u/Aiseadai

Any love for Star Control 2? Every fan of Mass Effect should give it a shot to see its origins.

The actual gameplay isn't similar to Mass Effect, but the setup is. It's a space opera where you go exploring the galaxy making allies and enemies, talk to all sorts of aliens, upgrade your character, engage in combat and all that good stuff. Some of the alien species in ME are obviously heavily inspired by those from SC2.

And the best part, there's a modern version that's entirely free! I do heavily prefer the soundtrack of the original, the new one gives a completely different vibe in my opinion. Fortunately you can switch in game.