Gears Of War Right now

Last year when I decided to purchase an Xbox 360 despite already owning a PlayStation 3, it was because of a select few games that remained exclusive to the Microsoft console. Games such as Left 4 Dead, Halo, Crackdown and Mass Effect were incentives to purchase the console, but what finally made me get one was the anticipation of playing Gears of War. Being new to the series, I figured I should start with the first game of the franchise, so last year I purchased an Xbox 360 and Gears of War on the same day. This is a decision I wish I had made years ago.

The game starts off by placing the player in the shoes of Marcus Fenix, a member of a team known as "Gears", located on the planet Sera. Marcus commands a squadron known as Delta Squad, which includes characters such as Dominic "Dom" Santiago, Augustus "Cole Train" Cole, and Damon Baird. Their squadron is a member of the last remaining human government left on the planet, known as Coalition of Order Governments (COG). The responsibility of COG is to fight for humanity against the alien onslaught being driven by a race known as Locusts. Locusts are giant crocodile/human hybrid looking creatures who are capable of using heavy artillery against their enemies, in this case humans. Marcus is handed the responsibility of placing a resonator within the tunnels where the Locust reside, this will cause an outright extermination of the race, however the team did not properly diagnose the exact size and mapping of the tunnel the first time around, so players spent the rest of the game fighting their way through the Locusts until once again getting a chance to place a resonator within their underground tunnels.

The game features unique weapons and gameplay mechanics that make the game addictive beyond belief. Add in the ability to play the campaign mode cooperatively with other players or competitively against other players, and you have a winning formula for non-stop action. Health bars are absent, instead replace the system with status indicators which tell the player their current state of danger. This is done with the use of a flashing red screen that symbolizes impending doom unless the player takes cover long enough that the screen returns to normal. The ability to chainsaw opponents in half comes in handy, especially in instances where the player is bombarded by enemies such as Wretches. Enemies vary greatly from one another, and gameplay moments such as avoiding darkness to survive the attack of Krill is very unique.

Gears of War is visually stunning, and has mastered innovation on so many levels. The "cover mechanism" was relatively new to video games before Gears of War launched, and now it is common gameplay for third person shooters and is used in games such as Mass Effect and Uncharted. The character design is unique, the gameplay is solid, and the campaign and multiplayer modes are addicting. This makes for a great addition to any Xbox 360 collection, and Gears of War has quickly won its place on my list of favorite franchises ever created.Get more detail about Gears Of War.