Those PS3 fans excited about the fact that the Mass Effect 2 port would be running on the Mass Effect 3 engine were a little disappointed when they fired up the demo to find that the graphics were not so superior, and more or less the same as they were on the Xbox 360.  Apparently, the demo isn't a true representation of the final product, since it was built using older tech.

When a flurry of users raised questions on Sony's blog, BioWare's community manager Chris Priestly confirmed that the build they used in the demo was actually two months older than the final version, and as such had much less of a wow factor.

It's up for discussion how much of a difference eight weeks can make on a game as robust as Mass Effect 2, but according to Priestly, fans won't be disappointed when the full release arrives:

"The demo was, for certification and testing reasons, about a 2 month older build than the final 'what you will play when you get it home' version. I think you’ll see that the game is noticeably better at launch. =)"

Those of us hungry to see the graphical prowess of the Mass Effect 3 engine will have no choice but to wait for the full port to be released, which thankfully is only a 2 day wait for those of us in North America and only 5 days for those in the United Kingdom.

With the impressive Mass Effect 3 trailer shown during the Spike Videogame Awards, we're sure a lot of curious BioWare fans are going to be beating down the proverbial doors to get a taste of what the engine can offer. Keep in mind that no matter the improvements, the PS3 port still won't compare to what Mass Effect 3 will eventually look like.

Fans can purchase the PS3 port of Mass Effect 2 in both blu-ray disc form and digitally from the PlayStation Store, and you've got several solid months of playtime before the third iteration of the series is released. Given the amount of DLC BioWare keeps releasing, though, you never how long you'll take to finish the game. You can check out our review of Mass Effect 2 here if you're still on the fence about buying the ported title.

What do you think about the demo using an old engine? Do you think two months is enough to build a significant difference? Let us know what you think, and be sure to return once you've played Mass Effect 2 on the PS3!

Mass Effect 2 will be released for the PlayStation 3 on January 18, 2011.

Source: Playstation Blog