By: Brad Globe 

When I say less than $5, I mean it.

            About a year ago I bought myself a shiny new IPod touch. I wanted to be able to lay in bed and surf the net before I drifted off from the cyber world into dream world. So when buying it I purchased a router. A really cheap one. $20. It was all I needed really, just one strong enough for my house, (more importantly so neighbours couldn’t steal my signal).

            A month after that I bought a PS3. For some reason, the PS3 wouldn’t pick up the signal as well as the IPod did. I was getting a 50-65% reading and often I was kicked off the online games I enjoy so much. Then I did what I normally do to solve problems. I went online but all the suggestions I could find were to “buy a better router”. Further research found these router’s cost $50-60. No way.

            Then I came across this little device.

http://www.napoliwireless.net/images/varie/www.freeantennas.com.windsurferUSB.jpg

or check out the video here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUTT8wdN_VA

           It simply re-directs the wifi signal to where you need it to go. I built one and installed it:

Even though it looks ugly, it works. My signal exploded to 90%-100%. Tipping the PS3 on its end vertically will guarantee a signal strength of 92% or greater. Now I bought the lowest-end router, so that means any router could yield these results. So give it a try, spend $5 on tin foil and tape and see for yourself..

Read more: Increase your Wifi signal for less than $5

Okay, I really do not want to pull myself away from this game but duty comes first.

Mass Effect 2 is the ridiculously long awaited sequel of the Bioware smash hit, Mass Effect. Mass Effect was a sci fi role playing adventure as you took the role of commander Shepherd, and adventured to save the universe from a common threat.

The game was an instant classic, taking elements of other classic RPGs such as Knights of the Old Republic and Baulder's Gate and implementing them into a beautiful universe with a deep and compelling story. One of the best draws of this game was that the player controlled the story and made the choices instead of just being along for the ride; a factor that is common of RPGs in the past. With full customization and the ability to control every choice of the main character, literally the hero was the player.

Mass Effect 2 has a lot to live up to, and I'm happy to say it more than met the expectations of a three years wait.

Basis
One of the first things to focus on is whether or not a gamer has played the first game. While it would make sense to experience the first story in order to fully appreciate the adventure you're about to embark on, the game does a great job of catching a new gamer up on what has happened while not seeming dry and tacked on.

Also players of the previous title can import their previous character into the new game, and with them comes all the choices that were made, which does impact the outcomes of events in the new game. Again, if a gamer has not played the previous title, when making a new character you will be faced with decisions to make, and the choices you make will effect the foundations of the story you are about to begin.

Mass Effect was a game about making tough choices. Not something new in past games, but this game dared to make the consequences very critical to your choices. While in past games a wrong choice may mean you only get one piece of gold instead of two, in Mass Effect you had to make choices that effected whether or not members of your team would even live to see the next mission, there were real consequences to your decisions. Mass Effect 2 hasn't missed a beat and if anything has upped the ante, some players may think that Bioware has gone overboard with how extreme some outcomes can be, but if anything it adds to making the story compelling and makes the player actually think out what they're going to do or say.

Another thing to be prepared for is that this game is huge. The planets you traverse, the cities that occupy them and even your ship as you bound through space, everything is giant and sometimes a little overwhelming as I found myself getting lost more than once in this huge and immersing universe.

Story
The tale picks up where the first story left off, but right off the bat a huge curveball is thrown at you and the plot twists seem to grow richer and more intriguing the deeper you go. Shepherd now finds himself not only fighting threats of old, but also having to confront a new threat, while allying himself with past enemies and allies alike.

Gameplay
My only complaint is that you can't invert the X axis on the controller... other than that the game handles flawlessly. It's standard action RPG fare and anyone who's played the previous Mass Effect, Knight of the Old Republic or Dragon Age will be familiar with the controls.
But if it ain't broke don't fix it.

Characters and their special skills are still controlled through a heads up menu that allows the player to choose from lists of commands. Some gamers feel this slows down the action, so Bioware has now added a feature to map certain skills to certain buttons, so if you like a particular skill and use it often you no longer have to keep pulling up a menu to use it.

Graphics
The first Mass Effect was gorgeous, though it was plagued with hiccups in the texture loading from the now commonplace Unreal 3 engine. Bioware has perfected their craft and the texture pops are a thing of the past and every single particle of graphics are beautifully made. From the surfaces of an environment to the facial features of the characters, the game is astounding and genuinely feels like you're playing an interactive movie.

Sound
The sound effects have been nicely stepped up from the previous game. A blasting machine gun in the previous game left a less than impressive rat a tat noise, while now that same weapon sounds much more intimidating and leaves the gamer actually thinking this is a threat to their progress.

The music has not lost a step from the masterful original score and if anything has improved. The sweeping orchestral pieces and the melodious anthems leave a very epic feel to the adventure, while at the same time the slow and quiet parts really raise the suspense of an environment.

Of course the voice acting plays a huge role in a game that's comparable to an interactive movie, and it's superb. The nuances and emotions of the characters are done tastefully but still very effectively, no character is over the top and the personalities of these characters shines through in the ways they convey their opinions, feelings and concerns; pair that up with exceptional graphical work on the characters and you have a rather frighteningly believable set of characters.

Final Verdict
I know this is a rushed review, it's because I want to get back to this game. All the flaws of the original game are gone and the final product is an extremely enjoyable adventure to partake in, though I will miss the witty banter of the characters while you ride elevators during loading segments.

If you own an Xbox 360 or a PC that can run it, buy Mass Effect 2, seriously. This was a game that I've been waiting for since 2007 and it has not failed to impress, now if you'll excuse me, I have a galaxy to save, or destroy; after all, it's my choice.

Lee Clifford