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Combat

BioWare and Demiurge have completely scrapped the 360's power wheel in favour of a new HUD and a new squad power and command control screen. Pressing space bar stops the action and brings you to a new screen where you can give your squad mates individual commands. In this way you can make one squad member move to one area and the other to a completely different area. This sounds simple, but it was impossible to do in the 360 version.

Commander Shepard's controls have also undergone refinement. You can now drag powers to a hotbar displayed at the top left of the HUD and assign them to the number keys, ensuring that you'll always have instant access to all your abilities. You can also scroll through the four weapons (pistol, assault rifle, shotgun and sniper rifle) with the scroll wheel, if you don't fancy pausing the combat and clicking on the desired gun.

Verdict:

While we found the combat in the 360 version a spectacular joy, many fans found it somewhat cumbersome. We have to admit, squad members were prone to the odd suicide run and sometimes suffered from hilarious path finding issues. This has all but been eradicated for the PC version. In the heat of battle you can now instruct squad mates to take up separate and exact positions, making quick, run and gun tactical play a real possibility. The combat is more satisfying and rewarding, especially when played on the harder difficulty levels. We loved the combat in the 360 version (the cool sci-fi pulse sound effect whenever you brought up the power wheel is sorely missed in the PC game) and the 360 dual thumbstick controls do lend themselves to the gameplay perfectly. But we have to admit that the mouse and keyboard interface delivers precise movement and aiming on a level a joypad can't compete with, and the level of control over squad members is unparalleled. When we fancy kicking back in front of our big screen TV with our feet propped up by a footstool the more laid back 360 version's combat is right up our street. But when we're in the mood for some serious gaming, the PC version is the one to beat. At the end of the day though, the PC version has more intuitive, efficient and rewarding combat.

Read on for driving...

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