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Mass Effect Hints
Mako Tips
1 of 14: Whenever you choose to land on a planet or moon that doesn't have a spaceport, you'll be dropped onto the surface in the Mako vehicle.
2 of 14: The Mako can get you over all but the roughest and steepest of terrain, but it's always best to seek out the flattest, easiest route whenever you're driving to a certain destination. (Check the area map for special markers to see what all important stuff is around.)
3 of 14: If you're determined to drive up a really steep incline, and you get stuck while trying to go straight up, try backing up just a little and then going up zig-zag style, which means turning left and pushing forward a bit, then turning right and pushing forward a bit more, and so on. That can help in some cases, at least.
4 of 14: The Mako can take damage from really long falls, and it will occasionally overturn. You should be careful not to take any falling damage so that you don't have to spend omni-gel for repairs that shouldn't be necessary. As for overturning, use the jump jets until you flip back upright.
5 of 14: When you're fighting hostiles in the Mako, your best strategy is to keep your distance and use the zoomable gun camera to help you aim. Hit an enemy or enemy group with a cannon shot, then follow up with some machine gun fire so that you'll be doing some damage while waiting for the cannon to reload.
6 of 14: If your enemies are capable of firing projectiles that do lots of damage, do your best to dodge them. The farther you are away from your enemies, the easier this will be. You can sometimes hit the jump jets to allow enemy fire to pass under you, or you can drive backwards while turning left or right.
7 of 14: In really hard fights, you may have to frequently retreat to a point where the enemies can't fire on you, then wait for the Mako's shields to recharge. This can take a long time, but it doesn't require any omni-gel, which is what you'll have to use for repairs if you take hits after your shields are totally knocked out.
8 of 14: One thing that may occasionally come in handy is the fact that the Mako can ram enemies, which usually does them some damage and knocks them over. This can be useful against large opponents such as geth colossi if you can close with them without taking too much damage. Ram them, shoot them while they're down, ram them again after they get back up, etc.
9 of 14: If your Mako ever does get damaged, and you're able to return to the Normandy, you can do that and then land on the planet again in order to get most or all of the Mako's damage repaired for free. (If it's most rather than all, return to the Normandy and re-land again.) Or you could even try saving your game and then restoring it, since that often effects some speedy (and free) repairs.
10 of 14: If you always use the above tips, you should never have to repair the Mako using omni-gel. And if you're good at the Decryption Minigame, you won't need to spend hardly any omni-gel opening locked containers, either. Due to this, I advise you to never convert items into omni-gel unless you're stuck somewhere with no merchant access, and your inventory is full.
11 of 14: It's possible to exit the Mako when it's not moving so that you can run around and look at things on foot, but that's only advisable if you're parked right next to a building that can be entered or an item that can be salvaged or surveyed. Trying to run across a planet's surface on foot can take a super-long time.
12 of 14: Also, some planets have hazardous atmospheres that will start damaging you and your squad if you're outside the Mako for very long and aren't wearing special protective armor. Fortunately, getting back into the Mako will quickly "reset" your exposure level, allowing you to safely exit and explore on foot a bit longer.
13 of 14: Another important "foot soldier" note is that killing enemies with the Mako's weapons gets you less XP than if you killed them while on foot. Some enemies are too big and powerful for your squad to handle, but many aren't, so you may want to maximize your XP by getting out of the Mako to kill them. If so, you should fire on them at extreme range with the sniper rifle whenever possible.
14 of 14: If you want to leave a planet and come back later with a different squad or a higher-level character, you can usually choose to instantly return to the Normandy by pressing the Return to Normandy key if you're in the Mako, or by using the "Return to Normandy" button at the bottom of the area map if you're on foot (and on the planet's surface rather than inside a building).
