"Mass Effect 2 Arrival" DLC Review

Publisher:  Bioware/EA

Genre:  RPG

Summary:  Commander Shepherd must rescue an undercover operative who has discovered proof of the Reapers' arrival.

Gameplay:  The gameplay is the same as the rest of Mass Effect 2, save that for the majority of the mission Shepherd is alone instead of with a party.  This can make things more challenging, especially for certain builds.  There is a certain section where Shepherd must defend the operative from enemies arriving in different directions, and it can be very difficult for Shepherds who lack speedy killing or crowd control abilities.

There are some minor options about which routes to take and whether to shoot or sneak past this or that batarian soldier.  These options are nice but nothing major.

Style:  None of the settings or corridors particularly stand out, sadly.  It seems like a missed opportunity to explore batarian architecture or have dramatic asteroid scenery.

Story:  I'm irritated that this DLC is started via an unskippable cutscene email in the middle of the game.  If roleplaying the type who wouldn't leave someone to torture under the batarians, the player should probably do the mission right then.  I'd rather it be my choice when to trigger it.

While it can be an interesting challenge, it doesn't feel worth it to have Shepherd alone and miss interesting possible party commentary.  I also don't feel it's well justified in the game.  It feels like a budget choice, especially given there aren't even any Joker lines in the DLC, which feels especially cheap.

The mission itself is rather frustrating, although I'm not opposed to the dark turn it takes.  I just wish the story itself would focus on it a bit more instead of so much shooting.  There's some nice discussion at the end with Admiral Hackett, but more thoughtfulness and indication of Shepherd's feelings could have been included (again, party members would have helped with this.)

Conclusion:  Arrival offers some good set-up and background for Mass Effect 3, but its lacks in many areas keep it from being great or especially fun.