Impressions: Omega DLC for Mass Effect 3

So I finally managed to get my hands on the Omega DLC for Mass Effect having *ahem* completely forgotten to download it during my first play-through.

Please consider this fair warning: SPOILERS AHOY! 

Omega, baby!

Firstly, it's great to be back on Omega! This was categorically one of my favourite locations from ME2, offering a perfect counterpoint to the Citadel.  I loved roaming around its bleak interiors - particularly during the mission to recruit Mordin - but I always felt slightly disappointed that you never got to go more than 'skin deep', visiting a few linked locations in what felt like very close proximity.

This DLC is definitely the tonic for that particular malaise.

When you first bump into 'pirate queen' Aria T'Loak on the Citadel in ME3, she has been displaced from Omega by Cerberus, with the human supremacists/indoctrinated Reaper agents having gained complete control of the station.

Aria wants it back and she's going to use Shepherd to get it because, "I only recruit the best".  Aw shucks.

Aria: blue.

Following some preamble on the Citadel, the opening cinematic is an impressive introduction, with a stolen Cerberus cruiser breaking the blockade around the station before the rest of Aria's assembled mercenary fleet arrives.

Once on board the station, we are back to familiar territory, with a series of objectives that any player with even a passing relationship with the series will find familiar: shut down object A; go to location B; find an alternative route to checkpoint C, and so on.

Having had to ditch their damaged ship via escape pods, the first task is to find some allies (which gets a tongue in cheek "story of my life" response from Shepherd that is only one eye-roll away from breaking the fourth wall), which in this case are the Talon mercenaries first encountered in ME2.

The majority of the game involves Shepherd and Aria taking a circuitous route around Cerberus force fields to reach Afterlife and regain control of the station, from the dastardly, moustache-twirling* General Oleg Petrovsky.

You are joined intermittently by Nyreen Kandros, a former member of the Turian Military and new head of the Talons (that was a spoiler, by the way...just in case you ignored the warning at the start).

Aria is a decent squadmate, bringing a number of powerful biotics (most notably the impressive and potentially devastating 'Flare' and the energy-sapping 'Reave') to the fight along with her cocky banter and 'Golden God' mentality.

The same can't be said for Nyreen, who I didn't feel brought anything particularly new or interesting to the combat, beyond a balance in the weapon loadouts (pistol and assault rifle against T'Loak's shotgun and SMG) and some additional firepower to take down the waves of Cerberus troops. Oh, and awesome Turian armour.

Nyreen: Sweet armour

During the cutscenes, however Nyreen comes into her own, acting as a foil to Aria. You may as well have one on each shoulder, with Aria's gung-ho, at-all-costs attitude tempered by Nyreen's unbendable code to protect the innocent.  The interplay between them is handled beautifully and fits in well with Shepherd's position as neutral peacemaker.

Alongside the standard rogue's gallery of Cerberus troops, Omega offers up a couple of new enemies to get your teeth stuck into.

Rampart Mechs are an update to the previously encountered Loki Mechs. With increased aggression, tactics and weaponry - including a sweet blade that you do NOT want to let get too close to you - these units are far beyond the mere cannon fodder of their predecessors and are enough of a nuisance to cause last-minute tactical rethinks.

And then...there's the adjutants.

Midway through the campaign, Nyreen begins to mention a non-specific terror that is roaming through Omega, butchering everything that it comes in contact with.  This is demonstrated in truly understated fashion by a trail of dead Cerberus troops that you encounter in a powered-down area of the station.

As with all of Mass Effect's survival horror-sections, nothing is going to attack you while the lights are out but the background ambiance including disquieting noises from the unseen menace, the meandering route over industrial catwalks and bridges and deep shadows cast by your torch still managed to raise the hairs on the back of my neck.

The in-game dialogue had seriously hyped these critters and I was expecting to run into some serious opposition.  It was ever so slightly disappointing, then that having faced down my first adjutant it felt a bit...meh.

Grrrr! ...wait, do I have somthing on my face?

While still a potentially devastating foe, the adjutant didn't come close to the terror of facing down multiple banshees with their distance-closing teleports.  What it does offer, however, is a powerful lunge attack that can devastate your shields and an arm-mounted cannon that can deliver seeking biotic projectiles.

As with the Lair of the Shadowbroker DLC for ME2, one of Omega's greatest strengths comes in its lavish backgrounds and views out across the station. The sepia-tinted backdrops, complete with crashing vehicles and criss-crosses of weapons fire are as beautiful as anything on Illium or the Citadel, albeit in a slightly different way.

While Leviathan and From Ashes provid DLC experiences that add considerable depth to the Mass Effect Universe, Omega operates within the established story framework, with the majority of characters, enemies and locations that will be familiar.  The return to the formerly plague-ridden wards where you first meet Mordin was a nice touch, as to was the unavoidable return to Afterlife.

This DLC doesn't offer anything beyond what I had come to expect from the Mass Effect series (move into cover, take down some grunts, focus attention on the bosses, move on) but at the same time, that's one of the things that I love about it.

The additional powers offered by Aria and Nyreen provide a broad pallet of biotic and tech powers and not being able to bring my regular crew with me (Garrus and Javik/Liara) enabled me to utilise a variety of different tactics, several of which I would like to bring back to the Normandy for future missions.

It's worth noting that I entered this campaign with my FemShep on the cusp of Level 60 and while this was a relatively straightforward mission, it was by no means a walk in the park. This is particularly true of the final showdown in Afterlife, where the difficulty is amped up and your squadmates aren't around to help...

* Please note, no moustaches were twirled at any point during the game.