Mass Effect 2

Template:Infobox Mass Effect (series)

Issues and Fixes

Installation interrupted

When installing, some people get an error message saying: "Installation Failed!: The Installation of Mass Effect 2 has failed. A data error occured." This can be solved by using a second computer. Put the Mass Effect 2 DVD in another computer on the same network, set the DVD drive up for sharing, and then connect to it from the computer you wish to install it on. It takes time but works. The only trick is that when ME2 asks for the second DVD you have to first stop sharing the DVD drive, eject disk1, insert disk2, set the drive for sharing again, and continue with the installation.

Black Screen when entering/exiting planets

If you get a black screen when entering/exiting a planet, specifically the shadow broker base, this is fixed by starting the game with the -nomoviestartup command. To do this:

1. Go to the MassEffect2.exe file. It's in the .../Mass Effect2/Binaries folder.
2. Create a shortcut to the MassEffect2.exe file. Right click the shortcut, and click 'Properties'.
3. Add -nomoviestartup to the 'target' field. It should look like this: "...\Mass Effect 2\Binaries\MassEffect2.exe" -nomoviestartup
4. This shortcut (skip the actual launcher) will not freeze when entering/exiting planets

Important: Unfortunately, when using this command, your game WILL freeze when trying to enter the citadel. The only way to circumvent this is by saving the game, exiting and restarting it with the regular MassEffect2.exe

Long loading times

Some users, specifically those with dual core processors, receive extraordinarily long load times (often around a minute long) with patch 1.02, with the load times being particularly long on the Normandy. There are three possible solutions to this issue.

The first fix involves manually changing your CPU affinity once the game has launched.:

1. Start the game then press Alt+Tab to return to your desktop
2. Open Task Manager (by pressing Ctrl+Alt+Delete)
3. On the Processes tab find "MassEffect2.exe", right click on it and select "Set Affinity"
4. Click on either the CPU0 or CPU1 check box, so only one remains checked, and click OK
5. Re-open the "Set Affinity" box and re-check the CPU you previously unchecked.
6. Use Alt+Tab to re-open your Mass Effect 2 game, and your load times should be reduced to normal.

This must be repeated every time you launch Mass Effect 2.

The second option is to download ThePlayWrite.com's "MassAffinity" program:

1. Download the program from here.
2. The program should automatically detect your Mass Effect 2 install location. If this fails, manually select it.
3. Click the "Run Game" button.

Mass Effect 2 should now run. While it is running, MassAffinity automatically changes the CPU affinity settings so you don't have to. After the initial setup outlined in the steps above, running the MassAffinity program will immediately launch Mass Effect 2 and perform the affinity change.

The third option is to not install the 1.02 patch. While this may seem like the easiest option, running an older version can lead to other issues that would be fixed by the 1.02 patch, so it is not recommended.

Unable to save games any more

There is a limit to the number of save games you can make on the PC. After 50 saved games you will no longer be able to save any further progress.

To get around this :

1. Open the folder

%USERPROFILE%\My Documents\Bioware\Mass Effect 2\Save\

1. Open the folder with your characters name/level/class
2. Either delete (or move to a backup folder) the earliest files named Save_00xx.pcsav. (DO NOT DELETE/MOVE THE FILES AutoSave/ChapterSave/QuickSave.pcsav)
3. As long as you have less than 50 Save_00xx.pcsav files you should be able to continue saving the universe.

Dark Lighting

This is the problem where you can't see what's going on in cutscenes because it is too dark. The way to fix this is to remove the depth of field. You can do this by going to the config folder (%USERPROFILE%\My Documents\BioWare\Mass Effect 2\BIOGame\Config), opening up GamerSettings.ini, and adding the line DepthOfField=False under system settings. Note: the line DepthOfField is not in the file; you have to add it, rather than modify it.

Game freeze on Illium

When on Illium, some users experience a black screen and CTD while walking through the ground level corridor under Liara's office, connecting to the other side of the map. To fix this issue, change the settings from fullscreen to windowed, or windowed borderless. This will solve the issue. Once through the corridor, fullscreen mode can be enabled. This process must also be repeated when crossing from the other direction.

