Gears of War: Gears of War SE: Price: £49.99 Players: 1-online Widescreen: Yes 60Hz: Yes Dolby Digital 5.1 sound: Yes Xbox Live-enabled: Yes Downloadable content: Yes Gears of War is a third-person action shooter that has been long awaited by Xbox 360 fans, not only because it's appearing only on this console but also in the hope that it delivers the gore and noise and punch that a shooter delivers. It certainly does do that. It's also going to be November 2007 at the earliest before Halo 3 is released so fans of blasting have an appetite that needs to be sated in the meantime. The storyline doesn't have a great deal to it, but then it's not often that they do as all gamers really want to do is pick up their gun and fire away until the ground is laced with gory, alien blood.

Gears of War takes place in a post-apocalyptic world taken over by a breed called the Locust. As Private Fenix, a member of the Coalition of Organised Governments (COG), for reasons unexplained you're incarcerated and are busted out of prison to make your way to a chopper that'll take you to where the game proper starts, since this first section is a training level as you get used to the gameplay. Your aim, when you get there, is to find Alpha squad who have a sonic device that can stop the ongoing war. As one of the first games I played on the Xbox 360, I'd heard the graphics were good but they certainly transcended anything I'd seen before, particularly the classy dust and wind effects as some sections have a hell of a gust going through them and one level where the road opened up to a glorious, deep chasm. The classical-looking scenery looks lovely and movement is fantastic when you run and see a side-POV camera watching the action as you belt along. The cut-scenes, particularly those with plenty of action in, are what I can only describe as fucking amazing, and the graphics also DO stand up to a close-up look when you try just that, which is something that Call of Duty 3 failed on. As well as being a treat for the eyes, it's also the same for the ears and the Dolby Digital 5.1 sound really gives your speakers a damn good workout, even better than many an action movie. With mean monsters and gunfire all around, this can only continue throughout.

On the weaponry side, the main tool you'll use is the Lancer which holds several hundred rounds of ammo and pressing 'B' activates the chainsaw bayonet. Get the chance to get close to a baddie and set it off and you'll witness something so damn cool, but trying it on a more substantial creature and without wishing to go back to the last checkpoint is a real struggle! Another great weapon to get to grips with is the Hammer of Dawn, one that only works when outside and when the satellites are overhead to deliver justice! Just aim on the ground, wait for the strike and then move it gently towards additional targets. One character that this beast will sort out is the Berseker, a big bastard to beat and the first end-of-level boss. Some of the other enemies are Grubs, just like grunts from a number of other games. These are the lowest of the low, and they operate troikas, a bloody big chaingun that is very satisying to try out once you get the chance. There are Boomers who 'boom' a big gun, hence the name, and bat-like creatures named the Kryll, seen swooping around you during the second act which is another landmark feat in graphics for home gaming. There are no health power-ups in this game. If you're up against it then you'll need to rest and recouperate inbetween shooting. Your fellow marines will also take a number of hits so it's up to you to revive them. The plus side is that they rarely seem able to die when injured, crouching down. However, when under heavy fire, they get injured way too quickly, so even if you do help them out, they're still bound to get into trouble before the next checkpoint is reached. Don't they ever go for cover? You'd think these beefcake blokes could take more rounds than the average human, but then they don't look massively intelligent so perhaps that's part of the problem? Either way, this aspect does help in the process of, rather like Call of Duty 3, making you feel like part of a team on a single-player game. However, in the process of doing that... it's back to the last checkpoint!

Gears of War is good fun, but it does feel a bit empty and you get a bit tired of it after a while, just slogging on to the next level to see what is mostly more of the same but still looks very impressive. The gameplay is fluid but does have some irritations such as the fact it's not always easy to 'hug' a wall or a concrete slab so you can escape bullets raining down on you. Also, you make Sergeant after the first level and can then command your men. That said, they were following you all the while anyway for a lot of the time, or they get as far as the next door before you get there as well so it triggers them to move on further, so you may as well have been leading them then too; and at one point my teammate, Dom, kept saying "Negative" when I wanted to regroup, but I went ahead without him and at the next checkpoint I found he'd just 'followed' me behind(!) As you start a game you'll have a choice of skill levels with Casual - for an enjoyable blast, Hardcore - for a nice bit of a challenge and then there's Insane. Hmm... I wonder how hard that is? If you're not sure what to start with, get stuck in with the 'Hardcore' setting if you're into your first-person-shooters. If you want to change your difficulty level you can do this every time you start the game again to 'Continue Campaign' from the last saved checkpoint. Ammo is aplenty so you're unlikely to run out for too long and while achievements are available, you can also collect COG tags, left on the ground from fallen comrades. Xbox Live play is available and downloadable content includes free trailers and paid-for strategy hints and tips.

GRAPHICS SOUND EFFECTS AND MUSIC PLAYABILITY ENJOYMENT
OVERALL

Review copyright © Dominic Robinson, 2006.