Comments
- on Dec, 8 2008
- in Gaming
I’m a newcomer to the Gears franchise, noting that I haven’t ever played Gears of War 1 aside from the briefest bouts of coop multiplayer on the first level or the occasional romp on Gridlock, a symmetrical multiplayer map that seems to hold the same esteem as de_dust does to Counter-Strike players. Despite the fact that I “missed the boat” for the first game in the franchise, I’m proud to say that that I just finished the 2nd game on “Hardcore” and I must say, I really enjoyed it!
I started playing Gears 2 in multiplayer as part of my job functions at gamerDNA, where I enjoyed some fun during a gamerDNA community night. Oh how I wish I got into the game sooner, as it really is one of the more engaging experiences I’ve had in a shooter. Everyone’s already aware of the whole “stop and pop” combat mechanic, as well as the “active reload” system, which frankly I think should be in more games, because there is something incredibly satisfying about nailing that reload and having your gun roll out a torrent of bullet justice.
But to me, Gears isn’t all about the gameplay – the graphics engine is just as important in how great the game is – I was continually impressed with the way the game looks, especially one particular sequence which really makes use of the “meatcube” technology displayed on the famous Unreal Engine tech demo (pasted below):
However, one of the mentioned technology bonuses comes from the ability for the engine to render multiple character models on the screen – sure, it looks really cool but without any kind of animation variety amongst the movements of the character, it looks like plain silly.
Another complaint that I have about the game is that it ends fairly flatly in my opinion – the game sets you up for a glorious boss encounter by the end of it, but instead that boss is killed in a rails encounter and the end of the game is essentially “point,click,watch” . There’s also a pretty annoying loose thread involving research in a biolab that never really gets explained – probably because it’s going to be in the sequel.
With that said, I am looking forward to the sequel, and I really think the game is one of the best entertainment experiences you can get this fall. I haven’t even discussed the multiplayer, but come on, you’ll love it!
