My impression after 10 hours:

Pros:
+ Music & Speech:
Just about everything has been deposited with language and even with the German version with absolutely high quality! Since no one is in the process of robbing the mood by poor speech - rather the opposite!
+ Character Design:
The characters are shown brilliantly. Each alien, everyone is just fun to look at. The animations, the design of the armor, the lip-sync movements of the mouth, and especially the emotions come into play over any better. And not only the main characters were so durchgestyled but every character in the game just "standing around" is fascinating to look at.
+ Interaction:
There are no right cutscenes in which one leans back and looks at the end of the level what happens, but it has constantly influence on what they say, and especially how you say it. And this sytem has a greater impact on the game, as I first thought. You feel much more identified with the players because one has tatäschlich right influence on what is happening. Actually, it should always be so.
+ Background world:
I'm always impressed again how deeply thought out, every corner of the game. Everywhere you you will hinstößt by the so-called. Code (a type of database that the player carries) elucidated gradually on the background of the universe. And that's been very well implemented. Because the player is not overloaded with new information that is based on the amount then no longer want to watch, but the database is piece by piece with new information added. The puzzle of the total world is becoming more dense and you can clearly see how completely and tangible this world is told. You can feel that this universe no artificial. Construct, which was quickly assembled for a game, but as would have existed for tens of years, the history and are only told to wait.
+ Story: gigantic! I can tell as I said only about the first 10 hours, but so far I have not a single game (!) Seen in my career as a gamer, that such emotional and thoughtful story has. The game captivates like a book that you can not put it down.

Cons:
- Battles:
At the Kämfe one has yet to get used a little. These are the elements of a tactical shooter, where the player can issue two teammates commands (à la Rainbow Six Vegas). Everything seems a bit stiff and especially the lean funktnioniert often only on the second or third attempt. Even the car fights are not really bad, but not really succeeded. You get used to it, but compared to the rem. Quality of the game, the battles are significantly behind. But what fun are the special skills which are giving the fighting variety and tactically not negligible.
- Level Design:
Overall, the world of Mass Effect is very well designed, but at a point or another it seems a bit lifeless. Given the complexity of the world certainly bearable, but falls on every now and then.
- Cutscenes:
As good as the cutscenes are also followed by a fight in which the player dies, one must often look at the entire sequence again. Clicking away is not possible - and that annoys been the one time or another.

Conclusion:
The bottom line is Mass Effect is surprisingly good. Especially the story full of atmosphere and emotions, setting new standards and one can only hope that in future more such games reach the market. Even with the smears of struggle, remains a sci-fi role-playing game, which is absolutely awesome succeeded!

If nothing changes radically in the next few days, ME is my favorite game (in the single-player) by a wide margin for the second place and I'm really looking forward to the following parts of the trilogy.