User blog comment:H-Man Havoc/ME3 Recommendations (Everything except plot improvements)/@comment-1993459-20100719214759

At first in ME2 I found it odd with no maps having relied on them in ME1 quite a bit, but I can see why they got rid of them for the missions. Firstly the level design was a bit more linear than in ME1. Also, pausing every two minutes to look at the map breaks the flow and I get the impression they really wanted the action in ME2 to be seamless.

Personally I prefer universal cool down for powers, but what ever way they go in ME3 I don't mind. Not every power is useful for every situation so universal cooldown allows you to use them more often. Also because of the way combat works in ME2, waiting 45 seconds for a power isn't always an option. A krogan or geth hunter will have closed on you by then. In short, the more they change it, the more they have to re-balance everything.

The passive class powers in ME2 would be cool if they were expanded out, a bit like ME1, so you could allocated seperately to things like health, weapon damage, power damage, power cooldown, paragon/renegade (maybe) as well as each character could have some unique ability such as Miranda's squad bonuses.

Also I personally found that shotgun reliant squadmates (Tali, Jack & Jacob) are mainly suited for close quarters combat, but there weren't many missions that required it. Grunt's loyalty mission, the derelict reaper and a couple of assignments are about all I can think of. Sure there are moments of close quarters combat in other missions but not enough to make it worth it usually.

There's also wishlist stuff that would be nice to see in the game for details sake, but isn't something I'd be bothered about if it didn't happen. Things like female aliens like turians, batarians, volus and perhaps even salarians or krogan though those are rarer, or collapsable helmets during conversation (when possible i.e. not during a gunfight or in an unbreathable atmosphere).