Gears of War 2
The gears of war continue to turn as Marcus Fenix and his squad of Cogs go back into action. Gears of War 2 continues the story of Marcus Fenix and Delta Squad, locked in an increasingly desperate battle against the nightmarish Locust Horde for the survival of humanity. It is an epic saga of survival, loss, and retribution. Gears of War 2 raises the bar with the amazing technological advances of Unreal Engine 3, delivering a bigger, badder, and more intense experience.
Party system and skill-based online matchmaking - form a full or partial team with friends and continue together from match to match without the need to reform after each game. A skill-based online matchmaking system groups players of similar skill level together in competitive multiplayer matchesThe wait is over, Gears of War 2 has arrived. Ever since the original was released, fans have clamored for this sequel. Developed exclusively for the Xbox 360 by Epic Games, Gears of War 2, which has already garnered several awards, picks up six months after the events of the blockbuster original Gears of War. Players are thrown back into the role of Marcus Fenix, leading the battle for humankind’s survival against the Locust Horde. With innovative third-person tactical action gameplay and unsurpassed high-definition graphics, Gears of War 2 is a must-have game for the Xbox 360.
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Gears of War 2 offers stunningly realistic, vast environments to play in. View larger. |
The enemies in Gear of War 2 are huge and downright nasty. View larger. |
Huge Environments, Bigger Gameplay
For those who loved Gears of War, Gears of War 2 builds upon it in every way, but with several major enhancements. There are more weapons, bigger vehicles, and more action. The enemies are more dangerous, and the total experiences is more immersive than ever. And with a revolutionary tactical combat system, the game will require not just fast reaction times and shooting skill, it will also challenge you to devise a strategy that will work against the enemies who exhibit smart AI.
Jaw-Dropping, Realistic Graphics
Just as Gears of War did the first time around, Gears of War 2 ups the ante for graphical prowess. Combined with the sweeping vistas and evocative locales of Sera, where the story takes place, Gears of War 2 offers jaw-dropping graphics that are made possible through advances in Unreal Engine 3. New visual effects include ambient occlusion, dynamic shadows, improved character lighting, the ability to render hundreds of on-screen characters simultaneously, improved water physics, additional blood and bullet decals, advanced destructible environments, new weather effects, and the introduction of fluid objects.
Immersive, Gripping Story
Taking place six months after the end of the first game, Gears of War 2 returns the cast of characters of the original, including Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago, as well as several newcomers.
Novelist and comic book writer Joshua Ortega, who assisted with the writing, has created a story that is big on character development and personality. With a new in-game conversational camera system and multiple story arcs, the story is presented in a gripping cinematic style where characters gain an emotional depth that matches their realistic graphical representation.
More Characters, Upgraded Vehicles, Badder Weapons
Those who were impressed by the original Gears of War will be in for a real treat. New characters such as Tai Kaliso, weapons like the burst pistol, and huge vehicles like the COG Centaur tank will give players a whole new dimension and scope of gameplay in both single-player and multi-player modes.
Multiplayer Action with Xbox LIVE!
Gears of War 2 features a multiplayer mode that allows up to 10 simultaneous players for outstanding multiplayer fun. Taking full advantage of the Xbox LIVE service, which boasts 10 million gamers, Gears of War 2 features both competitive and cooperative multiplayer gameplay. Setting up games is simple with LIVE, and you have the ability to drop in and out of co-operative campaigns at any time.
Everything you loved about multiplayer in the original is back, including the classic death matches, but with this sequel there is an added emphasis on teamwork. New multiplayer game modes will require better coordination in order to win. The game also features voice support, so you can communicate with other players around the world — whether you’re on the same team or trash talking!
Gears of War 2 won several awards at E3 2008, where it was first presented, including Overall Best Shooting Game and Overall Best Graphics Technology of E3 2008 from IGN, as well as Best Action Game of E3 2008 from the Game Critics Awards.
User Ratings and Reviews
5 Stars Better than the orignal.
While GoW1 was good in it’s own way, it lacked length, level design, and some multi-player designs to stay appealing. GoW2 stepped it up to add story and length, while keeping quality play so it didn’t become boring. Level designs have improved since the original while staying true to the environment of GoW1. AI, with new creatures types, has also grown more to keep the challenges reasonable and fast paced. Like before, they’ve kept Co-Op and multi-player with system link and online. The best add on here to keep the game’s value high is survival mode. Grab some friends to let this game stay interesting and see how long you can last with good planning to stay alive! I recommended this for those 1st-person shooter people who love war and survival scenarios.
