User blog comment:Sperez2012/What is YOUR favorite Mass Effect?/@comment-4950455-20120813010115

I've actually been thinking about this lately, but I haven't come to a conclusion yet. Instead, I'll just lay out my pros and cons for each game, and my general assessment of them:

Mass Effect

PROS:
 * Possibly my favorite storyline of the trilogy, with a couple of really unexpected twists.
 * Loved the atmosphere, wide-open feeling, classic sci-fi "sense of wonder" on several occasions, and coolest take on the Reapers.
 * Most RPG-like of the trilogy.

CONS:
 * Early game could be frustrating, and combat in general wasn't always fun.
 * The Mako. In the words of Stan Lee, 'nuff said.

Overall assessment: Excellent story-and-atmosphere-wise, falters some in gameplay.

Mass Effect 2

PROS:
 * Interesting and enjoyable tone shift that gave us a look at a different and seamier side of the galaxy.
 * Bigger squad, with (in my opinion) the right balance of old and new characters.
 * Fantastic DLC.
 * The entire Suicide Mission - good idea, better execution, and still among my favorite endings to any game.

CONS:
 * Breaks from previous game (no real progress against Reaper threat proper, Cerberus retcons) set the stage for the choppiness in the overall story that was the biggest problem with the series.
 * Too shooter-like, in both gameplay and storyline linearity.
 * Planet-scanning minigame was, if less frustrating then driving the Mako, extremely boring.

Overall assessment: Despite some new gameplay flaws, it was generally more fun (mechanics-wise) to play then the original ME, and kept up a strong storyline. However, the problems it introduced into the overall series storyline were directly responsible for some of ME3's flaws.

Mass Effect 3

PROS:
 * Far and away the most emotionally involving game of the series - while there were some bits where it falls short, they're far outweighed by the rest.
 * Tuchanka storyline among the best examples I've ever seen of how to incorporate past decisions (the Rannoch storyline was also very good at this).
 * Definitely the best gameplay, with extremely good enemy AI and improved combat system.
 * Great visuals, with an overall cinematic feel.
 * Lots of neat callbacks and cameos from the first two games.
 * MaleShep finally gets good voice acting.

CONS:
 * Overall somewhat choppy, both in conception and execution.
 * Too many sidequests were either fetch quests or mindless shoot-em-ups.
 * Horrible mission journal design.
 * Excessive auto-dialogue, and more generally too much railroading of Shepard into a certain personality.
 * Too much catering to new players caused older elements (a lot of the ME2 characters in particular) to get the shaft in favor of unnecessary additions.
 * Though I never disliked them as much as many people and I consider the Extended Cut a satisfactory conclusion, the endings were a huge disappointment, and even now remain less than they could have been.

Overall assessment: At its best, one of the best games out there, both in story and in gameplay. At its worst, it's mediocre, or in a few cases downright terrible. It's a solid conclusion (and some of its problems are misblame or misunderstandings), but it's definitely uneven.