Gears of War 3 Review

It's been five years since the first Gears of War introduced Emergence Day and the Locust invasion. Now Epic aims to end the trilogy with its most exhilarating, emotional, and satisfying finale for the Gears series. Building on the brutal battles and fierce melees of its predecessors, Gears of War 3 seeks to revitalize its signature system of third-person cover-based combat with notable and welcome alterations.

Cooperative and competitive options are back and abundant, but the most dazzling change comes from the campaign. Unlike the other two games, Gears of War 3 delivers a stunning campaign to conclude the adventure with a bang.

Things have gone from bad to worse since the events of Gears of War 2. Two years have passed since the sinking of humanity's last safe-haven, Jacinto, in an attempt to destroy the Locust stronghold, and now humanity stands on the brink of extinction.

Those who survive now cling to isolated forts and ships, savaging anything to make it to the next day. The Coalition of Ordered Government, or COG, has disbanded, and now every Human on Sera is forced into an ongoing battle between what is left of the Locust and Lambert, creatures that Sera's yellow glowing fuel has infected.

Throughout the five acts, you will endure a pleasant dose of camaraderie between old and new members of Delta Squad and a story that will answer most questions that plagued Gears of War fans since the last installment.

As you travel throughout Sera, you will be presented with beautifully designed locations that each hold meaningful connections to the story. This creates a natural feel throughout the campaign, allowing vehicle sequences to seem logically placed and introducing welcomed diversity whenever they are introduced.

As the Gears of War 3's campaign progresses, different characters, environments, and events intersect to create a sense of what life was like before and during the war for these characters. Marcus Fenix grapples with his inner turmoil and suppresses these emotions to ensure he remains an effective leader.

At the same time, Augustus Cole exhibits a newfound understanding of what it must be like to live on a war-ridden planet. Epic has definitely done an excellent job of creating a polished expression of survival.

Epic definitely went all out in the visuals of Gears of War 3. Right from the beginning, you'll notice that it outperforms its two predecessors with improved visuals, lightning, and surging smoke effects that give each environment a decaying vision of a war-stricken planet. I found myself looking in awe at just the sky itself as the clouds moved from one location to another.

The sound design does an excellent job of seamlessly combining music and sound effects throughout the game. Bullets zoom, weapons click, heads explode, and creatures yell in pain and joy, all combined with well-orchestrated music, to create a clear assault that is easily recognizable.

If you played Gears of War before, then you'll be instantly familiar with the mechanics of Gears of War 3. Everything from moving into cover to reloading your weapon is quick and requires a lot of practice for the player to master each of these skills.

Bullets hit their mark with satisfying squish noises, and chainsaws roar as they dismember your enemies into bloody chunks of meat. Veterans will definitely be familiar with the weapons within Gears of War 3 while being introduced to a new array of selections.

However, these weapons and skills are put to the test within combat zones that are widely arranged in size, shape, and enemies to encourage the player to take new measures to ensure that they come out victorious.

New are the Lambent stalks that come out of the ground, similar to emergence holes, spawn Lambent enemies, and require advanced maneuvering to take out the sacks that spawn your foes.

The pace and intensity of each combat scenario depend on the difficulty and the number of cooperative teammates you are playing with. Gears of War 3 supports two-player splitscreen and four-player online cooperative play, allowing players to jump in and out of their friends' games, but limiting public searching to acts only. There is also an arcade option that allows players to earn high scores and requires diligent teamwork to achieve the most points.

Gears of War has been notorious for providing a competitive and sometimes frightening multiplayer experience. The horrors of Gears of War 2's multiplayer have been altered or removed to introduce a more refined system that allows for improved menus, matchmaking, a beginner mode for newcomers to Gears of War, and fewer unusual exploits.

Gears of War 3 offers a variety of cooperative and competitive options, supporting up to ten players. These modes include Beast Mode, Horde 2.0, Warzone, Execution, Capture the Leader, and Team Deathmatch.

Each mode offers players distinctive options to play what they find appealing. Horde 2.0's new currency system tasks five players to manage the cash you build from killing enemies into reinforcements, creating a combination of tower-defense and traditional horde.

Beats mode puts you into the shoes of the Locust and tasks you with killing your human adversaries within the time limit to earn more money to purchase stronger Locust to control. Each Locust controls differently, and there is no tutorial on how to control each Locust.

Gears of War 3 takes what it has always done well and refines it to a well-defined game. This can lead to feelings of nostalgia or disappointment, evoking a desire for something different.

Ultimately, Gears of War 3 creates an accessible shooter for both casual and hardcore gamers, allowing players to undertake the fight from either the Human or the Locust perspective. With a fantastic campaign, intense multiplayer, and expected DLC, Gears of War 3 will keep you busy for a long time.