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The first time I saw the full-length cinematic trailer of Mass Effect 2, I was immediately drawn to one of Commander Shepard’s teammates – the green-skinned alien who screamed pure badass wrapped in a seemingly sophisticated package. It was not the first time I saw him; there was a video floating around on YouTube that introduced us to this mysterious character who was quickly revealed to be an assassin. The introduction got me curious, but not enough to completely hold my interest. However, the second I saw him in action in the cinematic trailer, I think I fell in a love. Juuust a little bit. I convinced myself that I was only attracted to the way he moved. He was an alien, after all, and while humanoid, he looked more reptilian than human. But the more I looked at him, the more I found myself becoming attracted to the way he looked. His eyes were unnerving, yes, but I could see that he was quite good-looking. It was only when my sister (also a huge fan of BioWare) admitted that she was also attracted to him that I breathed a little easier. Hey, at least I wasn’t the only strange one who was harbouring some crush over some green reptilian-like alien named Thane.

A lot of gamers who played and enjoyed BioWare’s games have probably come to expect a romance subplot in their playthroughs and I am no exception. Inwardly, I hoped that Thane was a romanceable option, but I quickly brushed it off. I was not expecting a character like Thane to be welcoming of such a relationship. He just didn’t seem to be the type, you know? Also, I didn’t expect a male alien to be a love interest at all. The first Mass Effect had two possible love interests for the female Shepard: Kaidan Alenko for the straight Shepard and Liara T’Soni (an Asari) for the lesbian Shepard. It wasn’t so surprising to me that a female alien would be the only available non-human love interest for BOTH the male and female Shepard.

Imagine my surprise when I found out that it isn’t only Thane who is the potential alien love interest for the female Shepard. Garrus, one of Shepard’s teammates in the previous Mass Effect, returns in the sequel and is also now a romance option. In a way, it doesn’t surprise me. I remember feeling that Garrus could be Shepard’s lover if given the chance (and if there was more time, heh). Several fanfiction you can find out there would tell you that I’m certainly not the only one who could see Garrus/Fem!Shepard and I won’t deny that I read some of these fanfics hurhur.

So, now the question stands: Which between these alien hunks will I choose? This whole article will tell you that I will choose Thane in a heartbeat since I’m practically drooling all over him, but I won’t close my options yet. Maybe I won’t like Thane’s personality, maybe I’d find Garrus more interesting. Heck, maybe the humans Jacob or Kelly (lesbian option) would be more interesting. There’s also that tiny fact that the Shepard in my first Mass Effect playthrough already has a lover and I hear cheating on said lover will have some consequences on Mass Effect 3, so will I choose to cheat just to get some alien action? Or will I play the loyal lover who denies herself the attention of clearly interested aliens even if she returns their feelings?

Don’t worry; there is an actual game with an actual plot in there. Just let me try and be a female Captain Kirk for a while. :D

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