Most Replayable Mass Effect Games, Ranked

Key Takeaways

• Mass Effect 2 offers a perfect blend of combat and storytelling, with diverse companion quests and multiple endings.
• Mass Effect 3 excels in gameplay but is polarizing due to its controversial ending, strengthened by the impactful Leviathan DLC.
• Mass Effect: Andromeda, though considered the weakest entry, still delivers on combat mechanics and replay value, lacking in story depth.

Mass Effect is one of the most iconic series in the gaming sphere, ensnaring an entire generation of gamers in its fantastically woven science fiction world, with Asari, Krogan, Salarians, Turians, and Humans living in a shared universe.

With Bioware done with Dragon Age: Veilguard, Mass Effect 4 is on the horizon, and players looking to prepare for their next dive back into ME will want to know which Mass Effect games are still worth replaying today. This list ranks all mainline Mass Effect titles in order of their replayability.

4 Mass Effect: Andromeda

A Mass Effect Story In A Galaxy Too Far Away

Mass Effect: Andromeda is a good game by all metrics. The combat is great, the build variety is there, and the storyline is decent. Unfortunately, it’s a good game in a series of great games, which makes it the worst out of all of them. If Andromeda was its own IP (as it should’ve been) and wasn’t associated with the legendary Commander Shepard, it could’ve maybe spawned its own sequels at this point. But it isn’t, and it didn’t.

Another sad reality for Andromeda is that it introduces players to a brand-new galaxy, completely new species of aliens, and a revamped combat system, but all of that is overshadowed by the likelihood that this story will remain unfinished, the potential will remain unrealized, and the world setting will likely be abandoned. ME4 is set to return to the Milky Way and that’s that.

Still, that doesn’t mean that MEA isn’t worth playing through. In terms of combat, it incorporates a lot of the same mechanics players loved from the original trilogy and iterates on it to give it a different flavor. Combat feels fluid and smooth, if somewhat lacking in impact and stakes. Builds are similar to the original series, with the same archetypes making a comeback once again. The jump pack is nice, too.

Where MEA disappoints, unfortunately, is its worldbuilding, traditionally the strongest aspect of the Mass Effect series. The stakes feel forced, and with the inevitability of this being the last title in this setting, it’s hard to get invested.

3 Mass Effect 1

The Nostalgic Beginning The Universe Is Built On

As the game that started it all, it’s easy to see the original Mass Effect through rose-tinted glasses, thinking that every second of it was spectacular. It was, but only at the time the game was initially made (2007). Since then, gaming has come a long way, and the industry standard has evolved drastically. Playing Mass Effect 1 today feels just a little bit off in a way that’s hard to put into words. The overheating guns feel dated, the controls are clunky, the UI is a mess, and the endless walking through levels that have nothing in them except concrete walls and loading screens is a chore at best.

That said, ME1 is perhaps the strongest entry in the entire series when it comes to the story itself. After all, setting up one of the most popular gaming franchises ever requires a rock-solid foundation. The trouble is that replayability has little to do with the story but relies almost entirely on the core mechanics and the amount of replayable content.

Where ME1 shines in terms of replayability is by providing players the options to go the Paragon (Good) or the Renegade (Bad) route. Companions will react to situations differently, depending on how Shepard handles situations. Though there is a definitive ‘best route’ in ME1, players who played as a Paragon during their first playthrough should try a Renegade Shepard in a new run. It offers a fresh look and a completely different feel.

Additionally, Mass Effect also has tons of side quests and optional content that players may have missed during their first run, making a second go at it worthwhile.

2 Mass Effect 3

Excellent In All Ways But One

Mass Effect 3 is one of the most controversial games in existence, given its notoriously divisive ending, which, understandably, overshadows a lot of what made ME3 the best the series has ever been in terms of gameplay. It’s not that the build variety expanded in this game over the others, nor did it introduce something drastically different. No, what ME3 did with its combat was reiterate on what ME2 had but better, smoother, and with more polish. Gunplay, in particular, feels incredibly satisfying, combat is as smooth as butter, and even playing a high-risk, high-reward class like Vanguard feels more impactful.

Additionally, ME3 also has an overall better morality system than ME2, mainly because of the larger variance in possible cutscenes and dialogue options. Almost all of the companions have a conclusion to their storyline, an ending which can go in dramatically different ways, depending on the choices that players make as Shepard.

Leviathan is perhaps the most important DLC of all Mass Effect expansions to date in terms of lore. Yes, even more so than the For Ashes DLC (Javik). Only in this DLC do players find out where the Reapers come from, who created them, how they were born, and why they are hellbent on destroying everything in the world. For players who haven’t played through this story, it’s an absolute must-try.

Mass Effect 3’s ending is famously criticized, and for good reason, which is perhaps what prompted the creation of the Citadel DLC, an expansion that ties loose ends, puts storylines to rest, and gives Shepard and the crew a chance to stop and admire the camaraderie they share. Like Geralt’s final party in Witcher 3’s Blood and Wine DLC, Citadel serves as a last hurrah for the crew before they go off to face the Reaper threat for the final time.

1 Mass Effect 2

The Perfectly Packaged Mass Effect Experience

Mass Effect 2 strikes the perfect balance between excellent combat that’s replayable even after all these years and a robust storyline that grips players from start to finish. A key part of what makes ME2 so good is its segmented approach to quests. Companion quests are split into distinct chunks of content that feel completely different from one another. No side quest feels frivolous or just there for the sake of it.

The looming threat of the Reapers hangs overhead, just like all the other Mass Effect games, but the way the storyline is set up doesn’t make it seem like they’re about to invade right at this very moment, like ME3. This allows for the companion stories to take center stage, allowing the strongest aspect of the Mass Effect to shine through: the characters. Every companion quest offers multiple possible endings, making replaying through them more than worth it. Combined with a decent amount of build variety and good gunplay, ME2’s base game offers a ton of replay value.

For players who haven’t played the game with the DLCs, Kasumi and Zaeed are unique additions to the Normandy SR-2, offering new gameplay styles and companion missions.

The Lair of the Shadow Broker DLC sets up the events of Mass Effect 3, revealing who the Shadow Broker is, a recurring shady character players will have heard about in ME1. And finally, the Overlord DLC tells perhaps the most gut-wrenching story in all of Mass Effect, which is a must-try for any fan of the series.