Mass Effect 2: The Friend Zone

It's almost too painful to look at

We all know those dreaded words.  We’ve all heard them, and probably even experienced them at some point in our lives.  The dreaded Friend Zone.  This is when a relationship that we’re hoping to take to the next level and turn into romance encounters an obstacle and becomes permanently stuck in the Friend Zone.  This obstacle is insurmountable, and the relationship will never be anything beyond friends.  In other words, the Friend Zone sucks.

What does this have to do with video games?  Well, we’ve been saying how amazing games are getting; how more and more realistic they are becoming.  I think Mass Effect 2 takes that level of realism a bit too far.  Seriously.  In my game, I have been relegated to the Friend Zone.  There seems to be no chance of me getting around this.

Mass Effect 2's Jacob Taylor

You know that hunky eye-candy Jacob?  It seems I’ve blown my chances with him.  Now don’t get me wrong, in my first playthrough, I want to remain loyal to Kaidan, my first love from Mass Effect 1.  (There’d better be a big reward for me doing this, because gosh darn it is it sad to be heading off to most likely die and only have a picture to keep you company…and also, Kaidan was really mean on Horizon, so I’m hoping he’ll make up for that in ME3)  However, is there anything wrong with a little innocent flirting?  I was hoping to keep the lines of flirting open without being too forward, but I don’t think Mass Effect 2 allows you to do that.  Or maybe Mass Effect figures, if you’re in, you’re all in.

So anyways, point being, I didn’t ask Jacob if he had anyone waiting for him to come back home *wink wink nudge nudge*.  And now?  Now when we talk, he says he’s good, and that when we get out of this mess we’ll have drinks together on the Citadel.

And he give me a chest bump.

I'm stuck in the Friend Zone

Not the jumping, crazy kind of chest bump, but the let’s-clap-hands-and-semi-hug-in-a-purely-platonic-way.  Yup, with that kind of hand clapping, half-hugging, we are definitely Just Friends.

I still have to finish my first playthrough and already I’m tempted to start another one.

-Kat