Played on Hardcore Difficulty.
As the saga of the Beefcake Boys continues to evolve and grow ever more complicated, so does the capabilities of its developers.
Gears of War 2 extracts everything that its predecessor did perfectly in terms of level design, encounter structure, and weapon feel and adds a big splash of the biggest things that big prestige games today excel at: pacing and storytelling. Gone are the long, winding slogs of endless linked battles; in its place are excellent battles broken up by meaningful story beats, and entertaining breaks from the traditional Gears action.
There's a few wonky checkpoints that are a bit too long, and a few sequences that feel a little clunky involving some mounted turrets!
BUT
There's a tank mission!
There's a sequence that's a Panzer Dragoon-like where you ride a Reaver and spin around while shooting dudes!
There's multiple boss encounters that challenge your skill with the game's mechanics, as opposed to your patience!
There's some phenomenal musical score, and perhaps one of the earliest examples of truly genuine emotional storytelling in a game like this.
I stand in awe of everything Gears of War 2 represented in 2008, and what it continues to represent in 2021 on the Xbox Series X in pristine 4K at 60 frames per second.
God bless the Beefcake Boys. Onwards to Gears of War 3.
As the saga of the Beefcake Boys continues to evolve and grow ever more complicated, so does the capabilities of its developers.
Gears of War 2 extracts everything that its predecessor did perfectly in terms of level design, encounter structure, and weapon feel and adds a big splash of the biggest things that big prestige games today excel at: pacing and storytelling. Gone are the long, winding slogs of endless linked battles; in its place are excellent battles broken up by meaningful story beats, and entertaining breaks from the traditional Gears action.
There's a few wonky checkpoints that are a bit too long, and a few sequences that feel a little clunky involving some mounted turrets!
BUT
There's a tank mission!
There's a sequence that's a Panzer Dragoon-like where you ride a Reaver and spin around while shooting dudes!
There's multiple boss encounters that challenge your skill with the game's mechanics, as opposed to your patience!
There's some phenomenal musical score, and perhaps one of the earliest examples of truly genuine emotional storytelling in a game like this.
I stand in awe of everything Gears of War 2 represented in 2008, and what it continues to represent in 2021 on the Xbox Series X in pristine 4K at 60 frames per second.
God bless the Beefcake Boys. Onwards to Gears of War 3.