[comments] Gears of War 2 review

[charlesr]

Gears Of War 2 review

Thanks to Jamie for the banner and Keith for the words.

[ne0star]

Dont agree with some of it, but I suppose reviews in their very nature are a mater of opinion. All the stuff they miss from the 1st one is the stuff I was glad to see the back of.

[El Leone]

I'm pretty much on the same line as ne0star. Don't agree with some of it and I feel the reviewer has put critisim into the wrong areas. Still, tis a opinion as mentioned above so that be that.

[TheBlackLodge]

I'll echo the previous 2 posters.

[capcom_suicide]

Interesting review this one. Thanks for opening up the comments section.

This was an interesting line:

For all the grand scale, and the bluster, there is a strangely muted feel to Gears 2. It's almost as if there is something missing from the title.

I like the way that was written, and find myself in agreement.

I really loved GOW on coop, (Hardcore and Insane), I especially loved the closed in battles where you **had** to work together to get past mounted guns or bosses. I felt that what was missing for me in GOW2, was the team battles and closed in "Chess" tactics that were needed in the first game.

GOW2 is an absolultely stunning game in terms of visual quality and scale, but it left me even more disconnected from the characters than the first game.

I really hate the Warhammer style design and gothic arhitecture, but when it's been presented in such an awsome way it's impossible not to be impressed.

GOW2 hinted on some great ideas, like the moving stone worm, but for my tastes the SP lacked enough original ideas. It was still damn fun.

In conclusion I find myself agreeing with much of the review, but I think credit should be given to Epic for delivering a product that the fans wanted.

I'd agree with the score too, but would have said 9 for SP and 7 for MP (The bugs and issues with online are a terrible dissapointment for fans of GOW). GOW2 is a better looking more "Bad ass" game than the first, but as a gamer I'd say it was far less satisfying, despite the grand scale. GOW2 was more like watching a film. GOW was more like playing a challenging game.

Anyway, a really well written review, which I enjoyed reading, thinking about and in many ways not quite agreeing with. Good stuff.

[Ish]

For the most part I agree.

I thought it succeeded when it stuck to it's pop and stop gameplaybut when it strayed from this fell down. Particularly the boss battle with skorge which I never played passed. Just turned me right off.

[Pavey]

I'm not seeing the banners again

Can i have my fiver back?

[Rick]

I don't agree with the review. I found 2 to be a far better game than 1. I even enjoyed the story and especially the banter between the characters.

Beserkers were ****ing awful and glad to see the back of them.

Sadly missing from Gears 2 is the over the top, in your face attitude of the first title, replaced now with a grander sense of scale

I don't understand what you mean with this sentance.

[tbm]

Thanks for the comments everyone.

I always knew this would be a tough review. If I was lenient I`d be accused of chickening out, and if I was harsh I`d enrage those who gloss over the faults or just genuinely like the game. I tried to be as impartial as possible (I loved the first game, anyone who knows me will vouch for that) and for the most part, I feel as if I succeeded.

Sadly missing from Gears 2 is the over the top, in your face attitude of the first title, replaced now with a grander sense of scale

For me, Gears 1 was all close-quarters combat, married to a real **** you attitude that was at the time fresh and very entertaining. As stated in the review, my fondest memory of the original was playing co-op and in the cemetery, pissing myself laughing as I watched my co-op buddy being chased around by a Berserker in a Benny Hill style as I tried to line up the hammer of dawn. When the achievement unlocked (which I wasn`t expecting), well that was it for me, I couldn`t play for about 5 minutes through laughter! I got NONE of that in Gears 2. It`s so damn po-faced at times I feel like I?d shot its puppy, or embezzled its savings, something, I don`t know.

Sure, it looks stunning, and the sense of scale is really impressive, but I miss engaging with it on a base level. It?s almost as if I?m being ferried between set pieces as opposed to directing the action myself. But do remember, for all that I found fault I did enjoy the game, and it was afforded a really good score.

In the end, reviews are opinions, and I`m delighted to see that the members of NTSC-uk are enlightened enough to know this (but hey, we knew this already). Also, I could`ve requested that comments weren?t open for discussion on this review, but that isn`t my style. It won`t change my opinion of the game, but I genuinely welcome people`s point of view and the feedback generated

[Charlie]

I think it's a pretty spot-on review. The piss-poor story, laughable dialogue and, particularly, the lack of raw immediacy the original had in spades definite detract from the overall experience. It's still a very good multiplayer game but as a single player game it left me wanting.

[rmoxon]

GOW2 certainly has faults, as all games do really, and i'd never try and gloss them over, but I think this review is off the mark in a few ways. And Don't really agree with the fact that the single player part of the game is a letdown, the A.I. has been imprved greatly and a co-op partner is much less needed than in the first game IMO. I also liked the story for what it was and enjoyed the somewhat cheesy but fun dialogue.

Having said that I actualy do think the reviewer was trying to say what most of us do think of the game, and thats that it would have been better if it focused more on its core gameplay, and strayed less often from it for the sake of variety.

[Charlie]

The thing is for all of Gears 2's so-called improvements, it's less fun and less satisfying to play than the original and I don't know a single hardcore veteran Gears player who feels differently.

[El Leone]

Depends what you're talking about. Mutiplayer? Sure. Singleplayer? No.

[charlesr]

http://www.ntsc-uk.com/review.php?platform=360&game=GearsOfWar2

Experimenting with something. Thanks to Widegoat for providing some VERY nice Gears2 footage. Please take a look - link to the right of the review text.

[PeteJ]

Have you taken it down? Getting page not displayed on the video link.