GOW 2 review day

ROC1977

lOLOLOLLO haaaa!!! They gave the force unleashed 8.2 out of 10 and 10 for graphics. lol ENough said about game.ie

FreeOSCAR

So the whole package a 7? Whatever game.ie, enjoy your 10 hits a day or whatever you get.

Helix

ROC1977 wrote: »

lOLOLOLLO haaaa!!! They gave the force unleashed 8.2 out of 10 and 10 for graphics. lol ENough said about game.ie

different reviewers like different things

Helix

ROC1977 wrote: »

Thats the worse review I've seen. 7 for graphics, what are they playing it on a black and white tv. No doubt in my eyes the best graphics on the 360 yet, if not some of the best on any system. What a complete load of bull. do those tits get paid to review games? I hope not. I must have a look at some of the other reviews they give.

i have to defend the graphics scoring here, ive a-b'd gow and gow2, and theres not much of a difference on a 40" lcd at 1080p

Helix

FreeOSCAR wrote: »

So the whole package a 7? Whatever game.ie, enjoy your 10 hits a day or whatever you get.

if you disagree, we're always looking for more contributors so why not get involved and get your own reviews out there?

NunianVonFuch

Its a bit daft arguing over the scores when the game isn't out yet. Although they did give Brothers in Arms:Hell's Highway 8/10 which I thought was very repetitive and certainly not worth more then 5. A real chore to finish. (just copped its different reviewers )

Also they discount the multiplayer section entirely, which I'm assuming means they didn't play it on co-op at all. Kind of pointless then, whole game is built around teamplay. Sure the AI may be half decent but if you're just looking at playing it solo the game can get 1/10 for all I care. Never touched the first game in solo mode, co-op all the way!

Helix

he actually played through the game start to finish in co-op lol

NunianVonFuch

Helix wrote: »

he actually played through the game start to finish in co-op lol

He never mentions it in the review though. Just that there is a "presence of at least 2 combatants" not whether or not they are AI or human. It reads like he played it through in solo as he should have gone into a smidge of detail on the co-op element and its difference to gameplay compared to the singleplayer.

Helix

heres another GOW2 review for you all to disagree with, this time its mine:

2006 saw the release of Gears of War, a title that would go on to be one of the most loved and biggest selling titles on the Xbox 360. That two years on there is still a huge online community is a measure of just how big an impression the game made on the consciousness of gamers world wide. While a sequel was always going to be inevitable, the question in most people’s minds was how you can possibly follow a game like that… well now we have the answer.

Following the failure of the Lightmass bomb, detonated at the end of the original game, the Locust rallied their troops and hit back stronger than every witnessed before. Violent tremors are tearing the tectonic plates apart, whole cities are disappearing into holes in the ground and the entire human race is faced with extinction. Their final hope is that COG can end the war for good, this time by taking the fight to the Locust on their own doorstep, the vast caverns and tunnels beneath the planet’s surface.

And so you once again take the role of Marcus Fenix as he leads his Delta team into the belly of the beast, this time supported by every available soldier mankind has left to offer up in its bid for survival. From the first second you glimpse the title screen, you’ll be sure of one thing… Gears of War is back.

Those expecting much by way of progression from the first game will be disappointed; not much has changed. The control system has remained wholly intact, but with two new additions. Firstly you can now use fallen enemies as shields. A quick tap of the A button will allow you to pick up a dead foe and hold him in front of you to provide protection that will so regularly be required. The second addition is a slight revamp of the melee system, allowing for chainsaw duels between you and the enemy. In order to come out on top, you’ll have to relentlessly tap B until you can overcome your opponent and finish him off. Everything else you’ve come to expect from Gears remains essentially untouched, including the cover system that quickly became the standard for all third person shooters.

