Review-Gears of War

Not since Halo 2 has a game been hyped up to a level of pure madness. The Hype Scale was long busted leading up to the release of this game and did it live up to the Hype?

YES!(For the most part)

Story-9.0/10

You start off as a soldier who is in prison(Marcus Fenix) who is busted out by his friend Dominic Santiago. He tells you suit up as they must leave Immediately because something sinister has happened to this planet called Sera. The Locust Horde are these underground lifeforms who on Emergence day(Sneak attack on the humans) rise up from the ground and try to takeover the planet by killing anyone who stands in there way. You must fight off these creatures who come in different species(Berserkers give me the creeps) and try to make a plan to stop these horrid creatures.

One thing I disliked about Gears of War is the lack of backround story. There were some questions that were left unanswered

• Who really is Marcus Fenix?
• What are the intentions of the Locust Horde?
• Who is the leader of the Locust Horde?
• What are the origins of the Locust Horde?

These and others are not answered and with a game which tries to be cinematic doesn’t deliver on this. Also how the game ends Guarantees that a Sequel will be made to follow up this game.

Graphics-10/10

Gears of War has the best graphics that I have ever seen in a video game. From the environments to the details on the characters this game is BEAUTIFUL! If you own a high definition T.V and want to show off to your friends this is the game to show. Stunning, beautiful, are words that come to my mind when seeing these graphics and right now no other game comes close. From war ravaged streets to underground caverns to Gothic homes this game is simply a visual masterpiece. Also take a peek at the dead bodies of the locusts and watch the detail of the shot limbs and pieces of brain laying throughout the floor. If you love Violent games these graphics will really satisfy your violent side.

Sound-10/10

Another great feature of Gears of War is the well done sound effects/music. Hearing a violent rumble means locusts are coming up from the ground. How about hearing the eerie breathing of a Berserker hot on your tail. Put a chainsaw through a locust and hear how the saw rips the flesh and blood gushes. How about you’re walking through a vacant house and hearing windows smashing when nothing is in sight. When the battles are intense I love how the war music plays and it really adds to the drama of the fight. Oh and hearing those wretches yell at high pitched tones really sends chills down your spine. For you gamers who own 5.1 audio surround sound speakers prepare to be spoiled.

Gameplay-9.4/10

Take Cover, Shoot, Reload, Take Cover(rinse and repeat) this is the formula for gears of war. The A button is your cover button and you will be pressing this button alot. Press A to lean against a wall, while holding the A button flick the analog stick left or right to go in those directions. While holding the A button flick the analog stick up or down to roll forward or back. You can press the L button to aim closer, RB to reload(make sure to hit the white marker in the middle) and B for the famous chainsaw kill. Also when you lean against a wall a display will come up on the screen to show you your movement options. Another cool feature is the regenerating health feature.

The gears of war logo(Crimson Omen) shows up on your screen when your taking damage. If you see the logo almost complete take cover and let the logo fade away. If the logo completes itself….you’re dead! Also don’t expect your virtual comrades to help you out as they’re dumb as a doorknob and they just serve as distractions. Sometimes they will get stuck in a rock(Yes IN A ROCK) and they simply die too much.

The gameplay  of Gears of War is tactical and some people may be turned off by the “Stop and Pop” gameplay of Gears. Another negative is the chainsaw is affective when you actually do  the move but sometimes its so inaccurate that it takes the fun away from this great weapon(Especially in Multiplayer)

Multiplayer-9.7/10

The Multiplayer in Gears of War is great! You can do system link up to 8 players, Splitscreen Co-Op and all the multiplayer modes from Xbox Live. On Live you can also do Co-Op, and you can choose from 3 different types of multiplayer modes which are Warzone, Assassination, and Execution which pit COG vs Locust.

Warzone is your regular team deathmatch, In Assassination you must kill the designated leader. In Execution the only way to kill the player is in a close ranged kill(Chainsaw for example). There are 10 multiplayer maps which range from small to medium and are mostly for close quarters combat.

Again I say this game looks great even in Multiplayer mode(unlike other games like GRAW) and it has the same great quality from the single player campaign. Co-Op is very fun and I enjoy playing it either on LIVE or locally on the xbox 360. Some negatives are no party system, can’t play with friends in ranked matches and alot of connection issues with ranked matches. Overall the multiplayer is great which will keep you coming and I expect more maps to be available for download on the marketplace soon.

Overall-9.7/10

Gears of War has been hyped since May 2005 and I say it’s the best xbox 360 game released so far. Great Graphics, great multiplayer, good story, great weapons, Gears of War is simply Great. I highly recommend gears of war for those of you who are still on the fence on getting this game and I look forward to more Gears of War in the years to come.

Overall-9.7/10=Highly Recommended