Blog
Overnighter (No. 4) Double Duty--Gears of War 2 (Full Review) followed by Gears of War (Xbox 360)
Does the second "Gears" live up to its hype???
Welcome to the Overnighter!! This is a different take on first impression review, where I will review a game based on how long I can stay up playing. I have a history of getting sucked into overnight marathon gaming sessions and just skipping sleep for that nearly two-day period. I had all of the Halo's beaten with in 18 hrs of getting them, played F.E.A.R. on the PC straight through fully in one sitting, and have sat playing Oblivion for 27 1/2 hours (amazingly enough without doing any main story arc quests, I became heads of all of the guilds) and those are just a few of the games that I have played like that. I have many fond memories of long nights gaming, which has served as a rather accurate gauge of how good that game is.
The goal for the Overnighter is to play a game the whole night through and see if the game is good enough to keep me interested and involved enough to keep me from going to bed, and then some…maybe.
**ALERT!!**THERE MAY BE SPOILERS!!**ALERT!!**
Gears of War 2
Xbox 360
Microsoft Studios
Total Overnighter Playtime: Gears of War 2, beaten in 8 hrs. (with breaks subtracted)
Gears of War, beaten in roughly 6 hrs. (with breaks subtracted). Gears of War was played afterwards to compare the times, I do have a log of it but this article is long enough.
Leading up to the release of Gears 2, there were announcements at the trade shows, screenshots released, and there were a couple of interviews with developers. Below are a couple of interviews with lead developer, Cliff Bleszinski, here is what he had to say about how great Gears 2 was going to be:
In the following review, you will see how full of shit he is.
I have two experiences that I would like to share with you about Gears of War 2:
The first was on launch night and I had gotten Gamestop early to wait in line because I live around the corner from it. So I waited in line for two hours, got my game and strategy guide, and marched my happy ass back home to begin my second foray in the war raging on Sera. I started to do the overnighter at 12:18 A.M. and during the first hour I had already seen many texture load issues and felt like this was just Gears of War 1.5. At about 1:15, I encountered a frustrating problem right at the very beginning of "Tip of the Spear: Roadblocks", where the "Tickers" make their first appearance. When the "Tickers" come out, you have to kill all of them to make the fence collapse to clear the path so that you can continue, however not all of the "Tickers" came out and I was stuck. I could hear the last "Ticker" making its clicking noises and it sounded like it was moving around but I could not find it. I looked for about 10 min and then realized what was going on. On top of the texture load issues the game was having level load issues, and with it being late and having waited 2 hrs in line to get the game and play it, then that happening...I decided to call it quits for the night.
After I had a chance to calm down I decided to give the Gears of War 2 Overnighter another shot. Saturday night I sat down and started a new game, here is how it went:
9:37 P.M.--I have started a new game on Casual difficulty and the opening cinematic has started.
9:39 P.M.--Tip of the Spear: Welcome to Delta
9:40 P.M.--Since I have played through and played multiplayer many times in the first Gears of War, I have opted to skip the training and get right into it.
9:55 P.M.--A cinematic about Dom and Maria has started.
9:56 P.M.--Cinematic featuring the General of the COG army speaking to the troops about the survival of their race.
9:59 P.M.--Gears of War 2 logo splash screen shown.
10:01 P.M.--Tip of the Spear: Rolling Thunder. This is the level that has been shown in many of the videos pumping people up for Gears 2 and it is somewhat disappointing that it’s this early in the game.
10:09-10:13 P.M.--I had to take a phone call.
10:16 P.M.--Tip of the Spear: Big Push
10:20 P.M.--I have destroyed the rogue Rig.
10:22 P.M.--Tip of the Spear: Roadblocks. The Rig platform parrt of the game seems to be over and now I'm hoofin it.
10:31 P.M.--Cole makes his appearance in the second game.
10:33 P.M--I am now entering a dark tunnel, could there be a Corpser on the other end?
10:36 P.M.--The AI in this game leaves a little bit to be desired. Carmine and Tai keep getting in my line of sight and my way in general and when Tai gets hit he exclaims "I'm on your side foolish!!"
10:39 P.M.--I have cleared the tunnel and all there were in there were those annoying "tickers", and as you can probably guess from above, I think that those things are really annoying.
10:40 P.M.--I have decided to go through the Hotel.
10:42 P.M.--I took a lot of damage and I am on the floor crawling towards Carmine, who revives me. This is a nice change from the first game and helps extend gameplay.
10:44 P.M.--I have killed the Brumak that has come out of the tunnel that I had been in 10 min ago, why couldn't I have fought that in the dark??
10:45-10:55 P.M.--I took a break to get a snack.
10:55 P.M.--Tip of the Spear: Digging In
10:59 P.M.--I have been revived by Dom.
