I really had to think about this before I put it up - so much that it caused a few day's delay in getting more content out just because I couldn't quite come to terms with a decision. I re-wrote this article five times, using all sorts of different games.
I settled on Mass Effect 2 for a few reasons. The first is that they improved on nearly every aspect of combat from the previous installment of the game, and somehow managed not to totally screw anything up. Sure, the cover system is still garbage and often leaves you screaming in frustration, but honestly unless you're playing something from the Gears of War series - that's still expected.
The second reason is the character development. Even if you never played Mass Effect 1, you could jump right into the sequel and pick up on the themes and characters that the story build off of. Between the separate character development missions, the conversation options, and the relationships you build with your crew, this is an outstanding feature that really put the RPG back into the genre that has been saturated with roleplaying garbage as of late.
The final reason deals with why I didn't pick Mass Effect 3. Honestly, the game play was improved. However the character roster and list of in-depth character development pieces were cut in half. Coupling this with a questionable (at best) story and a lack of reflection on the decisions you spent two prequel's deciding on really puts Mass Effect 3 on a much lower tier then its predecessor.
Regardless of your thoughts on the final installment of the series, however, its undeniable that Bioware got almost everything right with ME2, and regardless of your favorite genre's and personal game play preferences, Mass Effect 2 is a game that everyone should experience - if for nothing else then the story and character development.
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