Gears Of War 2 was released in 2008 to huge critical and commercial acclaim. This game would stay an Xbox 360 exclusive and would not see a port on the PC. The game is regarded as one of the best shooters in the whole Xbox 360 library.
Story & Presentation
Wow where to start? Gears Of War 2 followed on from the events of the first game where you play as Marcus Fenix and Delta Squad. The story here though as well as trying to eliminate the Locust will see you trying to rescue Marcus’s father and Dom’s wife. Both of whom are missing. The part of the story that deals with Dom’s wife is one of the most emotional things I have ever experience in a video game. It’s amazing to think that a 3rd person shooter that sees you trying to kill everything can also have such a strong emotional impact on you. The guys who wrote the script and the voice actors really could not have done a better job.
The bond between the characters is even stronger in this game and you get to know each one a little better and it really does make you actually care about what happens to these guys. I cared more about them than I actually did the other humans on the planet Sera who you were trying to save. I had such a connection with these guys that I would have sacrificed the whole planet Sera to save one of them!
The game is just beautiful to look at. From the destroyed city remains, Marcus Fenix’s fathers mansion and the underground caverns the Locust call home. The game just looks incredible in every single way. Honestly even if this game is not your cup of tea there is no way you could not admit that this game looks amazing. Once again the voice acting is just superb and it makes you see these soldiers as real people. I cannot say enough good things about the presentation of this game.
Gameplay
The core game play many people said when the game was first released was just the same as the first Gears Of War. Well there were many changes made to the game play that make this a much smoother game play experience. One thing they added that I got a huge kick out of was the ability to grab a Locust and use him as a shield. You can also stick explosives to areas which can give you a pretty big tactical advantage. The game also introduced some new heavy duty weapons in The Mulcher and the Mortar. These are just there of the new things that were added which make the action in this game more fun than it was in the first.
The single player story that Gears Of War 2 is at least a few hours longer than the first game. And like we already said it is just an amazing story. One that will stick with you for a very long time and one that you will probably want to experience at least once again after you have beaten it. I personally have played through the game four times and it has never gotten old.
Gears Of War 2 made some major changes to the multi player. They made it much more balanced this time around. Many people said that the shotgun was way to overpowered in the first game, well that was now fixed. They even added some new game modes including the awesome five vs five Locust vs COG battles. Playing these is just as much fun now as it was when the game was released. Epic Games really did do a great job in making the multi player so much better in Gears Of War 2.
Final Thoughts
Gears Of War 1 is a great game, but Gears Of War 2 is better in every single way. The story is still with me all these years later as are the memories of the late nights I would spend playing the multi player with my friends. If you want a fantastic 3rd person shooter that has a great story and a fun multi player then this has to be a game you pick up. This along with the other three Gears Of War games should b legally required to be in any one who likes action games collection.