11:03 P.M.--Cutscene (I have been launched by the drill platform).
11:05 P.M.--Denizens: Scattered
11:07 P.M.--The textures are slow to load and it seems to happen at the beginning of each sub-chapter. It can be very visible on Marcus and the other COGs.
11:18 P.M.--I have found and regrouped with Carmine.
11:26 P.M.--Denizens: Indigenous Creatures
In the Cliffy B. video from eariler, he said that there are consequences for chainsawing someone, notice how in the room of wretches all but like 2 of them are killed with the chainsaw and at times I am surrounded by them. I only played through that part once and what you are seeing is it.
11:48 P.M.--Denizens: Disturbing Revelations
12:07 A.M.--Denizens: Sinking Feeling
12:15 A.M.--Cole saves us from the ambush at the downed Raven.
12:19 A.M.--Denizens: Captivity
12:41 A.M.--Denizens: Intestinal Fortitude
12:59 A.M.--I have killed the worm.
1:02 A.M.--Gathering Storm: Dirty Little Secret
1:06 A.M.--This all seems really familiar, like the third chapter of the first game, where you have to go to the abandoned Imulsion Facility and the lambent wreches come out.
1:18 A.M.--I blew open the security door.
1:19 A.M.--Gathering Storm: Origins
1:36 A.M.--I went left to power down the turrets.
1:39 A.M.--Gathering Storm: Rude Awakening
1:57 A.M.--I have been killed by "Razor Hail". Does any one remember the bird things from the first game??? Where if you went into the dark the birds would kill you??? Anyone???? Anyone???? Because it was a lot like how this part of the game is, if you get out of cover (the dark) for too long, the razor hail (the bird things) will slice you to pieces.
2:22 A.M.--Gathering Storm: Ascension
2:25 A.M.--I drove into the frozen lake and got us all killed.
2:44 A.M.--Gathering Storm: Displacement.
2:47 A.M.--Maria is mentioned for the first time since the beginning of the game. Does anyone else recognize the old guy that tells you where to go from here?? He is the old guy from the gas station in the first game.
3:05 A.M.--Gathering Storm: Brackish Waters
3:09 A.M.--I have beaten the cracken, octopus-like monster in the middle of the lake.
3:09 A.M.--Hive: Priorities
3:11 A.M.--Maria is mentioned again.
3:19 A.M.--We have found out where Maria is on one of the Locust's computers. I didn't know that the Locusts had computers.
3:29 A.M.--We have found Maria and have seen what the Locusts are doing to the people that they have started capturing. The Dom and Maria story arc is resolved, forever.
3:31 A.M.--Hive: Hornets Nest
3:50-4:00 A.M.--Snack Break
4:12 A.M.--Hive: No Turning Back
4:31 A.M.--Hive: The Best Laid Plan
4:44 A.M.--Hive: Royal Inquisition
5:09 A.M.--Aftermath: Escape
5:23 A.M.--I have killed Scourge. The time difference here might be misleading, as it might make you think that this part was long. It wasn't, I kept dying because I wasn’t shooting at the right thing at the right time. Once I figured out what to do the fight only lasted about a minute and a half or so.
5:25 A.M.--Aftermath: Desperate Stand
5:30-5:40 A.M.--Bathroom and smoke break.
5:48 A.M.--Aftermath: Free Parking
6:08 A.M.--Aftermath: Tenuous Footing
6:25 A.M.--Aftermath: Closure
6:37 A.M.--I have killed the lambent Brumak and it only took about 3 shots with the Hammer of Dawn and about 30 seconds total.
6:40 A.M.--Credits begin to roll. Cliff Bleszenski's quote at the end of the game is, "Success is going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm." What a load of crap!! Make sure you watch all of the credits. There is something at the very end.
Having beaten both games in the about 15 hours total, I was dissapointed in the second game and remembered how much more I enjoyed the first game. Where are the Berzerkers?? You imported almost 90% of the second game from the first one, so why was the most intense enemies removed from the series???
The story falls short leaving Horde mode and the Multiplayer as the games saving graces, but with all of the other great games out that have multiplayer, why would I play this any longer?????
Pictures from gamespress.com
Comments
I already know that people are going to say that because I played it on casual difficulty that its going to be a lot easier and thus shorter. I played both games on causal and found the first one to be more difficult because the recovery system is not as forgiving as it is in the second game. The game should be longer due to content not because you are dying three times as much. In short this game was a let down.
I was actually quite shocked when the credits started rolling... i mean, i was ready to go look for the queen too!! That boss was wayyyy to easy... i mean come on... it took me longer to beat skorge then it did to fire 3 beams in a full circle around a brumak...I was actually really really mad with the way the game ended.
