Overview:
-Estimated trophy difficulty: 5.9/10
-Offline: 59 (1, 2, 6, 49)
-Online: No online
-Downloadable Content: 4 ( 4)
-Approximate amount of time to platinum: 35-80 hours
-Minimum number of playthroughs needed: 1+
-Number of missable trophies: All loyalty missions, No One Left Behind, Against All Odds, Paramour, Big Game Hunter, Data Hound
-Glitched trophies: 1, Insanity (but you have to go out of your way to make it glitch)
-Do cheat codes disable trophies? No cheats
-Does difficulty affect trophies? Yes, Insanity
Welcome to the Mass Effect universe. If this is your first experience with the game, then here’s my best summary of the gameplay. It’s third person shooter/RPG with cover and squad mates. Unfortunately, the PS3 isn’t getting the first chapter of the series, but there is a digital comic that summarizes the first game.
Playthrough 1
Here is where you’ll get the vast majority of your trophies. You can get all but at most three in your first run. Whether you start on Insanity or another difficulty is up to you. If you’ve never played Mass Effect on computer or Xbox, then don’t start on Insanity. Take the game in, get used to the controls, and learn the weapons and powers. You can use that knowledge for your Insanity run. If you’re more interested in speed, then start on Insanity and be sure to complete the Mass Effect: Genesis digital comic. If you bought the game new, then that won’t be an issue as it’ll be free. If you rented or bought it used, then you’ll need to buy the Cerberus Network pack from the PSN store.
The first decisions that you will have to make are contained in Mass Effect: Genesis digital comic. There are six choices to make, none of which impact the trophies that will be available. All that they impact are how certain conversations play out and which characters return. There is one trophy that Genesis will impact, Long Service Medal. Just by completing the comic, you will fulfill part of the requirements for it. Which decisions you make don't matter, just as long as you complete it.
After the comic ends, you will have to decide on the build of your character. You can use any class that you want, but if you’re thinking ahead to your Insanity run, then using a Soldier or a Sentinel would be your best bet. Those are the strongest two classes for Insanity.
The mission structure is semi-linear. You’ll be given a block of story missions to complete, but you can complete them in any order that you want. There are also quite a few side missions to be found and completed for experience points and resource mining for further research. Once one block of missions is completed, another block will open up. Again, these can be completed in any order. You can complete these in any order, but you should recruit Mordin as early as possible as he'll open up the research lab.
As there usually is in role playing games, there is a point of no return, sort of. In Mass Effect 2, this point is when you go through the Omega 4 Relay. Before you pass through it, make absolutely sure that you have everything done, everyone (or at least very close to everyone) is loyal, and you have as many upgrades as you can possibly get. The upgrades that you will absolutely need to survive are the weapons, armor, and shield upgrades to the Normandy. Not everyone will survive without those. However, the game is also open ended. Any of the extra missions and side missions that you didn't complete can be done here. There will be a nice little XP boost for each mission completed as well.
The only trophies that you really have to worry about missing are the loyalty missions. Speak to each squad mate between missions as you recruit them. They are scattered around the Normandy. Each conversation that you have with them will build a level of trust. After completing the mission on Horizon, the loyalty missions will open up and become available to complete. These missions are acquired through conversations and are not required parts of the story. You will receive a notification in your journal when someone wants to speak with you about something personal. You can complete the game without completing any of these; although, the game will be much, much more difficult. If by some chance you encounter a scene where two crew members are fighting, for example, Miranda and Jack, and one of them loses their loyalty, you can get it back. You’ll need a very high paragon or renegade rating. You can also continue on. Everyone can survive with one disloyal character. See No One Left Behind for more information.
I mentioned paragon and renegade ratings above. Those ratings are influenced by the decisions that you make in missions and in conversations. The upper right conversation option is paragon and lower right the renegade option. Which option you use is up to you. It doesn’t ultimately matter which one you choose, but it’s best to be consistent. You don’t want to be in a situation where you need one of the red or blue conversation options and not have them because you’ve gone back and forth. There are also options in missions that you’ll have to decide between. Occasionally, you’ll see a red or blue icon appear on the screen with a or button next to it. Those will also influence your ratings, but will usually have a much larger impact. These can change the way your missions end and can influence a few trophies (Revenge!, Cat’s in the Cradle, and Fade Away for example).
There are two companions that will end up in a fight after you complete both of their loyalty missions, Jack/Miranda and Tali/Legion. For the first, you'll need either a very high paragon or moderately high renegade and moderately high paragon or very high renegade for the other. If you lose one of your companion's loyalty, you will need a maxed paragon/renegade rating. There is an exploit that you can take advantage of on Samara's loyalty mission (see Doppelganger). You have to choose Samara at the end. In the conversation that follows, ask her if she is ok and then when she asks if you want to leave, say that you want to look around a bit. Speak with her again and repeat as many times as you need to. It's worth +2 paragon each time. If you already have a fairly high paragon rating, you can max it out in about 15 minutes.
The trophies that require you to do a certain number of actions aren’t something that you have to worry about. Those count across playthroughs and saves. You can also check them at any time in Shepard’s quarters and you will receive notifications of your progress as you do those specific actions.
The first three sets of DLC (The Price of Revenge, Kasumi’s Stolen Memory, and Overlord) can be done at any time, including after passing through the Omega 4 relay, after acquiring the Normandy. Travel to the specific system and planet to begin the missions. Lair of the Shadow Broker requires that Illium be unlocked first and therefore will not be available until after the mission on Horizon is completed. They're not all classified as DLC for the PS3 version, but they are extra content.
