So, let’s talk about Gears of War, shall we?
If I had to describe the game in one word, I would say that it was brilliant. Not a very good adjective but then again, one word is not enough for a game this good. Truly next-gen graphics coupled with exciting and engaging gameplay make this game one of the best out there, period. It’s as if Epic took the best elements of shooters over the years and put them in a blender with terrific graphics and unique gameplay mechanics. The result was a delicious serving of Gears.
The single-player campaign is fairly short - 7-10 hours on the easiest difficulty. You could probably cut that time further if you played co-op with a friend over Xbox Live, via System Link, or splitscreen on the same system. But whichever you play it, it’s short-lived. That’s one of two complaints I had the game. The other has to do with the A button. More on that later. The setup for the game is simplistic - humans have inhabited a planet known as Sera and things are all hunky-dory until Emergence Day. You see, an alien race known as the Locust has been digging under human settlements for years and finally, one bright Sunday afternoon, they decide to emerge. The emergence wrecks the planet and brings humanity to the brink of extinction on Sera. But valiant soldiers, known as Gears, continue a long, bloody battle with the Locust in an attempt to save humanity. You play Marcus Fenix, a Gear who was thrown into prison 14 years ago for disobeying orders. But now, as Coalition forces face a tough battle, you are freed by old friend Dominic Santiago and you rejoin the forces against the Locust. Your job is to basically destroy the Locust along with Dom, and other AI soldiers.
The game is played from a third-person perspective but the controls feel just like they would in an FPS. This is NOT a run-and-gun shooter - you need to fight intelligently by taking cover, choosing the right weapons, and paying attention to visual clues. Taking cover is definitely the best part about this game. If you see any barrier, get close to it and press A to take cover. You can pop out of cover to shoot and throw grenades. All weapons have a little zoom where you hold the gun close to aim better. You can roll around free areas by hitting A. If you are behind cover that’s not very tall, you can hit A to jump over it. You can also do a “roadie run” where you duck and run. You cannot use your weapons and lose a bit of control while doing this. Of course, this is also controlled by the A button. You see where the problem is? A controls too many things and although it simplifies the control scheme, it can make life hard at times. For example, if you doing a roadie run by holding down A and you run into a barricade, Marcus will take cover automatically. Same with rolling. It’s not a major annoyance, but it’s difficult in the final boss battle and in a few areas in the game.
But it’s a minor flaw. It doesn’t take away from the game too much. The weapons system is very rigid. You can carry four weapons: one pistol, 4 frag grenades, and any two other guns such as the Lancer (with a chainsaw to boot!), Shotgun, Sniper Rifle, Torque Bow, etc. You cannot throw away the pistol and grenades for other weapons, unfortunately. But it’s fine. You can actually see where the two larger guns sit on the back of the soldiers and you don’t have to wonder how they manage to carry a dozen weapons without even a backpack!
There are some really cool things you can do in this game. For example, the chainsaw on the Lancer is an awesome melee weapon. You can also melee with a frag grenade: stick it into a Locust and run! Then watch him explode to bits. All the other weapons can be swung to smack people in the face for melee attacks. The Torque Bow is a great charge-up kind of weapon. You point it at a target and let it charge up and then let go of the trigger. It will shoot a charge that will stick to the target and then blow up. And before I forget, allow me to talk about the Hammer of Dawn.
If you’ve played UT2004, you are probably familiar with the Ion/Target Painter. The Hammer works in a similar fashion. When the Hammer is online, point the gun at a target and keep the trigger pressed. In a short while, a satellite hovering above will fire down a powerful laser beam. This weapon is intended for larger enemies like the Beserkers and Seeders. You need open space and the satellite to be online for this. The last Act of the game is on a moving train. TimeSplitters 3 did that and I believe GoldenEye was the game to have a train level. Act 5 is a great way to wrap things up. The climax however, drops more than a hint about a sequel. There rumors of Gears becoming a trilogy, a la Halo. I think it will help Microsoft once Halo 3 is done. Then, Gears will be the new game to watch out for. I guess Gears of War 3 will come out for the Xbox 720.
Multiplayer is a little underwhelming but engrossing. You can go up against a friend via system link or splitscreen or hop on to Xbox Live to join the insanity. Epic says there is downloadable content coming our way soon and I hope it’s good! Heck, I’m eagerly waiting for UT2007. It uses the same Unreal 3 engine and if Gears and UT2004 are any indication, it will be another mind blowing game.
So, in conclusion, GoW is a great game. Even if the single-player is short, the experience is exciting and definitely worth the time and money. Xbox Live expands the experience and will leave you clamoring for more Locust to kill. If you have a 360 and don’t have GoW, then well, you might as well return that 360 or donate it to a kid who will actually play Gears. It’s a crime not to.
PS: Finals start on Monday and I’ll be on my way back to India Thursday night. Most probably no more updates until I get home which will the 23rd provided everything goes as planned. Man, I couldn’t be more happier that the semester’s coming to a close. It’s been the most difficult one so far and probably a fair indication of what’s to come at Columbia next fall. Hopefully next semester won’t be as bad.
There, now the title makes a lot more sense, doesn’t it?