There are plenty of new weapons for you to play with in both single player and online modes, including wonderfully destructive mortars, the Mulcher mini-gun, and most fun of all the Scorcher flamethrower. There’s something hugely satisfying about wading into a pack of enemies and unleashing all sorts of hot, flaming hell upon them. Even more fun online than it is in the campaign mode, just be prepared for tirades of abuse from whoever is on the receiving end of it, not that you’ll care.

Visually, Gears of War 2 looks pretty, but fanboys please forgive me for saying that it’s not all that much of an improvement on the original. The textures are a bit more detailed, as you’d expect with it coming two years after the original, and the character detail is a bit sharper, but it’s nowhere near as impressive now as the first game seemed on release in 2006. Both games run at a steady framerate, and both provide the same involved intimacy while running and taking cover so it’s no bad thing that the graphics are much of a muchness, they did the job in Gears and they continue to do the job in Gears 2.

One thing Gears 2 does offer in terms of graphics that the original didn’t however, is a far more varied selection of environments. Gone are the predominantly dull palettes and washed out environments of the original, and in are lush green forest sections as well as sprawling cities, freshly pulled into giant wormholes under the planet surface. It looks more vibrant, and not quite as misty as the original, making for more impressive panoramas when you actually have the chance to stop watching your back for a second.
As before the sound is top notch, but retains the irritating gong type sound to signify the end of a wave of enemies in single player mode. I’ve never really been able to get my head around why a game that prides itself on ability to build tension through combat included an audible signal to tell you that the coast was clear. Aside from that slight niggle, the soundtrack and spot effects are every bit as good as you’ve come to expect. The chainsaw in particular still carries the same gratifying chug and squelching as you saw through a hapless enemy. There are few things in life as satisfying as chopping down a mouthy teenager online.

The campaign mode as apt as you could imagine from a company called Epic. The sheer scale of some of the set pieces is breathtaking, and the storyline progresses that of the original wonderfully. Be prepared for some truly exciting revelations, but don’t expect any Oscar winning twists to the tale.

Vehicles now feature more prominently in the game, and Epic have set up some exhilarating on the rails vehicle set pieces that will thrill you first time around. Replaying these sections unfortunately doesn’t bring with it the original sense of thrill. Once the initial buzz has passed, they can get a bit tedious. That’s not to say they’re bad or anything like it, they’re very enjoyable, it’s just that I’d have preferred a touch more non-linearity to these sections… but then we are talking about a game where the only real choices you have with regards to where you go and what you do, are the occasional on-screen pop-ups asking you to tap the left or right trigger to decide your path.

In the run up to release, we were hearing from the developers about how Gears 2 would take a slight deviation from the devil may care run and gun single player action from the original and instead be more focussed on a thoughtful pursuit of your goal. This is not the case for the most part unfortunately; you can still run in all guns blazing and fare pretty well, even on the toughest of the game’s difficulty settings. There are points when some caution is required, but they’re few and far between.

Unlike when you play online, where cautious approach is your only hope of lasting more than a minute. For me, a big problem with the original Gears of War online community was that it was just so bloody tough to crack. No matter how many chances you gave yourself to get stuck in and try to improve, it always felt like such a pointless exercise due mainly to the lack of decent matchmaking and the ridiculously over the top and territorial players who seemed to feel disgust towards any new players who had the audacity to try and play “their” game.

For the sequel, we were told that this would be looked at, and eventually a brand new matchmaking engine was created promising more evenly matched games between players of similar skill levels. So far I have not found this to be the case. Perhaps it’s going to be something that will take a while to settle down; with everyone starting from the same point, there are bound to be wild discrepancies between player abilities in the early days. But the current state of play is that the hard core of Gears players are still there, and they still make a point of crucifying newcomers to the extent where people may just not bother any more. It’s one of the major disappointments of GOW2 for me, especially as it’s such an enjoyable experience when you actually get to play a decent game with people of your own level. With the likes of the Call of Duty and Halo franchises, there was always a sense that you were getting somewhere online. Here tho it seems that unless you got stuck into the original Gears right from the start, and stuck with it all the way through, the chances are you’ll get very pissed off very quickly.