Once you have all of the story missions, loyalty missions, and any DLC that you wish to complete, it is time to pass through the Omega 4 relay. This is the point of no return in the game, so make sure that you haven’t missed anything, done all of the research, and all (or as many as you can) squad mates are loyal. Once you are through the relay, then it becomes a matter of keeping your team alive. If you can do that, then you’ll get all of the trophies for completing the game (except for Insanity if you’re not playing on that difficulty and completing the game twice). See No One Left Behind for further information.
There is also the issue of reaching level 30. Without the initial level boost from carrying over a save from Mass Effect, you more than likely won’t reach level 30 on your first playthrough, even if you complete all of the side missions and loyalty missions. The good thing is that your character can be carried over into a new game. All of your weapons and research will cover as well. If you utilize New Game+, then it won’t take very long to reach level 30. You should finish your first playthrough in the level 23-27 range.
However, if you choose to go for every trophy on your first playthrough, then reaching level 30 is possible. Complete every story and loyalty mission. Complete one or two N7 missions (see Agent for more info). Leave Lair of the Shadow Broker, Overlord, Firewalker, the Normandy Crash Site, the remaining N7 missions, and the vast majority of journal assignments until after you complete the story. You'll get a nice XP boost (+25%) per completed mission. With the original DLC missions and the N7 missions, you should be able to reach level 30 without much trouble.
Playthrough 2: Clean Up
If you played on Insanity your first time through, then this can be a cakewalk on Casual. If you didn’t play on Insanity, then be prepared for a challenge. Insanity is fairly difficult, but it is definitely doable. Use cover effectively. Don’t stay out in the open for too long. If your screen starts going red, get back into cover as soon as possible. Make sure that you have enough medi-gel for your squad mates. Use your powers and weapons effectively. Don’t waste your heavy weapons on small mechs and mercenaries when there is something bigger upcoming. If you get into a tight spot where you’re surrounded, then use your heavy weapons. If you’re fighting your standard enemies though, try to stick to your regular guns. If you find yourself stuck in a mission on Insanity and need some help, check out Lord Maim's excellent Insanity walkthrough and strategy guide.
This will also be the playthrough where you will clean up any trophies that you may have missed the first time. The trophies for doing certain actions carry over between saves. You should get most of the trophies your first time through, but if you don’t, then you’ll get them fairly quickly in your second run.
[PST Would Like To Thank olsen77 for this Roadmap]
Arrival DLC:
Overview:
Estimated 100% Completion Difficulty: 3 (Click here to view this game's difficulty thread.)
Offline Trophies: 3
Online Trophies: 0
Approximate time to 100%: 1-3 hours (Variable depending on skill and difficulty setting)
Minimum Number of Playthroughs needed: 1
Number of missable trophies: 2, Covert Action and Last Stand
Glitched Trophies: 0
Do cheat codes disable trophies?: No Cheat Codes available
Trophy Breakdown: 3
Introduction:
Commander Shepard returns to tackle a fairly short but story-rich mission. The premise of his objective is to rescue Dr. Amanda Kenson - a scientist who may hold vital information regarding the Reapers.
Her ambitious research has subsequently led to her capture and abduction by the Batarians and as such, has now been branded a terrorist. Your job is to save the good doctor before her valuable knowledge falls into the wrong hands.
Walkthrough:
Arrival is a very linear mission for the most part. All 3 trophies are very simple to acquire if done on Easy, particularly if you follow the trophy guide. That said, there's really no right or wrong way of approaching the DLC in terms of trophies. However to make the most efficient use of time, I'd work on all 3 trophies in the following order:
- Covert Action
- Last Stand
- Ultimate Sacrifice (story-related and will automatically unlock upon completion of the mission)
The first and foremost thing to keep in mind is not getting noticed by the guards during the mission leading up to the rescue of Doctor Kenson. Once you do eventually find her then that's when things begin to heat up.
After you've located her you'll have to shift gears and go into survivalist mode. Simply put, you're now eligible to not get the "Last Stand" trophy should you die from this point forward until after the final wave of enemies. This is made much easier by ensuring your difficulty setting is set to "Casual". You can still be killed if you allow yourself to be caught out in the open in the middle of a cross-fire so don't let that happen.
With the good doctor in tow, you'll have to balance defense and offense. Use cover often and reload your weapons frequently. As in the core game, enemies will try to flank you. The problematic scenarios however involve multiple flame-thrower guards and an YMIR mech. Try to use Warp Ammo as your de facto choice of ammunition for this mission and go for headshots if at all possible.
Leave your Cain at home, though. There simply isn't enough space to use the mini-nuke without killing yourself in the process. I personally used the Arc Projector (although the Blackstorm would equally be effective as well). It's a great weapon that hits and devastates multiple enemies in succession. A few shots from it are needed however for the heavily armored YMIR's. The Collector Particle Beam works well as about 10-20 seconds of continuous fire to the YMIR's head is enough to destroy it. If heavy weapons aren't your thing, then Heavy Overload is an effective choice. If you're playing as an Infiltrator, then get your Widow out and cloak yourself. You won't need more than a few shots on the YMIR.
"Last Stand" will unlock shortly after you successfully survive all waves of enemies and "Ultimate Sacrifice" will unlock upon finishing the mission.
[PST Would Like To Thank olsen77 for this Roadmap]