In an absolutely shocking turn of events, it’s been confirmed that Bioware’s next space opera RPG, Mass Effect 2, will ship out on two discs.

For PC owners of the game, this won’t be too bad (PC gamers have been used to multiple disc installations for years), but for Xbox 360 gamers, this could prove contentious, forcing one to swap discs in and out at inopportune times while playing… or will it?

According to Bioware’s community coordinator, Chris Priestly, the disc swap for the Xbox 360 version of Mass Effect 2 will be almost negligible, as the developers have ensured such as inconvenience won’t impact on the experience. From a recent forum post, Priestly said:

“Even though there is a disc swap, it occurs at a carefully planned place in the game (that does not interfere with gameplay) and is done once,” Priestly wrote. “You do not swap back and forth. 1 swap and then done.”

So in the end, more content equals more entertainment value, so one tiny disc swap isn’t going to hurt anyone. The rest of Priestly’s post follows below:

“Ok some details for you.

1 - Yes, there are 2 game discs for both the PC and Xbox 360 versions, both the Collector’s and standard editions.

2 - There is a 3rd disc with the Collector’s Edition. This is a movie DvD containing making of and other bonus information.

3 - The PC version is a standard install. You install the information from both discs and then play with 1 disc in the drive. No swapping.

4 - The Xbox 360 does not have an install and does require disc swapping during play.

5 - Even though there is a disc swap, it occurs at a carefully planned place in the game (that does not interfere with gameplay) and is done once. You do not swap back and forth. 1 swap and then done.

6 - Why 2 discs? Answer: Because you cannot fit this much awesome on one disc.

Hope this helps.”

Mass Effect 2 releases in North America on January 26th and Europe on January 29th, on Xbox 360 and PC.