Review – Mass Effect Loot Crate

One of my most favourite game franchises is without a doubt Mass Effect. I have finished all the games multiple times and I just adore the story and the characters. Even after the mess that was the Mass Effect 3 ending I never really stopped loving the game.
So when it was announced there would be a limited edition Mass Effect Loot Crate, I knew I had to have it. The only thing that made me pause was the price but I decided to take the plunge and see for myself if it would be worth it. The total worth of the Mass Effect Loot Crate was to be around $ 150,00 with some exclusive items.

Loot Crates are pretty well known among geeks for their monthly subscription boxes. You take out an subscription for around $20,00/€28,00 every month, and in turn you get a box filled with themed items that retail for about $45,00 together. This can includes shirts, action figures, Funko’s and often these contents are exclusive to Loot Crate.
There are monthly boxes for Anime, Pets, Video-games and much more. And often they launch limited edition one-offs which contain more loot and are targeted at specific titles like Star Wars, Firefly, Mass Effect, Fallout and much more.

So let’s just see what kind of stuff it contained and if the Mass Effect Loot Crate really was my favourite Loot Crate on the Citadel.

Mass Effect Loot Crate

First up this is the Mass Effect Loot Crate itself and how it arrived at my house. Sadly the postal services decided to just glue stickers all over the place for the heck of it. But other than that it arrived safely at my house with all contents intact.
This is what I saw when I opened the box, so far it looked really promising!

Mass Effect Loot Crate Opening


N7 hoodie
First up is the item I was most looking forward to! The super cool, warm and awesome looking N7 hoodie which was on my wishlist for a long time.
For the Loot Crate they brought out an exclusive version in gunmetal grey which I really like. Nice soft fabric and as my friends (who already owned a hoodie) promised, it is indeed nice, cosy and warm. The new colour was a pleasant surprise and I know I will be wearing it a lot.
I do need to buy the regular black version though as this one sadly doesn’t match the rest of my N7 convention gear 😉

Mass Effect Loot Crate Hoodie

Socks
There were two pairs of Mass Effect socks included in this release. One pair is sporting the N7 striped look and the other pair is a tribute to the Paragon/Renegade choices you make during the game. The socks look like they’re going to be good quality and I really like them. The only thing that I noticed that people with bigger feet won’t be able to wear them that much as they only seem to be released in one standard “fits most… hopefully” size.

Mass Effect Loot Crate Socks

Mass Effect Volume 1: Redemption comic
This comic trade paperback collects all 4 issues of the original Redemption mini series. While the original version of this book was already released back in 2010, they did re-release it for the Mass Effect Loot Crate with a different cover.
The story bridges the gap between the intro of Mass Effect 2 and the point were you (re)create your Commander Shepard. As Amazon says “The story of what happens next-exclusive to this graphic novel-will have the commander’s companion Dr. Liara T’Soni undertake a deadly mission of extraordinary importance in the Milky Way’s lawless Terminus Systems.”
Basically it sheds more information about what happened between those two scenes in the game and add some background to the Mass Effect 2 DLC, Lair of the Shadowbroker. It also includes images with sketches, layouts and a gallery of all the covers of the single issues. It has a cool art style although some of the poses they put the female characters in are a bit “overdone”. Overall if you love Mass Effect and its lore you will really like it.

Mass Effect Loot Crate comic

Plush Volus
Ah that’s cute! A plush Volus, like the one you can get in the Mass Effect 3 DLC. I think it will be a perfect plush to serve as a Voodoo doll for that terrible Volus called Barla Von who always managed to get on my nerves. it’s a fun thing to find in your Loot Crate.
After the DLC many fans wanted to have a doll like that and it seems that people finally got their wish.

Mass Effect Loot Crate Volus Plush

N7 and Afterlife shot glasses
This is really awesome! a set of two shot glasses, one with the N7 logo and the other with the silhouette of an Asari and the logo of “Afterlife”. I love shot glasses and this one calls for a round of the Mass Effect drinking game.
My only note here is that the silhouette of the Asari is actually the logo of a bar called Chora’s den (on the Citadel) and not of Afterlife.

Mass Effect Loot Crate Shot Glasses

N7 Backpack
Next up is an exclusive N7 backpack made just for the Mass Effect Loot Crate. It’s a nice addition but the backpack itself is a bit on the smaller side and for some reason doesn’t feel really strong or durable. It is a fun thing but I am a bit disappointed. I think it would have been better of it was made of different materials or at least a bit bigger so you could fit more stuff inside it.

N7 Car emblem
A N7 car emblem, that is a nice and fun thing to add. Sadly I don’t have a black car with nice N7 stripes but I am sure to keep it stored for when one day we actually buy such a car and I can make a Mass Effect version out of it.

Datapad Notebook
Last but not least a small notebook in the shape/style of the mass Effect datapads. Another small and fun inclusion as a small Mass Effect gimmick.

Mass Effect Loot Crate

My opinion
Overall I am pleased with the Mass Effect Loot Crate.
I love the hoodie, the plush, the glasses and socks. The rest was fun too but the comic was probably a title that many fans already owned. And while the backpack was a nice addition it is a bit small and it doesn’t really look or feel really sturdy. I think replacing those two items with a exclusive Mass Effect Funko Pop would have made the box much more epic.
Another thing you do need to consider though is that if you are outside of the US, shipping will take a long(er) time. And while it is really nice I do think the price was a bit steep, namely $74 for the US and $105 international. Especially the international price was a bit high for many gamers until it was explained that this included the customs charges we normally have to pay.

I would probably buy a Loot Crate again if it was from a franchise I really liked as this one was quite good. As for the monthly versions, I am not too sure about that one yet. It looks really lovely but it is another subscription instead of a one off. And international shipping means in the end you get less out of it, plus I am really picky with my Funko’s.

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *