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few things:

Tech seems better than Bionics. I was an engineer, but I had Wrex and his bionic abilities and I fooled around with the other guy with lift/throw a bit on my second playthrough. No one with singularity though...

Lift/Throw are okay but when you compare it too Dampening, Overload, and Sabotage... their not so great :| The damage on those 3 powers are decent and they have a good amount of secondary effects. Dampening is probably worth it alone. Stuns on normal enemies and stops bionic abilities long enough for me to kill them. AI hacking is also pretty underrated. At max, you can control any geth except (I think, never tried) the colossus... including an Armature thing. And considering you pretty much fight geth 85% of the time, it's pretty damn good. The AI seems to *hate* anything that gets hacked too so you barely get shot at.

Neural Shock I didn't max since it's single target only and only works on Bionics (which are pretty rare). It honestly didn't seem all that great, but it does cause knockdown + poison. I basically used it when Wrex's throw was on cooldown and some melee guy got close to me. It (combined with dampening) also made

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

that Asari chick who works with Saren

stupid easy.

What does combat optics do? I forgot. I can't remember what I used for my pistol... I want to say rail extensions (whatever the "advanced" versions were called). But honestly, I rarely used my pistol and when I did, shit died in 3 hits.



BTW, the dev's posted a hints log that has some nifty info in it... a lot of mundane bull crap, but some useful shit. It's insanely long so I'm spoiler tagging it.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

1. Phoenix armour regenerates health.
2. Armour made by Devlon Industries can protect you from harsh environments.
3. The rover can jump over incoming rockets.
4. Make sure to check the lockers for your party members between missions to make sure everyone has the best gear.
5. Uncharted worlds can have points of interest other than the ones marked on their map; drive around and explore.
6. Pause combat by using the bumpers - this allows look around and assess the situation.
7. Use combinations of powers of tougher enemies.
8. Crouch to increase stability (especially with Sniper Rifle).
9. Consult your Journal often.
10. Your Dog needs to go for a walk. The Universe will wait.
11. Save often.
12. Call your Mom.
13. Watch for explosive canisters, they can make combat much easier.
14. You can change combat difficulty by accessing the options gameplay menu.
15. Your Codex provides interesting information about the Mass Effect Universe.
16. Get into the Mako to revive party members.
17. Peanut Butter and Celery makes a great snack.
18. Remember to recycle.
19. The Thresher Maw needs flat land to travel so beware when driving over flat open areas.
20. For better accuracy with the sniper rifle, crouch and wait in between shots until the sight stops moving.
21. Sometimes rushing into a fight can provide you with better cover than that on the outskirts.
22. You get one level for becoming a Spectre. Try to level up just before.
23. Have a henchman use first aid to allow you to focus on other skills
24. Have two henchmen use first aid in case one is unusable for a time.
25. You can rifle-butt some enemies to knock them out (specifically this is part of the quest to knock out colonists in zhu's hope on Feros, you're supposed to use gas grenades but people might have used them all so we put in the option to rifle-butt/pistol-whip people to knock them out as well, but I don't think we have mentioned that anywhere in the game).
26. If you use lift and then use throw while your target is in the air, he will go fairly far.
27. Use singularity to gather multiple enemies together and then blow them up with grenades.
28. Charm and intimidate are important so make sure to level them up.
29. The maximum charm and intimidate possible is linked to how much of a paragon or renegade your character is.
30. Putting points into the sniper rifle ability reduces the amount of crosshair movement when you are zoomed.
31. Use the mako's jump jets to avoid enemy rockets
32. If you are a soldier use immunity to avoid taking much damage (it is quite a powerful ability)
33. Use the unity ability to revive your followers during combat.
34. Some kinds of armor have hidden abilities (such as the devlon armor providing immunity to environmental effects).
35. Use cover
36. Make sure to choose party members that supplement your Shepard's abilities. The right team combinations have no weaknesses.
37. Choose a skill and stick with it. A specialist will be more help later on than a Jack of All Trades.
38. Work on one of at least charm or intimidate. There are opportunities to exercise them right from the beginning of the game. It can really alter the completion of quests.
39. Take advantage of becoming a spectre as soon as possible (as opposed to doing too many sidequests beforehand in the citadel) as it increases the maximum you can take charm and intimidate to.
40. When entering a new system, take a moment to look at all the planets and asteroid belts without moving the map for a few moments. Sometimes, the Normandy's sensors will pick something up, and a brief flash will appear on the map. Scan that flash, and you won't regret a thing." -this leads to Minerals, collection quests, and an entire UNC, in one case.
41. Crowd control is key, in some cases. Use an adept to full advantage by merely allowing them to take some of your enemies off your hands for a while.
42. Tech beacons may seem limited in their application. But keep in mind that while their effects might be limited in scope, the damage they do is universal. Even if the Geth can't be stopped by a damping beacon, they can still be hurt by one…
43. One of the biggest traps to fall into is to spread yourself too thin… Focus on single skillsets that complement each other, instead of multiple ones that conflict.
44. Your biggest asset in this game is your party. Followers can be whatever you want: flanking buddies, straight-on attackers, your waiting ambush, bait, or, if you fell especially mean, cannon-fodder to show you where the snipers are. Play around with your party, or even give them free reign. Sometimes having less control over them is more beneficial to micro-managing.
45. When possible, engage enemies on foot. There is more experience to be gained while on foot than there is sitting inside the Mako and picking off enemies from a distance. More fun and strategy, too.
46. Not every world in the universe was meant to keep humans alive. If you're going to a world where the hazards are just too much for you to handle, keep an eye out for Devlon armor. It only takes one team member to be equipped to save yourself from dying of exposure on some remote planet.
47. Krogans are tenacious and frightening, but they are also NOT team-oriented. If you come across a few Krogans, try and lure one away from the pack and take them one mano-a-mano. Otherwise you could wind up in the middle of a Krogan sandwich. You get to be ground soylent green (…it's made of people!).
48. Your followers had lives before they met you. Talk to them, ask them about those lives, and they might just surprise you with info about their home life, or in some cases, they will allow you to help with some 'unfinished business.' At the very least, you will learn something new about your space-faring friends.
49. If you are worried that you might be missing some of the story by taking a different path, don't worry, you are. There is no way to play through all of the storylines in this game without playing through at least 5 times, and that is being generous. In all honesty, you could play this game for the next six months and never get the entire experience. This is coming from a tester who just a few weeks ago finally noticed a new branch, after playing for 8 months. Don't be afraid to start a new game, and don't be afraid to try a new character/difficulty/follower team-up. The game has a way of surprising you in ways you would not expect.
50. If you see a terminal that you can decrypt, then by all means, do it! At the very least, you will learn something new about the universe, but sometimes there will be some tidbit of information there that will let you explore another region of space. Sometimes those floating balls of rock have something on them, and someone in the galaxy put that info into a terminal for you to find.
51. Not every crazy person you meet in the world is actually crazy. Sometimes, if you can get them to talk to you, you can hear their story. And sometimes, that story will make so much sense that you might think you're a little crazy, too. Try to get every person you can to talk to you as much as possible. If you don't then you might only see what 'they' want you to see….
52. Adepts and Biotics start slow. There is no denying this. It may seem frustrating, but if you work at it, it is beneficial to play a character who can constantly juggle any enemy. No one, not even a high-class soldier, can touch a master adept.
53. Sometimes, the order that planets are done in makes them more difficult for certain classes. Ie: a biotic-heavy world is hard for a fledgling biotic, while a tech/combat-heavy world is tough for a new soldier. Try to keep a save file located on the Normandy pre-landing, so if you need to, you can just go back to it later. You have 10 save slots. Use them!
54. The galaxy will ALWAYS need saving. How long it takes you to do that is completely up to you, but keep in mind that if you save the big picture, then you lose many of the small ones. Don't be in such a rush to confront the big bad if you have the opportunity to help (or make some cash…)along the way.
55. Omni-gel is your friend. Keep at least 30-40 of the stuff around. You never know when you'll screw up on that decryption for some fantastic armor, and you'll be glad to have it.
56. Being a Renegade doesn't mean you have to be mean. It just means that you have the power to BE the law, not just enforce it. Depending on the situation, that might just be more satisfying….
57. Try as you might, you can't control some people. If there are those in your party that aren't used to following orders, don't be surprised if they say or do something that you really wish they hadn't. Explaining justice to a krogan bounty hunter can be….interesting.
58. In an elevator, people let their guard down. The same is true for your followers. Try taking some of the elevators in the citadel with different followers, and hear what they're really thinking about. For example, why does Tali wear that faceguard? Garrus wants to know, too.
59. Second playthroughs aren't just for the extra story you will most definitely have missed the first time around. If you have certain achievements, then you can try out some custom classes. An adept with a sniper rifle? Perhaps a soldier with AI hacking? A sentinel with a shotgun? Experiment. See what feels best for you.
60. Achievements aren't just for gamerscore. Unlocking them gives the player access to special training that allows you to become an even better Spectre. Some manipulate game mechanics to allow the player to have better skills, some allow for more skills. At the very least, they give you something to shoot for.
61. Mods are just that. Modifications to your specific equipment. If it feels right for your style of play, then that is the right mod.
62. Each new class is completely different from the others. They require that you re-vamp your playstyle, because if you don't, you will end up critically failing more missions than you critically succeed.
63. Stores tie their supplies to your level, so if you find that you aren't getting the equipment you want, leave, find some new worlds to explore, or quests to complete, and then come back to see the new shipment. You'll be glad that you did, especially on the Citadel.
64. The citadel is the hub of the galaxy, so there's always something new to see/find. Come back often to see what you may have missed. It might be a large place, but exploring it again is well worth the time.
65. Choosing your background in the beginning of the game may seem trivial, but it really isn't. Characters interact with you differently, and even some missions are tied to your past.
66. Don't ignore Charm or Intimidate. Just don't.
67. Sniper Rifles are very tough to use at the start. You have to up your skill points a bit and get better rifles before they get very user-friendly (though some more advance gamers might enjoy the increased difficulty of using them from the start). Once you are good with them, though, they more than make up for it. So if you want to be one-shotting Geth with headshots, you've just gotta be patient. An alternative, though, is to have Garrus in your party. With the Sniper Rifle equipped, you can hit right on the D-pad for an "Attack" command, and you'll hear that signature "Bow-ooom" of the Rifle from behind you. If you're powerful enough, you'll usually see the enemy drop in one shot. This is especially on open terrain like in Virmire.
68. On certain Uncharted Worlds that have high environment hazards, equip the "protection from toxins" armor upgrade for yourself and your squad. It will allow you all to stay outside the Mako for a longer period of time.
69. Spend points in your Charm or Intimidate persuade Talents before you get to Virmire. You'll need them to sway Wrex.
70. The easiest, least frustrating way to "solve" the AI signal puzzle on the Citadel is to shoot the power source. Trust me. This is what you bought the game for, isn't it? So you can shoot stuff?
71. Remember to use the R-stick zooming mechanism in turret view when you're in the Mako. It will zoom up to 400 meters and make it easier to hit smaller targets like geth rocket troopers.
72. If you're playing this game in your office, try not to scream like a girl. It disturbs people's work environment.