One thing that developers have been able to do within the last decade of gaming is to monitor player behavior in ways that were unprecedented before the online era. As someone a bit into user statistics myself (both for my job and as a hobby), I understand the desire to see how users are behaving, and I’m sure with something as robust as a sci-fi opera RPG like Mass Effect 2, the results are sometimes different to what was originally anticipated.
Enter Bioware, who has just recently released a whole smattering of interesting stats from Mass Effect 2. For instance, did you know that somewhere out there, a couple of PC gamers played ME2 a total of 28 times? You probably didn’t. That’s because it’s insane.
Check a few other statistics you might not have known, after the jump!
Most Played Class: Soldier (more than any other combined)
Least Played Class: Engineer
Average completion time: 33 hours80% of players used the face customization system
80% of players played as a male Shepard
Roughly 50% of the people who started Mass Effect 2 finished the game
Roughly 50% of players imported a save from Mass Effect
There are people who played a single playthrough for 66 hours
Two PC players completed Mass Effect 2 28 times
Four XBox 360 players completed Mass Effect 2 23 times
Players skipped 15% of the conversations in Mass Effect 2
The idea behind all of this data (and the other unreleased stuff) is that Bioware can turn it around and use it to aid in their efforts for the next game, a luxury they didn’t have between Mass Effect 1 and Mass Effect 2. In my mind, if they were able to produce that kind of a jump in quality without seeing this kind of behavior, then the way they could use it in the future definitely holds a lot of promise.
I think the craziest thing in that list is that less than 50 percent of the people even finished the game. This goes back to the Finishing Games feature we just did last week. I’m not really sure how someone could just stop an experience like Mass Effect 2, but then again I’m kind of a self proclaimed fanboy of that franchise.
How do your own statistics compare with what they posted? What reports would you like to see from other games and how they’re played?
Source – IGN
On the topic of not finishing games I don’t get why people don’t finish great gaming experiences. It can’t be that hard to spread 60 hours over nearly a year? But then, I’m young, innocent and naive.
Can’t say how my stats compare. Yet. Roll on next year!
I’m guilty of playing a Soldier, it was just such an awesome class to plow through the game with that I never really wanted to try the other classes, especially Engineer. I’m really surprised that 50% never finished the game though, it shows a bit how a lot of people lose interest really fast. I hope they don’t try to change the formula too much just because people are too impatient to beat a great game.
“Roughly 50% of the people who started Mass Effect 2 finished the game
Roughly 50% of players imported a save from Mass Effect”
I bet they’re the same 50% heheheh.
At least they’re not Google. Soon to have our DNA and fingerprints listed for every resident in Norther America!
I get mad at my friends when they play Soldier their first time through, if feels to me like they are missing part of the game. The biotics are so awesome.
And this is why Bioware is a great developer – they listen to their players, and actually use what they are telling them.
I used the soldier for my first playthrough, but only because that was the only class I had finished ME1 with. I had found the tech and biotic skills in the first game too hard to use well, so even when I played as an Adept, it generally descended into the same run and gun tactics used by the soldier. However in ME2, I have finished a playthrough with both the Soldier and Adept, am halfway through and Engineer run, and intend to do 1 run with each other class, if for no other reason than i have lots of different decisions to bring into ME3.
I am surprised that around 50% didn’t even finish the game, but I know sometimes other things get in the way. Its also sad that only 20% of people used a female Shepard, especially since of the 2, Jennifer Hale is easily the better voice actor.
Also, who else is in the middle of downloading the Shadow Broker DLC? I am, cant wait to jump into it.
The stat about 50% finishing the game plays into my theory that the vast majority of gamers are kind of…casual about it. We who pay attention to news and stuff are in the small, but vocal minority. Kind of sad.
I bet you 50% is actually a very high number.
You’re prolly right, Nick. I think most games go unfinished, which is so odd to me.
Yeah, +1 to Nick. 50% is probably higher than most games get. And that’s really just absurd to think about. I really wonder what it is that keeps people from finishing games. I feel like when I was younger, you just played a game until you beat it. That was just the way it was done, and I still pretty much hold to that.
I played a Soldier the first time through to get a feel for how ME2 worked compared the the original. Then as a Biotic. Then as a female. Then as a Biotic carried over from the first. Maybe another as a Soldier to do a Renegade playthrough. I forget.
Bungie did something similar with the cheevos from ODST, how it allowed them to track what their users actually did with the game. According to them, only 15% got the achievement for healing up with a medkit. You do that right after you hop out of the pod! It’s kind of disheartening to know that we are the minority. But, like it’s been said, at least BioWare is paying attention to these metrics.