 Preview By: Andrew Joy |
Developer: | Epic Games |
| Publisher: | Microsoft | |
| Genre: | Action | |
| ESRB: | Mature | |
| # Of Players: | 1-2 (2-8 online) | |
| Online Play: | Yes | |
| Accessories: | System Link, Xbox Live (online play, content DL, leaderboard), HDTV (480p, 720p, 1080i) | |
| Estimated Release: | 11/07/2006 |
A blending of genres from all across the board, Gears of War is the classic man-versus-monster game in line with the likes of Doom or Halo, although with an agenda to redefine how they are all played. Under development at Epic Games (probably best know for the Unreal Tournament series among others) using the Unreal 3.0 Engine, GoW is expected to release later this year for the Xbox 360.
Gears of War takes place on Sera, a planet not unlike our own, where a great war has raged between the humans for many years. When at last an uneasy peace is achieved under the Coalition of Order Governments (CoG...Gears of War...get it?), things suddenly take a turn for the worse. Rising up from underneath the very ground of the Planet Sera, a monstrous race known as the Locust Horde attacks all the major capitals and wages war on the humans. GoW tells the story of Marcus Fenix, a former prisoner of war, as he fights off the hellish warmongers.
Though it is pure speculation at this point, I would say it's a safe bet to assume we'll learn the origins of Fenix as well as the Locust Horde (or at least why they seem to hate us so much), there will probably be a few twists in the story, such as an allegiance between one or more of the governments and the Locust Horde (I mean, it was an "uneasy peace") and likely the kind of cliffhanger ending that turns a one-off game like Gears of War into a franchise. Hey, it does seem to be the latest trend after all (**cough*Halo*twice*cough**).
As I mentioned before, the gameplay of Gears of War is looking to be a melting pot from a variety of different genres. Not a first-person shooter as most people might think after hearing the description, GoW is actually a third-person shooter complete with the over-the-shoulder camera that is so common today. Fenix will have some control over a few teammates, pulling the squad-based action from all the dime-a-dozen war titles out today, and there is also a planned multiplayer aspect (likely online) to Gears of War although Epic hasn't gone into specifics yet.
There has also been an emphasis put on the further abilities of Fenix. In addition to the standard run-and-gun gameplay of like titles, Gears of War is expected to have a wide variety of moves to help players keep out of danger, including duck-and-rolling, strafing, diving for cover, etc, which makes the game seem more like a big budget action flick. Of course, it doesn't hurt that the game has the looks to be big budget tinsel town product, either.
Part BFG, part Hollywood blockbuster, Gears of War is all next generation. If GoW keeps on this track, Epic Games may have itself a Halo-killer - not that the Xbox 360 needs a Halo-killer. I mean, it has Halo already, but I digress.
Posted: 2006-02-01 20:44:51PST