The only questionable parts of this game I didn’t like were the “shooting rails” where you are riding something on a designated path, but even that wasn’t bad overall and very few in amount. It does give you a chance to take in the scenery during in game sequences though on your ride between battle sections.
2 Stars Huge disappointment
As perhaps most of you reading this, I cannot enjoy the first Gears installment enough. Utterly addicting, unique, challenging, and fun gameplay. After managing to beat the first on insane mode, I could not wait to get out and purchase the second. It just *has* to be worth it, right? Wrong.
All the things that made the first Gears campaign enjoyable were lacking in the second. For whatever reason, suddenly your on vehicles seemingly all the damn time which completely deviates from what made Gears so unique and fun to play: duck and covering, and returning fire. All this time spent on vehicles, you’re just standing there blasting away, nearly completely unchallenged. Completely boring. What the hell, Epic?
The ending level for the first Gears was epic. Stuck on a train with exploding wretches, a bloody BERSERKER, and then to top it off you have to fight the general at the end. Who oh by the way, is surrounded by Kryll. And oh by the way, reavers are taking popshots at you all along the way.
Ending for Gears 2… … We killed the new general and didn’t even realize it. “Wait.. was that the new guy? Noo.. noooo.. that was completely lame.” And then instead of fighting a crazy absurd boss at the end, you sit in a helicopter and blast away with your hammer of dawn. Are you kidding me? How could Epic have thought this was a good way to end, especially in light of how utterly awesome the first Gears ended?
We spent the entire game with the mindset, “This has GOT to get better at some point,” and it never did. Just got worse and worse. Little time spent overwhelmed by Locust like in the first, more time spent aimlessly wandering around. One level, for instance, we went through an entire factory and the outside waiting to encounter.. *something*.. and you never do.
You spend a level inside a giant worm, for pete’s sake. Instead of battling and fighting the locust in the new and supposedly better sequel, you’re now spending your time running through an obstacle course.
The few times you ARE overwhelmed by Locust, you tend to have the new guns at your disposable. And while the new weapons are awesome and quite a treat to use, they make it a little too easy. Just pick up a mulcher and mow down all sorts of Locust. Grab that mortar and blast the heck out of everything.
All in all, the campaign mode for the first is on a completely different level. A level that’s actually challenging and enjoyable. The second was just.. painfully tedious and boring; can’t recall any times where we were challenged and had trouble proceeding forward.
Only redeeming quality for Gears 2 has been horde mode, where hey!, you can get surrounded by Locust and are presented with a challenge.
This isn’t even touching on how the trademark weapon of the game, the Lancer, seems to have suffered a downgrade. The hammerburst is now a better rifle (the zoom feature coupled with higher damage), and the only reason to tote around the Lancer is to use the chainsaw.
4 Stars Great game but still has many bugs
Although I really enjoy playing the game, xbox live can be frustrating to play on. If you are not the host you may be dealing with a lot of lag and then game play is horrible. You are penalized for leaving this game early and for this reason you must stick it out. Sometimes praying for the end of the game to come so you won’t have to endure another second. I blame this on xbox for using hosts that have terrible bandwidth and not being able to come up with a solution for lag switches. Even with all the bugs and problems with xbox I believe this to be one of my favorite multi player shooter games.
5 Stars Sergei63
Gears of War 2 Signature Series Guide (Bradygames Signature Series Guides) Good game and a lot of fun!
4 Stars Gears overview
Now, Gears of War 2 has one of the most intense, and absolutely amazing Campaigns of games to date. In Gears 1 you met Anthony Carmine who was killed by a bad turn of events (a little tragedy for those who played gears one) and now in Gears 2, you meet Benjamin Carmine (the Rookie, and Anthony’s brother) You play as marcus and train him, ooh getting off subject with spoilers, heh. I loved the campaign, you can play this over and over again without boredom. The Multiplayer, however is trash. The game modes are fun, but the Lag is absolutely unbearable! it can take up to 7 seconds for your bullets to hit the wall 5 feet in front of you! I wouldn’t buy this game if your just going after multiplayer experience. I will be selling this game soon, but overall i give this game a 3/5 for multiplayer, 5/5 for story, and 5/5 for equipment options.
Filed under: Xbox 360 Video Games