MrSarahLevine613 – There was a translation pre Artscroll – it was the Soncino.
It was like trying to read the English Law Reports. It was like a classical literal translation of the Gemara without much commentary.
It was no near as good as the Artscroll which not only translates but explains and comments on the Gemara.
Also Artscroll is a frum organisation producing seforim that have haskomas from our leading Rosh Hayeshivos, Rabbonim, and Gedolei Hador.
Soncino had no such Haskomas apart from say the English Chief Rabbi at the time of its printing.
There have been many questions asked of the company particularly about their Chumash and Tenach editions that included commentary from Bible critics, University academics and others. Many people found that learning from such seforim could lead to atheism or agnostic leading to doubts about faith we must have in the words of the prophets.
Also pre Artsroll there was Marcus Jastrow’s dictionary of the Talmud. Again although acclaimed by University scholars and the like, many frum people had problems with the Author, was he frum?
Like you said I was not lucky enough to have a chavruso for every seder in Yeshivah and many times I sat there with an open Gemara just staring into space and bored out of my head. If only there was the Artscroll Gemara then I would have had no problems!