Mass Effect 2 Important Notes guide screenshot

Important Notes

Important Notes for Mass Effect 2



1. Life-or-Death Choices & Irreversible Decisions



The most critical part of Mass Effect 2 is the Suicide Mission at the end of the game. Fail to prepare, and your squadmates die permanently. Key irreversible factors:

  • Loyalty Missions: Every squad member (except Zaeed and Kasumi if you have their DLC) has a personal loyalty mission. Complete it to make them "loyal," which unlocks their best combat ability and is essential for survival. Skipping any loyalty mission almost guarantees that squadmate dies in the final mission.

  • Normandy Upgrades: You must purchase specific ship upgrades from the Engineering terminal aboard the Normandy. These are non-negotiable for survival:

    • - Sending an upgrade signal? No, but you need:
    - Silaris Armor Plating (from Jacob's or Miranda's loyalty? Actually from the Normandy requisitions after certain missions) – protects the hull.
    - Cyclonic Barrier Technology (from Tali or Legion's loyalty?) – protects shields.
    - Multicore Shielding (from Engineering after Jack's loyalty?) – protects shields.
    - Thruster Upgrades: Thanix Cannon (from Garrus's loyalty), Heavy Ship Armor (from Jacob's loyalty?), and Silaris Armor (already covered).
    - Vehicles/Explosives not needed for ship survival but for some sequences.
  • Final Mission Squad Assignments: Who leads the fireteam, who goes in the vents, who escorts the crew—all must be chosen based on loyalty and combat strength. Wrong choices lead to deaths. Common pitfalls:

    • - Putting a non-loyal squadmate in a specialized role (vent, biotic, fireteam leader) causes their death.
    - Sending a non-loyal squadmate back to the ship as escort may save them, but they can still die later if they are not with Shepard in the final stand.
  • Romance Locks: After a certain conversation (on the Citadel or after a loyalty mission), you can lock in a romance. Once locked, you cannot start another romance in the same playthrough. Changing your mind later is impossible without reverting a save.

  • Paragon/Renegade Choices: Many critical dialogue options (e.g., during loyalty conflicts like Miranda vs. Jack, Tali vs. Legion) require a high enough Paragon or Renegade score to resolve peacefully. If your score is too low, you are forced to pick a side, losing loyalty from the other and effectively sealing their death in the Suicide Mission. Always prioritize building one alignment heavily early on.

  • The Fate of the Council (ME1 import): If you imported a save where the Council died, that affects certain conversations and a side mission in ME2 (and carries into ME3). Replaying ME1 just for this is optional but impacts narrative.


    • 2. Missable Content & Side Quests



    Mass Effect 2 is filled with time-sensitive and easily overlooked content:

  • N7 Missions: These side missions appear as you explore the galaxy. Some are only available before certain story missions. For example:

    • - N7: MSV Strontium Mule / N7: Derelict Merchant – must be done before the Collector Ship mission, or they vanish.
    - N7: Abandoned Research Station becomes available only after a specific dialogue with Mordin.
  • DLC Missions:

    • - Lair of the Shadow Broker becomes available after recruiting Liara (after the Horizon mission). Wait too long (like after the Collector Ship), and some dialogue changes but it's still playable. However, do not start it after the IFF mission or you may lose Liara as a squadmate for the Suicide Mission (she is not part of the main crew but still).
    - Arrival DLC: Best played after the main story campaign (it serves as a bridge to ME3). Playing it before the Suicide Mission is possible but causes a temporary crew exclusion.
    - Kasumi: You must recruit her as soon as possible; her loyalty mission gives you the Locust SMG, one of the best weapons in the game. Skipping her DLC means missing that weapon.
  • Planet Scanning Assignments: Many side quests are triggered by scanning planets and finding "Interesting Materials" or "Location Found." These fade if you pass certain story thresholds. Example: The “Lost” Science Team assignment appears only if you scan a specific planet before the Collector Ship mission.

