Riachu

User Score
9.6

Presentation - 9.5
Gameplay - 10
Value - 9.5

Gears of War 2 was the hotly anticipated sequel to 2006’s Gears of War.  The first game was praised for its gameplay and at the time, groundbreaking visuals.  However, there were complains from both critics and gamers.  One of the most notable complaints was that the story and characters were paper thin and the writing was sophomoric.  Cliff Bleszinki took note of these criticisms and hired novelist Joshua Ortega to pen the sequel’s script.  Bleszinski also promised that the game as a whole would be bigger and better than the first game.

Graphics:  Gears of War 2’s graphics are only one small step above the original.  Is that a bad thing?  No.  The original had fantastic graphics and are still impressive.  However, the sequel has more color and variety in the environments.  Animation, polygons, and textures are all top notch.

[img]http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2009/084/938611_20090326_screen006.jpg[/img]

Story:  The story follows Marcus Fenix, Dom Santiago and company to defend humanity from the Locaust.  Dom is also trying to find his wife, Maria.  Gears of War 2’s story is definitely better than the originals.  There are some surprising plot twists and it is way more coherent.  Unfortunately, the writing is still subpar and the characters are for the most part one dimensional.  It’s not a bad story but anyone expecting the depth and complexity of Metal Gear Solid 4 should look elsewhere.

Gameplay:  There are two modes of play in GeoW2.  There is the campaign and the multiplayer.  The campaign is 10-12 hours long and has plenty of variety.  You will never do one single thing for too long.  You will regularly switch between shooting at Locausts, walking around, and watching a cutscene.   Now let’s talk about the multiplayer.  There are several modes of multiplayer with the most notable one being the Horde mode.  In this mode, you will continuously fight enemies from all directions trying to kill as many as possible without losing all your tries.  The gameplay is very fun.  This is in no small part due to the fact that this game has some of the best controls in any shooter ever made.  They are very intuitive and are easy to master.

[img]http://ui22.gamefaqs.com/597/gfs_114019_2_2.jpg[/img]

Sound:  The soundtrack is great and many tunes fitting the mood of the situations of the game.  The sound effects are very impressive and are very convincing.  They really show off the power of each weapon.  For the most part, the voice acting is very strong and fits the personalities of the characters like a glove.  John DiMaggio of Futurama fame in particular does a great job as Marcus Fenix.

Replay Value:  Even when you beat the 10-12 hour campaign, there is still the multiplayer mode that will have you playing this game for weeks if not months.  It is also getting the additional achievements even if you have to play the campaign again.

Overall, Gears of War 2 is everything Cliff Bleszinki said it would be.  It is bigger, better and more badass than the first game.  The tight controls and strong replay value make this game a must for fans of shooters and great games.  Go out and buy it if you haven’t already.