Unless you’ve been living under a rock, or in this case, in an Emergence Hole, you’ve likely heard of the Gears of War franchise. The third-person shooter was released in November of 2006, exclusively for the Xbox 360, and quickly became one of the year’s biggest titles amongst critics and gamers alike. The game followed the soldiers of Delta Squad in their efforts to save the inhabitants of Sera from an unknown, subterranean threat. Placing a heavy emphasis on cover mechanics and co-operative play, both the campaign and multi-player modes offered an intense and immersive experience unlike anything to come before it. Can the much-anticipated sequel live up to the reputation of it’s predecessor? In the words of Lead Designer Cliff Bleszinski, “it’s bigger, better, and more badass!”
Gears of War 2 once again follows the story of Delta Squad, led by the game’s protagonist, Marcus Fenix. Picking up the story six months after the conclusion of the first game, we learn that the human inhabitants of Sera are growing more desperate. The Locust Horde have developed a means of sinking entire cities, and mankind is all but contained within their last standing sanctuary – the city of Jacinto. Refusing to surrender, the Coalition of Ordered Governments organize a final assault against their alien adversaries, sending their massive army, including Delta Squad, into the heart of the Locust Empire.
Overall, the story of Gears of War 2 feels much more fleshed out than that of the original installment. Touching on themes of love, death, and sacrifice, Marcus Fenix and fellow protagonist, Dominic Santiago, are forced to endure the tolls of war on a much more personal level. It’s a much darker chapter in the Gears of War story, but with more effort placed in developing dialogue and plot devices, it’s a much more compelling one as well.
The gameplay remains very similar to that of the original, with only a handful of changes being made to the core mechanics. Players may now crawl when downed, and rapidly press the A button to crawl faster. This enables players caught out in the open to crawl to nearby cover, or reach an ally before they bleed out. If you are caught in the downed position, however, be prepared to witness a gruesome demise! In addition the classic curb-stomp, Epic has included a wide variety of weapon-specific executions for your sadistic viewing pleasure. Pressing Y near a downed opponent will put your weapon to creative use and your enemy out of their misery. If you find yourself in a sticky situation and need a bit of extra protection, players can also pick up a downed enemy as meat shield. The meat shield will protect you from incoming fire, leaving only your head exposed while you fend off attackers with your sidearm.
All of our favourite weapons make a return in the sequel, but fans of the franchise will be quick to notice several balancing tweaks and enhancements. The Gnasher Shotgun – the most frequently used weapon from the first game – has a noticeably slower rate of fire. The Boomshot has a smaller explosion radius, but includes three shots instead of two. The Longshot Sniping Rifle will no longer down an enemy after an active reload – achieved during the famous reloading mini-game – but benefits from a more accurate headshot instead. Other weapons saw a more significant change: Smoke and Frag Grenades can now be planted as proximity mines on floors and walls, triggering when an enemy ventures too close. The Hammerburst Rifle – considered to be one of the worst weapons in the original Gears of War – not only saw a significant power boost, but can now be selected as an alternate starting weapon to the Lancer Assault Rifle. Don’t be so quick to dismiss the Lancer though, as it now protects you from chainsaw attacks in addition to handing them out. Whenever two chainsaws meet, the new chainsaw duel mini-game is initiated, prompting both players to press B as fast as they can. The losing player will suffer a beautiful, mature-rated fate sure to put a smile on your face.
A handful of new weapons have been added to the game, giving players an even greater choice when on the battlefield. The flamethrower deals massive damage at close range, capable of bringing down even the toughest of enemies in a matter of seconds. The new ink grenades explode in a cloud of poisonous ink, slowly killing anyone caught inside. And like the Smoke and Frag Grenades, Ink Grenades can be planted on walls to create a nefarious trap. A new class of heavy weapons have also been included – weapons so big that they prevent you from running while carrying them. The Mulcher is a massive mini-gun, capable of liquefying anything that gets in it’s way, and the Mortar will rain terror down upon distant enemies. Both weapons are capable of turning the tide of any battle, and are guaranteed to inspire fear in the hearts of your enemies. And lastly, in the spirit of cover-based gameplay, Gears of War 2 introduces a defensive weapon – the Boom Shield. The Boom Shield can be carried around for added protection, but at the cost of movement speed, or it can be planted in front of you as stationary cover.
The multi-player action in Gears of War 2 is far more robust than the original, with each match supporting up to ten players instead of eight. Warzone, Execution, and Annex have returned, remaining almost entirely the same. Assassination, now called Guardian, also returns, but with significant improvements. Players are now able to pick up weapons without their leader doing so first, and players will now respawn as long as their leader is alive. These changes are very welcome, and make Guardian one of the more enjoyable modes available. King of the Hill, a new multi-player mode, is similar to Annex, but features just one capture zone per round instead of several. Submission, a variant of capture the flag, features a neutral, Stranded character from the campaign mode that must be downed and dragged as a meat shield to a team’s designated capture point. Warzone features five teams of two squaring off in an Execution-rules deathmatch for survival.
The most popular new multi-player mode, however, is Horde. Horde mode pits a party of up to five players, working co-operatively, against waves of increasingly difficult AI enemies. With each wave, 50 in total, the enemies grow larger in number and strength. In order to survive, players must think fast and strategically or risk getting overwhelmed. Horde mode provides an amazing co-operative experience for a group of friends, and provides equally amazing stories the next day. Reaching wave 50 can take upwards of two hours, and can be a very rewarding experience for all who accomplish it.
The multi-player component is now powered by the Xbox Live Party System. A group of five friends can ‘party-up’ together and jump into ranked, public matches. The Party System ensures that the players will always be on the same team and never get separated. Those used to the lobby system from the original Gears of War may be disappointed, however, as you can no longer choose which mode and map you would like to play. Instead, your party joins one of the various playlists, each containing a collection of game modes. When all ten players have been assembled, they will be asked to vote on a mode and map. If no decision can be made, a random selection will be made by the match-making servers.
Graphically, Gears of War 2 is no slouch. The original Gears of War raised the standard for graphics seen in a video game, and the sequel raises the bar even higher. Using what Epic has dubbed ‘Unreal Engine 3.5′, the game enjoys the fruits of the many technical advancements made to the engine since 2006. Ambient occlusion, pixel-shading and improved anti-aliasing all add up to present a beautiful game, and one of the most impressive to date. But the Unreal Engine isn’t without its flaws, as texture-popping is still evident when loading a new level. Epic did their best to make the anomaly seem more natural, making the textures gradually increase in resolution rather than just ‘popping’ in, but it can still be a distraction at times.
Steve Jablonsky, known for composing some of the music heard in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, as well as the soundtrack for the Transformers motion picture, was brought on board to compose an original soundtrack for the game. The result is a gorgeous, cinematic score befitting of the ‘Destroyed Beauty’ theme, and is easily on par with most modern, action blockbusters. The voice-acting is also impressive, utilizing the same cast heard in the original title. It’s easy to hear that the actors themselves have grown more comfortable with their respective roles, capable of delivering believable performances throughout even the heaviest, emotional scenes.
Overall, Gears of War 2, like it’s predecessor, is a superb game. While the formula may have changed, most, if not all, will agree that it has changed for the better. The game offers endless amounts of gameplay, from the co-op campaign to the seven competitive multi-player modes and Horde, Gears of War veterans and novices alike are guaranteed to find something they’ll love.