  • Conversation Triggers: After major story missions, talk to your crew on the Normandy. Many loyalty missions require a prior conversation (e.g., Jack’s loyalty mission requires you to talk to her after recruiting her). If you skip these dialogues, the mission may not appear until later, but some can become unobtainable if you advance too far.

  • Collectibles: There are no physical collectibles like in ME1, but you can find artifacts and resource nodes that count toward achievements or upgrade unlocks. Missing these just delays upgrades.

  • Safe Rooms: Some missions have optional dialogue/cutscenes that only trigger if you explore every corner (e.g., the tower on Tuchanka, the abandoned ship near Omega). Not critical but enrich the story.


    • 3. Save Management & Importing



  • Manual Saves Are Your Lifeline: The game uses a single auto-save slot and a few quick-save slots. For critical decisions (loyalty conflicts, suicide mission assignments), create a manual save before the event. This allows you to reload if you accidentally choose wrong or realize later that your Paragon score is insufficient.

  • Save Slots: The game allows 100+ save files on PC and 15 on consoles (Legendary Edition may differ). Use multiple slots; overwriting the oldest save is risky if you later want to revisit a past choice.

  • Importing from Mass Effect 1:

    • - A save with a high level (over 50) gives you a starting bonus of +5 levels and 200,000 credits.
    - Your ME1 choices affect the state of the galaxy (e.g., who is the human councilor, Wrex dead/alive, romance continuity).
    - Importing after finishing ME1 with an imported save is not possible; you need to use the ME1 save directly.
  • Save Corruption Risks:

    • - Do not save during loading screens, cutscenes, or combat transitions. The game engine can corrupt the save.
    - If you use mods (especially on PC), save frequently in separate slots; mod conflicts can ruin saves.
    - The Legendary Edition uses a different save format; original ME2 saves cannot be imported into Legendary Edition.
  • Save Utilities: On PC, you can use the `Gibbed Save Editor` to modify saves (fix bugs, change Paragon/Renegade values, unlock achievements). This is not cheating in a single-player game, but some players consider it one. Use responsibly.


    • 4. Difficulty Spikes & Combat Pitfalls



  • Early Game (Omega and Illium): You have low shields, weak weapons, and small squad. The first mission on Freedom’s Progress and the encounter with the Vorcha on Omega can be punishing on Veteran or higher. Tip: Stick to cover, use the M-3 Predator pistol for headshots, and let your squadmates draw aggro.

  • Horizon (First Collector Encounter): This is a notorious difficulty spike. Collectors have high shields, armor, and explosive attacks.

    • - Recommended: Bring a tech user (e.g., Miranda for Warp, Mordin for Incinerate) to strip defenses. Use the M-22 Eviscerator shotgun if you have it.
    - Avoid: Cowering in one spot; Collectors will flank you with scions. Keep moving.
  • Collector Ship Mission: Another massive spike. You are alone for the first half, facing multiple Praetorians and Harbinger-possessed Collectors. Prep: Max out a heavy weapon like the M-100 Grenade Launcher or M-622 Avalanche. Bring a squad with Area Effect attacks (e.g., Samara for Reave, Garrus for Concussive Shot).

  • Insanity Difficulty:

    • - Enemy damage is multiplied by 2.5x, health by 1.5x, and shields/armor by 1.5x.
    - Enemies are more aggressive and flank faster.
    - Only use squadmates with Warp, Overload, and Incinerate – they must be able to strip defenses. Adepts and Vanguards struggle early due to lack of damage; Infiltrator and Soldier are safer choices.
    - Heavy Weapons are mandatory: Stockpile ammo and use them on Praetorians and Scions.
  • Grinding Traps:

    • - Planet Scanning for Resources: This is the primary way to get Element Zero, Iridium, Platinum, and Palladium for upgrades. However, you can easily waste hours scanning every planet. Only scan the “Resource Rich” planets (indicated by high intensity peaks on the scanner). Don't scan every planet in every cluster; focus on the ones needed for upgrades.
    - Upgrade Costs: Some upgrades (particularly the Heavy Ship Armor) require 100,000+ of each resource. You do not need to fully max out every upgrade – only the ones critical for the Suicide Mission (ship armor, shields, thanix cannon). Over-farming is tedious and unnecessary.
    - XP Farming: There is no efficient XP farm. Side quests give minimal XP compared to main missions. If you want to level up, just play the story; you’ll reach max level (30) by the end if you do all loyalty and N7 missions on Normal difficulty. On Insanity, you may need extra side missions to hit 30.

    5. Online Etiquette & Anti-Cheat (Not Applicable)



    Mass Effect 2 is a strictly single-player game. There is no online multiplayer, no leaderboards, and no anti-cheat system. Therefore:
  • Modding: Allowed and common. Popular mods include texture packs, gameplay overhauls (like EGM), and bug fixes. No risk of bans.

  • Cheats/Console Commands: On PC, you can enable the developer console to enable invincibility, unlock all weapons, etc. This does not affect anyone else. Use at your own risk of ruining the experience.

  • Sharing Saves: You can share save files with friends to import their choices into ME3. No ethical issues.

  • Legendary Edition Achievements: Achievements are earned offline; no online authentication required.


    • 6. Common Regrets & Things Players Wish They Knew



  • “I didn't upgrade the Normandy before the final mission, and half my crew died.” – Always check the Engineering terminal after each major story mission. The three critical upgrades become available after specific loyalty missions (see above).

  • “I skipped a loyalty mission thinking it was optional, and now that squadmate is dead.” – Every loyalty mission is essential for survival. Do them all.

  • “I romanced someone by accident because I chose a nice dialogue option.” – Flirtation triggers are subtle. If you want to avoid a romance, choose the neutral dialogue options (top-right in the conversation wheel). To lock a romance, you must initiate a specific conversation after the loyalty mission (e.g., on the Citadel for Liara, or on the Normandy for others). Save before talking to your love interest.

  • “I wasted skill points on passive abilities that don't matter.” – Each class has a Class Passive (e.g., Soldier: Commando). These are good but not as important as active powers. Prioritize unlocking all active powers first (Warp, Overload, Incinerate, etc.) then invest in passives and ammo powers.

  • “I didn't install the DLC weapons/armor and struggled with combat.” – The free DLC (Firewalker Pack, Cerberus Network, etc.) includes weapons like the M-451 Firestorm, the M-22 Eviscerator, and armor sets. Download them immediately. The Blood Dragon Armor is excellent for early game.

  • “I didn’t know I could respec my Shepard and squadmates.” – On the Normandy, there is a terminal near the med bay that allows respec for 5,000 credits. Use it if you made mistakes, but note it resets all skill points; you must reassign them manually.

  • “I tried to scan every planet in the galaxy and wasted hours.” – Only scan planets with high resource yields (peaks above 50%). Use the “Sensors” upgrade to increase scanning range.

  • “I told the Illusive Man ‘no’ too many times and locked myself out of content.” – Actually, the game always allows you to continue regardless of dialogue choices. Disagreeing just changes tone; no content is locked from being rude to TIM.

  • “I missed the opportunity to unlock Geth Plasma Shotgun because I didn't scan a specific planet before the Collector Ship.” – Some weapon upgrades are tied to side missions. Search online for a checklist of mission triggers to avoid missing them.

  • “I imported a save where I killed Wrex, and he didn’t appear in ME3’s Tuchanka story arc.” – Your choices matter across the trilogy. If you want the best possible outcome in ME3, save Wrex in ME1.


Bottom Line: Plan your playthrough, prioritize loyalty and ship upgrades, save often, and don’t be afraid to consult a guide for the Suicide Mission assignments. A little foresight saves hours of frustration.