Genre: Third-Person Shooter
Year: 2008
Developed by: Epic Games
Published by: Microsoft Game Studios
Platforms: XBOX 360
#39
Feeling Like: Chainsaw Man
My first apartment was on View St.
Dobbo and I moved in on New Year’s Eve, January 1st 2008. I remember celebrating with a high five in the stairwell while we were moving some furniture up that wouldn’t fit in the elevator. Not the wildest party I’ve been to.
It was about as basic a domicile could be. We had a dining room table that we never ate at, we had a galley kitchen that was only used for unpacking pizza, but we were content with our dwelling. The one drawback was the fact that we were located on the top floor with carpeting, which meant in the summers the heat was oppressive.
We were also smack dab in the middle of Seagull territory. Seagulls apparently mate in the summer, although I’m no ornithologist so maybe that’s not true. What I can tell you is that when we’d open the windows and doors to let some non-stagnant air in, we were met with incessant bird screams for hours on end. I remember one morning, I was unpleasantly awoken by the myriad of Seagull songs at 6am. I heard a neighbor open his window and scream, at the top of his lungs, “SEAGULLS! SHUT THE FUCK UP!!!”
I could hardly blame him.
It was during a particularly hot summer that Commodore and I continued our Gears of War tradition of playing through the entire campaign co-operatively. It worked, for the most part. The TV I acquired with my first big commission paycheque was enormous, perfect for split-screen. The couch was comfortable, but didn’t exactly keep us any cooler. Fans were employed, but seemed useless. Beer helped distract us, but it was hardly air conditioning. While the environment we played in was nowhere near optimal, what we experienced on the screen was.
Gears of War 2 is indisputably the best of the franchise and that is really saying something.
The variety of the levels is what I remember most. Because the COG soldiers have to go into the Hollow, every area seems darker and more sinister than before. Into the belly of the beast, as it were. And literally! One area had the Commodore and I trying to saw our way out of a giant worm’s stomach after we’d been swallowed whole.
This is why I play video games. I want to have 25 inch biceps, I want to be brave in the face of disgusting danger, I want to use my chainsaw bayonet to cut a monster in half. Very few games give me that opportunity, and none are as viscerally satisfying as Gears of War 2. Each area felt bigger and more bombastic than the last. Set pieces were more elaborate and grander in scale than Gears of War. The section where we’re following a vehicle on foot in nearly complete darkness was a thrill. Step outside light, and it’s instant death. The complete absence of sound led to Commodore and I to be nearly silent ourselves. You can hear virtually every step you take. It’s a brilliant part in a brilliant game.
I haven’t mentioned the “active reload” in any other Gears of War entries, so I’ll do it here. It’s such a simple premise that adds so much to the gameplay. Every time you hit the reload button, a small line starts to move along a bar. Pressing the trigger when the indicator matches up with another white line is what you’re aiming for. If you succeed you’ll reload more quickly, but you’ll also do a short bonus damage burst. Fail, and your gun will jam. Also, there’s a good chance you’ll hear Marcus or Dom swear while banging on the weapon, which is kind of funny.
I don’t think I’ve seen such a mundane action that I do a billion times in shooters turned into an enjoyable activity. I don’t know if it gets mentioned much in reviews, or if it’s maligned among the fans, but I adore it. It wouldn’t be a Gears game without it. Depending on the weapon, it may be easier or more difficult to nail the perfect active reload, adding another level of strategy to which instrument of death you employ. It’s as Gears of Warsy to have active reload as the twang to signify the end of a combat section, or the Chainsaw Bayonet, or Marcux Fenix himself.
The Locust really are terrific enemies. You don’t want to be fight humans in this universe, because massacring them up close with this level of gore wouldn’t be nearly as palatable. You want something alien looking, but not entirely alien so you don’t have to worry about spaceships or their origins. Everybody hates bugs, so that’s an easy target. But they’re also humanoid enough so that they obey the same movement rules AND can talk in a sort of gargled roar. Their design is really under appreciated, I think.
The ending was a bit of a letdown and it’s impossible not to note how grey/brown the graphics are, but those are about the only shortcomings I can think of. Seeing Dom finally get to his captured wife Maria led to a surprisingly poignant moment. Just because the protagonists look like roided up linebackers with guns the size of telephone poles, doesn’t mean they don’t have proper motivations. They’re interesting, they feel like real people would be in this kind of conflict. The voice acting is top notch. Shooting anything feels like it could put a crater-sized hold in wall. The scenarios are thrilling, and while we sweat it out on the couch trying to keep cool, it felt appropriate as we guided Dom, Cole, Baird and Marcus through underground ruins and waves of snarling beasts. The heat was on.
I can’t do the game justice in this post. All I know is that because of the stellar co-operative campaign experience with my good buddy Commodore, it vaulted into hallowed territory. And that’s not even mentioning the superlative multiplayer that came with it. Horde Mode warrants its own entry that I’m not prepared to write, but just know it’s as good as the campaign, if not better. I doubt we’ve seen the last Gears of War game ever, but I do doubt we’ll see another Gears as good as Gears of War 2 ever again.
The 500 