After a decisive victory over the vile General RAAM, Marcus and co are taking a breather. But the Locust Horde were not defeated and so they returned with a vengeance on humanity. However, there is an even greater threat from below.
I can't describe into words how enraptured and exhilarated I was when I played Gears of War 2. Twice the action, twice the suspense, twice the plot and character development with some fresh faces thrown into the mix and terrific voice acting to boot. This game is like a Hollywood action movie on steroids. GoW2 is simply MUCH BETTER than it's predecessor in every way, shape, and form. The story is much better and coherent than Gears of War, making you care more for the characters and the game. This was sorely absent in GoW, which despite having impressive game-play and graphics, never really made you emotionally invested in the game. Not so here.
More importantly is the length. While the first game was rather short, the second game really gives you more bang for your buck. This is evidenced by having a more thorough single-player campaign which can also be played Co-OP. For those that don't know, that's like two players tackling the single-player at the same time. Not the most convenient feature but if you got some buddies around, then it's a blast from there.
In addition to Co-Op, you can also play death-match online not just with buddies, but also online anytime, anywhere in the world. There's a new mode known as Horde. Similar to Firefight in the Halo series, this mode lets you mow down as much Locust Horde as you can and form teams to take them down.
Speaking of action, this game has it in spades with dozens of wonderful action set-pieces sprinkled impressively throughout. One moment you're defending a hospital of wounded soldiers from enemy forces, another has you defending a roving transport from not just ground enemies, but aerial threats as well. I'm not going to spoil anymore surprises but lets just say that as you progress in the middle and near the end of the campaign, things REALLY get a LOT crazier and crazier.
Visually, the game features even more detail than GoW1. Powered by the impressive Unreal Engine, the game is able to display more realistic physics and animation to unprecedented levels. Your jaw will drop more than once as creatures and characters come to life in painstaking detail the likes of which has never been seen before. And it helps to have a nice, big-screen HD TV to truly witness the marvel of Gears of War 2. The game's atmosphere, combined with fantastic sound, really gives you the feeling of being in an epic war against a brutal and savage enemy and you will feel rather emotional at a crucial part in the game.
I'd say Gears of War 2 is a much better sequel to the sleeper hit of 2006; a superbly made cinematic action game that has oodles of gravitas and raw blood-soaked carnage. If you're new to the franchise, I suggest you pick up GoW and Gears of War 2: Collector's Edition. Only a fool would miss out on one of the greatest sci-fi gaming epics of this generation of video games.
