'Gears of War 2' upstages its predecessor

"Gears of War" was near perfection, but "2" surpasses even that.

By Chase Koeneke

Published Nov. 13, 2008

If you remember "Gears of War," you remember the disc cost 60 of your hard-earned dollars. With the release of "Gears of War 2," that disc is now a coaster. "Gears 2" is quite possibly the best game of 2008, an amazing feat considering this year also produced juggernauts "Fable II," "Ninja Gaiden II," and "LittleBIGPlanet." Even more amazing considering "Resident Evil 5," "Call of Duty: World at War" and "Left 4 Dead" have yet to be released. But Gears makes a persuasive case for the top spot.

"Gears 2" picks up close to where the original left off. You once again take control of Marcus Fenix, leader of the Delta Squad. The Lightmass Bomb set off at the end of "Gears 1" that was supposed to exterminate the evil Locust Horde failed to do so, and the Locust are now stronger than ever. They've picked up some mysterious new weapons capable of sinking whole cities into the ground. With only the city of Jacinto left, Delta is tasked with stopping the Locust at all costs.

The story is still the worst part of the "Gears of War" franchise, but that's like saying frosting is the worst part of a cupcake: You're still going to eat it and you're still going to love it. Trying to be spoiler-free, it's hard to really tell you much more about the game's events, but it is one sweet cupcake.

The controls are some of the best ever in video games. Marcus moves exactly as you command him, accompanied by satisfying animations that get players' adrenaline pumping. The camera is glorious, being close enough on your character to make every battle as cinematic as possible while never hindering the game play. The cover system is unchanged from the original "Gears" (it's hard to improve upon perfection.) AI for both armies has been drastically improved. Your allies don't stupidly make suicide runs at enemies anymore. Instead they'll be reviving you after the tactical Locust take you down time and time again.

You'll be taking Locust down, too, with the multitude of weapons available. It is a valid, and effective, option to use your default Lancer assault rifle throughout the entire game, but you'll be having fun with returning weapons such as the sniper rifle and shotgun, as well as new armaments like the flamethrower, mortar launcher and the painfully awesome Gorgon Pistol.

The environments are varied and beautiful. It's easy to tell this has been lovingly crafted. This level of craftsmanship has been extended to the multiplayer maps as well, where many, many death matches will take place in the coming months. Although online play is still spectacular, one of the biggest new features is computer-controlled bots. Whether you want the experience of online without the Internet connection or just need one or two to fill out the roster in a multiplayer match, the bots work just as well as a human-controlled character. They're so good in fact, you'll be hard pressed to know if that thing that just sniped you was human or not.

"Gears of War" raised the bar on quality, and "Gears of War 2" is raising it again, this time, to astronomical heights. The game is so polished, so pristine, that you can almost hear angels sing when you rev your Lancer's chainsaw bayonet. Ride your bike this month: You're going to need the gas money to buy this masterpiece of a game.