Originally Posted by
NorthernChaosGod
Wait, what?! You can't check your inventory? =\
The inventory system in Mass Effect drew such huge criticism they almost completely removed it. Rather than an inventory of items, new equipment is unlocked as you progress. Before each mission, and occasionally during mission checkpoints, you can change which weapons you carry, or which armor you wear.
There are only a few variations on weapons this time. Rather than 10 different grades of 15 manufacturers of Pistols, for example, there are 4 or 5 different types through the game, with much larger differences between them. A fast weapon with low power but a lot of ammo, a slow but powerful pistol, etcetera.
Armor is broken down into body parts (shoulder armor, head armor, etcetera), but rather than being strictly damage absorbtion, each upgrade gives a particular type of boost. A monocle similar to Garrus's from ME1, for example, boosts headshot damage by 10%, while a straight helmet yields +5% health.
Rather than pure stats, ability augmentation is the primary focus of your squadbuilding and min-maxing. It is a fairly large change, and takes some getting used to.