Mass Effect 2’s main focus is building your team and preparing for the suicide mission toward the end of the game. Shepard’s ultimate goal is saving the galaxy and destroying the threat of the reapers but the squad’s survival is also important, especially if you’d like to transfer your save data into Mass Effect 3.
Mass Effect’s events connect and influence future games and so the death of Shepard and others carries over into the third game. If you’re like me then you’ve also connected with your squadmates too and it feels better to keep them alive after you’ve spent so much time with them.
Traveling through the Omega-4 Relay feels heavy and intense. The tension, stakes, and stress only increase once you reach the other side but it’s not too hard surviving with your full squad if you pay attention to everyone’s unique skill set and put them in the right positions.
Our guide can help you save the galaxy and survive with a full crew, ultimately preparing you for the start of Mass Effect 3.
Mass Effect 2: Perfect Ending Guide
There are two sides to getting through the suicide mission alive with Shepard and the crew alive. There are key tactical decisions once you travel through the Omega-4 Relay but there’s also some important necessary steps needed before starting this endgame mission.
Loyalty Missions should be completed for each character. These are important for a few different reasons. To start, they provide your squadmates with additional attacks and power, which is good for both story and gameplay reasons, but these missions are also key for their survival.
Loyal squadmates can make it through the collector and reaper threat but unfinished business and lingering feelings toward work outside this mission can influence and cause their death, regardless of the decisions you make in the mission.
Make sure to talk to each squadmate in between regular missions; they’ll speak up and tell you about something they need to care of if it’s possible or if there’s time.
Make sure you make time and complete these missions regardless of your feelings for the mission details or character; it increases their chances of survival and the success of the mission itself.
Kelly Chambers will tell you when characters wish to speak with Shepard as well, which is almost always when a Loyalty Mission will be unlocked for a character. Bioware wants you to complete these missions and learn more about these characters so they make it easy to be aware of the missions so you don’t miss them.
A few characters will tell you about their Loyalty Mission as soon as you recruit them, like Kasumi and Zaeed but some of the missions aren’t available until later. You can confirm you’ve completed Loyalty Missions by checking your completed missions or by looking for the glowing circle underneath character models on the Character Select screen.
Ship Upgrades are crucial and must be completed before heading through the Omega-4 Relay. The Normandy will sustain damage and get hit during various points in the mission and characters will make it through these parts if the ship has received the necessary upgrades.
There are three upgrades that must be completed before starting the mission and they become available when speaking with squadmates.
These are unlocked after speaking with specific characters in conversation throughout the game. If you don’t remember if an upgrade has already been unlocked then just check the research upgrade area in Mordin’s lab.
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Thanix Cannon: This upgrade becomes available while speaking with Garrus.
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Heavy Ship Armor: This upgrade becomes available while speaking with Jacob.
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Multicore Shielding: This upgrade becomes available while speaking with Tali.
Choosing the right squadmates in the Omega-4 Relay Mission
Combat and moving through environments are part of this mission like any other mission but there are also several specific roles that require you to select and dedicate squadmates to.
It’s important to pick the right squadmate for these tasks so they’re completed successfully and so the chosen team members don’t die in the process. These roles make sense within the scope of the squadmates abilities and expertise.
Our guide will help you choose the right squadmates so the job gets done without anyone dying.
Roles
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Vents: Kasumi, Legion, or Tali
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First Squad Leader: Jacob, Garrus, or Miranda
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Shield: Samara or Jack
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Second Squad Leader: Garrus, Jacob, or Miranda
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Escort: Mordin
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Final Squad (Choose Two): Jack, Kasumi, Miranda, Thane, Tali, Samara
Bioware put a lot of effort into making sure side quests felt important and added to the rest of the experience and they were ultimately successful. Choices and actions affect your squadmates and how they grow and respond to the mission you spend most of the game preparing for.
The choices don’t stop carrying weight at any point and even matter during the suicide mission, which makes the game’s characters and world feel like living, breathing things.
As long as you follow our guide then you and your squad can continue living and breathing in Mass Effect 2 and beyond, which is important since Mass Effect 3 starts immediately after the events of Mass Effect 2.
Related: How to Find Dr. Liara T’Soni in Mass Effect Legendary Edition
