Gears of War 2 is coming out this Friday, and I for one am very excited. I looked through the forum to see if anyone has made a topic, and didn't see one.
Changes to Single/MultiplayerFor Single-Player, the scope of the game has been raised. Instead of small skirmishes the player becomes apart of something bigger. For instance, Brumaks, a creature seen only briefly in the PC version of Gears of War 1, will make multiple appearances in the game. Also, the producers of GoW2 have given the
Locust more of a background to their motives in the war on humanity. As far as gameplay goes, the overall difficulty of casual mode has been reduced, and your team mates will actually advance through the battlefield without you instead of shooting from behind bunkers fifty feet away from the action.
For multiplayer, four new game modes have been added. For starters, there's
Guardian mode, which is a remake of Assassination mode in the previous GoW. In Guardian, players can still fight after their leader has died, but they lose the ability to respawn for the remainder of the round. Another game mode,
Submission, is similar to Capture the Flag, only instead of a flag players drag a corpse back and forth. The third new mode is called
Wingman, splits the 10 players into five teams of two for more frantic gameplay. The final new game mode, called
Horde, pits five players against fifty waves of Locust. For the first ten waves, player's fight an increasing number of enemies until level 11, where the enemy cycle repeats itself, only the locust will be harder to kill.
In addition to the new game modes, GoW2 will feature 5v5 matches instead of 4v4, players can now move their camera where ever when dead instead of the old static camera, and GoW2 is adopting a halo-esque matchmaking system.
New/Altered WeaponsScorcher Flamethrower -- This sucker will appear only once on a multiplayer map. It benefits from a longer range if you can hit the active reload perfectly and will glow red when it's ready to bring death to the masses.
Gorgon Burst Pistol -- Faster rate of fire than other pistols and shoots in short bursts.
Poison Grenade -- Spews a nasty purple haze that brings down everyone in its path.
Shield -- This sucker can be chucked into the ground beneath you and used as stationary cover. Of course, you can also carry it around and use it in conjunction with a pistol.
Mulcher(Chaingun) -- Shown in the Gears Of War 2 gameplay video at E3 2008, This version is portable, and so far holds 500 rounds. It also will overheat if used too long
Mortar Cannon -- Shown in an E3 interview with Cliff about Horde Mode, it's basically the same type of mortar cannons that they use today except you can blindfire it from your waist, aim and shoot it, or plant it on the ground and aim and shoot it across the level.
Lancer Assault Rifle -- You've heard this before, this armament from the original now has a tie-breaker for chainsaw kills. Mashing the B-button as fast as you can could lead to three outcomes. First, you win and slice through your opponent. Second, you lose and meet the same fate. Or third, there's an improbable tie and you both step back to go at it again (or whip out a shotgun and own their face). And no, you're not invulnerable for any part of the animation, also screenshots reveal the Lancer has a longer barrel, possibly hinting the fact the Lancer might be more accurate at longer ranges. Note: Chainsaw Duels in Gears of War 2
Hammerburst Assault Rifle -- This Locust rifle from the first Gears is back and can now fire with higher accuracy at longer ranges and does more damage. Players can also fire with a fan method (holding and releasing the right trigger) that will allow for a quicker rate of fire at the expense of accuracy.
Boltok Pistol -- This sucker is back from Gears 1 and now has a quicker rate of fire after an active reload.
Smoke Grenade -- These are now home to a concussion blast that will knock a shield out of someone's hand while disabling their sight and overall equilibrium. Any of the grenade types in the game can also be stuck on walls and will act as proximity mines.
Super Weapons -- The Hammer of Dawn is back of course, but there will also be other super weapons joining the roster such as the Mortar Cannon.
Of all the new gameplay changes, the addition of Stopping Power is the biggest. In GoW2, hitting a player repeatedly with any sort of long-range weapon will cause the player to get knocked back. This means no more rushing players with a shotgun D:
ReceptionOverall, GoW2 has gotten an amazing Reception. With
Gamerankings showing an average score of 95%, it's clear that GoW2 is quickly becoming a must-have game for shooter fans.
Release DatesXbox 360 - November 7th, 2008 (everywhere)
PC - ??
So, is anyone else excited for GoW2? I'm looking to get a group together to beat Horde mode when the game comes out, so if you're interested post here/send me a pm
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Gears of War 2