It is recommended to enable windowed mode after passing through the corridor, as leaving the game in windowed or windowed borderless can cause an additional freeze during startup.

Clipping into walls/objects

A problem that seems to particularly affect the PC version of Mass Effect 2 is clipping into, and getting stuck in wall corners or other objects. When loading a previous save is not possible or desirable, an edit can be made to the Mass Effect 2 Coalesced.ini file to allow 'noclip'.

• Download/install the Mass Effect 2 Coalesced editor, which can be found here.
• Download/install Notepad++
• Back up your coalesced.ini file, which can be found in X:\Program Files (x86)\Mass Effect 2\Biogame\Config\PC\Cooked\Coalesced.ini, or, if you have a steam copy, it can be found in
• X:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\SteamApps\Common\Mass Effect 2\Biogame\Config\PC\Cooked\Coalesced.ini
• Open the Coalesced.ini file using Notepad++ (it will not work with notepad), and then add the following text under the [SFXGame.SFXGameModeDefault] section:

Bindings=( Name="Add", Command="Ghost | OnRelease Walk")

• Now open the Mass Effect 2 Coalesced editor, connect the editor to the Coalesced.ini file (if it is not already connected), click on "commands", and then "rebuild coalesced".

It is now safe to launch Mass Effect 2. When in game, you can now hold down the num pad plus key to enable noclip, and WASD/arrow keys to move Shepard out of the object. Once clear of the object, let go of the plus key, noclip will be disabled and you will be able to continue normally.

If these steps render the game unplayable or have any unintended side effects, delete the Coalesced.ini file and replace it with the copy you backed up earlier.

Field of View (FOV)

• Download/install the ME2IniFixer utility.
• Download/install Notepad++
• Using Notepad++ open X:\Program Files (x86)MassEffect2\BioGame\Config\PC\Cooked\Coalesced.ini (DO NOT USE WINDOWS NOTEPAD)
• For Steam copies open X:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\SteamApps\Common\Mass Effect 2\Biogame\Config\PC\Cooked\Coalesced.ini using Notepad++ (DO NOT USE WINDOWS NOTEPAD)
• Find [SFXGame.SFXGameModeDefault] and add to the end of that section (replace XXX with desired FOV, 100 recommended) :

Bindings=( Name="LeftShift", Command="PC_EnterCommandMenu" )
Bindings=( Name="Period", Command="set SFXGame.SFXCameraMode FOV XXX" )

• Save and then use ME2IniFixer utility to fix Coalesced.ini.

An alternative method for improving the FOV is outlined here.

Mods

Higher Resolution Character Textures

A set of high resolution textures has been made available on the official forum by their creator, JeanLuc761. They have been used on Deadendthrills.

Improved loading times

On middle-end computers and higher especially on little areas, the game usually loads resources faster than loading animation and it will wait till this finishes

A user patch fix this

Save Game Data

Import Mass Effect 1 Save Files

In essence you have to run the importer that is found in the ME2 launcher. However, this often crashes. If this happens you have to find your Mass Effect 1 character save file and transfer it into a newly create ME1 save folder in your ME2 folder.

• Source: Forum discussing it.

Mass Effect 1 Save game location:

• Windows 7:

  %USERPROFILE%\My Documents\Bioware\Mass Effect\Save\

Import Xbox 360 Mass Effect 2 Save Files

You'll need 3 tools: A USB device, a Save File Extracting/Injecting Program, and a Save File Editor (no need for a Jatg'd or modded Xbox). Configure the USB device as a memory device on the 360. The save file extracting program needed can be found hereand the Save Editor is a web app that can be found here. Once you have these tools follow these steps:

1. Put Shepard Career Save on USB with Xbox 360.
2. Move USB from Xbox 360 to PC.
3. Open Shepard Career Save with "Modio" on PC.
4. Extract individual Save File (i.e. 021.xbsav).
5. Upload the file to ME2 Save Editor.
6. Download windows save file from archived Save.
7. Move your new save file to the appropriate directory.

This process can also be used to edit ME2 saves for import/export between Xbox and PC, or to transfer from an Xbox save to PC if switching platforms for Mass Effect 3.

Useful Links

• Official Mass Effect 2 PC Tech FAQ
• Mass Effect Wiki's PC Tweaks page.