, I felt a need to finish this game.
"Mass Effect" does a lot of things that were refreshing during my play-through. Namely, "Mass Effect" had a story that was engaging and created a bond between my characters and me. The choices were very basic and binary at the beginning, which led me to believe that I was going to have to trudge through "Mass Effect" making choices that had no real consequences or bearing on what would happen later in the game. Yet, late in the game there is a choice that really affected me. I was totally blindsided and wasn't ready for the ramifications of the choice I was going to have to make. Everything considered, I finished "Mass Effect" which says a lot about what the game does as I normally can't be bothered to finish a game.

"Mass Effect 2"
Finishing "Mass Effect" I felt the need for more, and I was blessed that BioWare was going to release "Mass Effect 2" the day after I have finished. "Mass Effect 2" is one of the most beautiful games of this generation. BioWare polished out the frame rate issues of the first "Mass Effect" was plagued with. Importing saved games from the first allows for continuation of the narrative and allows for even more connection to even the most minor characters from the first. I have not finished my first play-through but thus far the story seems to be every bit as driving as the first.