Despite this, Epic have delivered on several of their multiplayer promises. The co-op mode is again present and works fantastically well, this time with each player able to set their difficulty level independently allowing for a much more balanced playing experience. There are new online modes and adaptations available too. Horde, the most publicized and anticipated of the new online additions, pits five players in a battle for survival and high scores against ever increasing waves of enemies. Teamwork plays a huge factor in Horde; without it you’ll be lucky to get past the first couple of waves. It’s a tremendously enjoyable experience and certainly adds a lot to the longevity of the game.

The most interesting of the new modes is Submission. Think capture the flag, except instead of a flag, it’s capture the fully armed Stranded (controlled by a human player on the opposition team) and drag him back to the designated zone while the rest of your team protects you from enemy ambush. It’s far and away the most impressive of the online modes, but suffers from the same issue as old favourites like Annex; poor match making and obnoxious opponents.

Gears of War 2 is pure testosterone driven balls to the wall action from start to finish. As a follow up to the original, its progression is questionable and it does at times feel more like Gears of War 1.5 than it does a full sequel. If you enjoyed the original campaign then it’s most definitely worth getting for the new one, and if you were an avid online player previously, you’ll love the new modes and features, but all in all don’t expect to be blown away by anything new here. GOW2 is a very good game, but it’s essentially the same very good game that the original GOW was two years ago.

Graphics: 8
Gameplay: 8
Sound: 9
Replay Value: 8
Value for Money: 7
Overall: 8.4

NunianVonFuch

Helix wrote: »

heres another GOW2 review for you all to disagree with, this time its mine:

For the sequel, we were told that this would be looked at, and eventually a brand new matchmaking engine was created promising more evenly matched games between players of similar skill levels. So far I have not found this to be the case. Perhaps it’s going to be something that will take a while to settle down; with everyone starting from the same point, there are bound to be wild discrepancies between player abilities in the early days. But the current state of play is that the hard core of Gears players are still there, and they still make a point of crucifying newcomers to the extent where people may just not bother any more. It’s one of the major disappointments of GOW2 for me, especially as it’s such an enjoyable experience when you actually get to play a decent game with people of your own level. With the likes of the Call of Duty and Halo franchises, there was always a sense that you were getting somewhere online. Here tho it seems that unless you got stuck into the original Gears right from the start, and stuck with it all the way through, the chances are you’ll get very pissed off very quickly.

Hope its as you say where its just everyone starting off on the same tier. Couldn't really get into the multi of the first for the reasons you say above. Although my gf playing with the same folk was given special treatment and hints and tips to guide her along. Maybe the answer is to just put on a girlie voice and change ur avatar to female one for decent online play!

Helix

ahahaah thats quite the plan, itd probably work too lol

ROC1977

I think theres a big difference in the graphics from gears 1 and 2 myself. Liquids for example, and the way blood stains your clothes etc. Textures are far more detailed, way more on screen enemies, a lot more doing on.

And giving The force unleashed 10 for graphics, ya it looks good sometimes, but suffers from V sync issue and screen tare.

And like I've posted before I wasn't a fan of gears 1, but gears 2 is a much better game. Much more than a 1.5.

I mean what did people expect for it to completely change from gears1? Its a sequel, all sequels follow the same format.
Basically ya its like gears 1 but bigger and better. What gears1 should have been.
I'd be more pissed about games like fallout 3 which is the same game as Oblivion. Same animations, same game play. Only difference for me is the setting. Now if it was called Oblivion 2, grand. I couldn't stand Oblivion, got fallout 3. Started ok then back to the same old Oblivion crap. But I know others think its a great game. And it probably is, its just something about it is putting me off, that I can't just pin point.
Fable 2 is another started off "yeah this is cool" played it for a few hours, and that was it. finished it. I was like "what thats it, hardly an epic RPG adventure game. Good but far far far too short.