Who doesn’t love free DLC? I sure love it! So is it free because it sucks or are we actually getting a great deal here?

The Mass Effect 3: Resurgence pack DLC was released April 10, 2012 for FREE. The pack included two new maps, Firebase Condor and Firebase Hydra and six new characters, one for each class:

• Asari Justicar (Adept)
• Krogan Battlemaster (Vanguard)
• Batarian Soldier
• Batarian Sentinel
• Geth Infiltrator
• Geth Engineer

The pack also included three new weapons, the Striker Assault Rifle, Kishock Harpoon Gun and the Geth Plasma SMG, and  four consumable items:

• Strength Enhancer – Applies a melee damage boost for one mission
• Targeting VI – Applies a headshot damage bonus for one mission
• Stabilization Module – Stabilizes weapons while firing and moving for one mission
• Shield Power Cells – Shortens the length of time shields take to begin recharging for one mission

Maps

Overall, the new maps add just the variety the month-old multiplayer needs. My favorite of the two is Firebase Hydra, because it’s pretty and birds fly around. Who pays attention to birds? BioWare does that’s who.

Hydra also has some great cover spots and a varied layout. It really feels like a full, fleshed out dungeon.

Firebase Condor has an ok setup (doesn’t seem as big as Hydra) and I enjoy that it is set on Palavan’s moon, but the color scheme is horrible. Enemies, cover and even corners blend right into the background. After playing a few rounds on this map, I find my eyes feeling strained.

In general, however, both maps inject just the right amount of newness to the multiplayer.

Characters

Thus far, out of about 20 hours of game time, I have unlocked ONE of the new characters: the Batarian.  I can completely see how BioWare is making money off of the multiplayer. If I was anything but a Capricorn, I would have already purchased packs willy-nilly for the chance to unlock the Asari Justicar!

This is the balance in return for “free” stuff I suppose. You might play three rounds and unlock a Batarian Sentinel or you might play one hundred rounds and have 50 guns and 50 existing character upgrades.

As far as having playable Geth and Batarians: THANK YOU BioWare. I truly do appreciate you sticking to your hints that more races would become available. One of the best aspects is that the Batarian has new powers, so it feels very believable as a fleshed out character.

I can’t speak too much about the benefits of one character over another, because, as I mentioned, I haven’t unlocked them all.

Now if only we could get some more lady aliens!

Guns

Of the three new weapons (the Striker Assault Rifle, Kishock Harpoon Gun and the Geth Plasma SMG), the Kishock Harpoon Gun was the only one that made me squee for joy. It’s now my favorite gun, actually. Even though it takes what feel like an extra second for the bullet to hit, the power behind it just gives me a little thrill. The first time I fired it, I had an Herbal Essences moment.

With an assault rifle, sniper and SMG, there is plenty to love and you will probably switch at least one of your guns out for one of these.

Equipment

I found all four of these items to be useful additions to the equipment, with the stabilization module coming in extra-handy with the harpoon gun. The shield power cells did me the most good because I still struggle with the sticky cover system. All of them are great to find in your pack.

Final Notes

As far as new DLC in general, I am SO happy they included playable Geth and Batarians, but a little sad that these new firebases come with no new phrases or quests from Admiral Hackett. To be honest, I would be happy with new phrases for the same missions even! If I have to hear “An STG team was shot down…” one more time….

However, overall, this is a great deal. BioWare gave us plenty of bang for our absent buck. As I mentioned before, I already love the multiplayer, and this free DLC was just the icing on the cake. Which is not a lie.