If you liked the first Mass Effect game, you likely know that your save games can be carried over into the recently released Mass Effect 2. You also know that the choices that you made in the first game might influence certain events in BioWare's sci-fi RPG sequel. But just how much influence does a player have?

During a lecture at GDC 2010 last week, BioWare's Armando Troisi stated that the development team had let 700 plot hooks from Mass Effect 1 carry over into the sequel. While the main storylines could not be changed from one game to another based on player influence, smaller details can change based on player decisions. With the announcement that save games in Mass Effect 2 can carry over into the upcoming third game in the RPG series, it should be interesting to see what BioWare comes up with in that area.