What's most important to you in a Mass Effect game?

There is no game without story and choices; everyone will take that one. This poll would be more useful if you take that one out and let us choose from the rest.

Call me cynical but why am I not shocked that the thing which MEA is clearly the best at is that which you value the least?

The echo chamber on this forum is probably the only corner of the internet that thinks that. Almost every critical review, positive and negative, will highlight the combat as a positive this time around, and overall story as a negative for Andromeda.

Yeah that's right we forgot you know everyone else.

I have. Metacritic is shit.

And here I wanted to vote for the really important things like the Shepard Shuffle, Pyjacks, the Mako & Ryncol...

Have to go with dialogue first then. Close second would be overall story (and story pacing).

You left out the most important thing in a video game, gameplay, out of your poll.

Sure, everything mentioned is important, but gameplay makes or breaks a game for me...

..no wonder I loath ME1 so much.

What's not on the list, and what's of a PARAMOUNT importance to me is that I create my own character to indulge my creativity, am royally entertained and can't put it down till the end credits roll. I also want to be WELCOMED by a game as a player, not repelled by it. It's not the same thing that gets me hot for a game each time I fall in love with one.

Overall, I prefer balance between everything that's listed, rather than ONE of those factors to be overemphasized at the expense of others. Different ME games had a bit different focus, but all four of them hit the mark in that they always provided good, solid stuff in each category, and were exceptional in one or two.

Also, I am starting to think that seeing the OP move on & finally get over it will really improve my ME experience. The persistence with which s/he seeks out the creative and roundabout ways to announce yet again that Andromeda sucks is pathological. Gods, I hope s/he gets banned for his/her own good for long enough to detox.

Story definitely.

I actually thought the combat in ME:A was fun, but I just never got invested in the story, the writing, or the characters so it wasn't a good experience for me. If I just cared about combat/gameplay I'd play multiplayer, but I get bored trying to play MP content.

An example of the reverse, one of my other favorite Sci-fi series Xenosaga, I thought the combat in the 2nd game was trash, but I played that game multiple times because I liked the story and characters so much.

Need an all the above selection...
Not for me but for the others here I know who would want such.

Don't you mean the lower reaches? 😁

Uh huh. Who doesn't like that?!