Difficulty:

Just Right

Time Spent:

10 to 20 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Just plain fun"

Pros:
-Great graphics
-Excellent cover based mechanics
-Multiplayer is solid and has lot's of features
-Weapons are fun to use and feel great to shoot
-Campaign is solid and of decent length
-Co-op is excellent
-AI is intelligent and challenging

Cons:
-Weak storyline and characters

Gears of War may not have an impressive or engaging storyline, it may not be a game that you come away with thought provoking ideas, however what it does do is it put's a smile on your face by simply being such a joy to play! What you have here is a great, solid action game that will keep you coming back for more.

You play as Marcus Phoenix, a prisoner who has been set free in order to help in the fight against the Locust Horde, a reptilian monster race that lives deep underground (The planet Gears takes place on has no core) and have begun to destroy the world. The storyline and characters are pretty straight forward, and pretty weak. The plot is predictable and the characters have two dimensional personalities, at no point do you ever care about what is going on or what is happening to the characters themselves.

However don't let that stop you, the gameplay is great and the campaign is very intense. The first thing you will notice about Gears is how great it looks, at one point it was the graphics king, but even to this day it still looks quite nice. The textures have good detail, the lighting looks dynamic, it's definitely a joy to see on an HD TV. The art style also helps, it is fairly grey and war torn, but that is how it's supposed to look, the result is that it looks like there has been intense fighting going on for quite some time.

The gameplay for Gears is solid, you can take cover with ease and pop in and out with finesse, the guns are all great to shoot and feel powerful, Epic has got the combat down to perfectly. The enemy AI is also just as great, they too take cover and will often employ different tactics from overwhelming you in rushes, to flanking you, to much more. Playing on harder difficulties will provide a great challenge for players to keep coming back to.

The campaign of Gears is of decent length, and it's quite solid and different scenarios keeps the game feeling fresh, in one level you will have to make your way through deadly streets at night time while trying to stay in the light to avoid dangerous bat like creatures, while another will have you running for your life from a huge Locust female, and another will take you for a Donkey Kong like mine cart ride, Gears just keeps throwing new surprises at every turn! The campaign can also be experienced with a friend in co-op, it is a great way to experience how much great teamwork there is in Gears.

Outside of the campaign there is the multiplayer, these consist of fairly small player counts but provide a great experience nonetheless. These tend to be fast, intense, and very fun! It is also packed with many features that keep you coming back to the multiplayer again and again.

Gears of War is a great fun ride that has solid gameplay that makes up for it's weak storyline and characters. This is a game you can pop in and just have a good time.

Gears of War get's a 9/10