Mass Effect 3: Omega DLC Review

Mass Effect 3 was lacking in a lot of ways, one of the more disappointing failures were the ways once fully fleshed out and beloved characters were given little more than cameos and a handful of dialogue. The latest DLC hopes to rectify that in some small way by crafting an entire adventure around fan favorite character, the Queen of Omega, Aria T'Loak. As players remember Aria was displaced from her throne in Mass Effect 3 reduced to a far less impressive sofa outside the club on the Citadel, with one measly side quest that involved zero combat. Upon booting up the newest add-on Aria invites Shepard along a surprise offensive to retake Omega from the Cerberus forces that now control it. But will the combined help of Aria and the series first appearance of a badass female Turian help you against the Cerberus forces and a frightening new Reaper enemy.

This entire adventure feels like one spirited and exciting action movie. More cinematic than typical missions in the game Omega benefits greatly from a confined and brisk pace and balanced tone.With more Paragon/Renegade prompts than the entirety of the main campaign, Omega seems like a direct response to fans criticism of the main game and its all the better for it. One moment in particular had me second guessing my choices as the prompts appeared again and again as both parties screamed and urged me to side with them and with innocent lives on the line it was a particularly intense moment. Aria is her typical bitchy self but its the supporting characters that really make this particular episode in the Mass Effect universe shine, Nyreen the first female Turian introduced in the whole series is a welcome addition as is her past with Aria which is slowly revealed throughout the game and reveals the true nature of these characters. Even the villain of the story, Cerberus General Petrovsky is an interesting foil with a moral code and reasonable goals that even make him relatable at times. Omega also offers a fairly large campaign with gorgeous and varied environments that took me around 4 hours to do everything available. Those four hours are pretty action packed with tons of combat, with less of an emphasis on dialogue than usual. At $15 its quite a steep price to ask but I feel the little adventure is worth it for fans of the series and any minor technical blemishes don't hinder an otherwise steller action packed adventure you won't soon forget.

(4 out of 5)