Gears of War 2 Review

Six months have passed since the Lightmass Bomb has been detonated dealing a massive blow to the Locust Horde. The countermeasure was not without its negative effects as a fatal disease known as Rust Lung has begun to spread amongst the dwindling human population. To make matters worse, cities housing the remaining human survivors have been mysteriously disappearing underground. With the Locust Horde being suspected of this malevolent dead, and the city of Jacinto about to meet a similar fate, Marcus Fenix and the COG must take their battle straight to the heart of the Locust as humanity's last hope for survival. Gears of War 2 has arrived.



To say that Gears of War 2 is action packed is an understatement. It somehow manages to multiply the amount of aggression and gunplay to unprecedented levels. Larger varieties of enemy types will make themselves know often and as a force to be reckoned with. Newer grub enemies and others will populate the world and will come at the player in massive waves. Fights are on a much larger scale and players will be amazed at the horrific creatures they will encounter through their mission. New moves such as using enemies as a shield and new weapons will also be available to the player. The controls are also a bit tighter this time around for a much more fluid and responsive gaming experience.

Taking a chainsaw to your enemy's face never looked so beautiful. Graphically speaking, Gears of War 2 outshines the original. The Unreal 3 Engine is used masterfully as textures and lighting bring an amazing level of detail to the war torn world. The result of our heroes heading into enemy territory brings a very organic feel to the environments as denizens of this chaotic world will often be seen throughout the destroyed surroundings. It gives for a much different feel from the original Gears of War and it’s reassuring to see that Epic Games went to such great lengths to make this sequel as diverse from its predecessor as possible.



Speaking of improvements, the graphics aren't all that has changed for the Third Person Shooter. While elements such as intense shooting gameplay and not stop action were prevalent in the original game, the story took a bit of a backseat as sporadic cutscenes littered the action and often felt thrown in for the sake of a narrative. Gears of War 2 takes its major players into consideration and builds upon their emotion as their world is on the brink of complete collapse. There is a lot of anger and frustration to be found as these characters are given a chance to show their depth and vulnerability to the player. It is a vast improvement of the original and the drama only fuels the player's desire to see this mission through to the end.

As for multiplayer, 10-Players can now compete simultaneously across three of the new modes: Guardian, Wingman, and Submission. Guardian is similar to the Assassination Mode of the original Gears of War but will allow players to continue the action even after the leader has been killed. Wingman will split the 10 players into teams of two where both members of a team will play as the same character. And Submission is an altered version of Capture the Flag where players will have to eliminate an enemy and carry their corpse back to base to earn points.



With improvements in almost every department, Gear of War 2 is a must have title for any Xbox 360 owner. It is a thrilling experience from start to finish. It surpasses the original in every way and it will keep players entertained for a long time after the story has come to its end.