Yet another good review, Robots! I have to admit that I didn't finish the game yet but this makes me feel like I'm going to be as disappointed in the game as you are. This sucks. Thanks for all the head's up action.
all the vids of the game play "is no longer available" so I couldn't watch 'em :(
but its interesting that you kept a journal of the game play and spoiled the hell outta it XD
@Ridley, there is a spoiler warning before any of the game is talked about, so its not my fault that you didn't read the whole thing.
I would give this game an 8.5 - 9 out of 10 and I haven't been paid SHIT!
The story is very well-written and because of this, is both interesting and easy to follow, unlike in the first GoW where I consistently needed a reminder as to what the mission was. In fact, there were only two pieces of the story that I disliked. The part towards the end, riding the reavers UP to the surface, was more frustrating than enjoyable. Once we breached the surface and were speeding through the forest, I had more fun with it, and it seemed like an homage to 'Return of the Jedi'. The other part I didn't particularly care for was the level when you're on a Locust gunboat -- by leaning out of cover and zooming in on my enemies across the river (whilst boating at high speed), I got sort of seasick.
The graphics are better, and the slow-loading textures don't bother me... maybe I'm just used to it from playing the first game so much, but the loss of some of the textures for a few seconds when a map first loads doesn't subtract from the gameplay, in my opinion. I'm not sure of the technical specs of the unreal 3 engine and how it performs on Xbox360 hardware, so if this problem can't even be fixed, then it's a moot point.
I like the level design. Everything is bigger and more colorful, whereas in the first game every map (in multiplayer and story mode) had a high-contrast, washed-out look to it.
I also feel like the developers did a good job with the difficulty settings -- they added a "Normal" skill level between the Casual and Hardcore difficulties, and in my experience, Normal is a little easier than Hardcore from Gears 1, while Hardcore is a bit harder than Hardcore from Gears 1. I have not yet tried Insane.
The music is great, and the sound design provides such depth to the game, which helps bring the whole thing to life. Initially, I was bothered by the new sound of the sniper rifle, but it has grown on me -- it sounds otherwordly and more powerful than the original sniper. The new lancer sound is enough to make me want to use that gun more often, and I think everyone can agree that the MOST SATISFYING THING EVER is to shoot an enemy in Gears of War (1 or 2) and hear the cork-popping, watermelon-smashing sound effect that accompanies the headshot.
And of course the multiplayer kicks the shit out of (just about) everything else. If you want some hearty, down-home, meat-chunkin' deathmatch, where else you gonna go?
Really? You're gonna say that people who gave this a higher score than you got paid to do so? That's pretty dumb.
I agree with Sarah on this one! Bogus statement, indeed.
It's a legit statement by H4R. Just makes you wonder when there's soooo much hype around the game only to be a letdown on many facets. It just seems like there's a lot of folks riding Microsoft's jocks.
I played it & am glad I didn't buy it. This overnighter's right on. Not much in the way of innovation so it's a typical weak-ass sequel. Some call it sophomore jinx, I call it dev guys stink. "Dolla, dolla bill, y'all..."
Microsoft has deep pockets and Ciffy B. has a big mouth and likes to run it. As someone who shelled out the cash for the Limited Edition of the game, along with the collectors strategy guide, I personally was disappointed in the sequel. I find it very surprising that on that list of gaming review sources that not one of their scores is a b or a even a fucking b+, so yeah it all seems a little suspect. Especially when comparing the final boss battles, fighting General RAAM and guiding the lightmass bomb to its destination was way more satisfying than the fight with Scourge and the lambent Brumak combined.
@ Sarah, its funny that when reviewers were called out, your reply is that I am dumb, and not why you really liked the game, why it deserves the high rating despite the mistakes, or why I am wrong in my opinion about the two games.
I didn't say you were dumb, Hooray 4 Robots, I thought it was a dumb statement to make. I can't speak for every reviewer in the industry, and I know there are some less-than-honorable ones out there, I will fully admit that. However, all the reviewers I know (including the ones at this site, which, like you said, gave the game a 9) get the same paycheck whether we give a game a 2 or a 10. I just didn't like the implication you were making, especially since you lumped Gamervision in with the group apparently being paid to give the game a high rating. Most people I know genuinely love this game.
That being said, I have no problem with your opinion, and I understand your reasons for giving the game a 7. My problem wasn't with your review, just with that one statement. If you want people to respect your opinion of a game, then you are going to have to respect the opinions of others and not assume everyone who gave Gears 2 a higher score than you did was paid to do so.
I totally disagree with you calling this game a 7 out of 10, but everyone's entitled to their opinion. However, I like your overnight review idea. BUT---
The things you do have criticisms about seem kind of mundane and don't warrant a full point removal in the grand scheme of things-- rather, those things you complain about (graphics loading, no Beserkers) are arguably forgivable when taken into consideration what was actually accomplished in putting out this game.
I don't know how you could complain that there weren't any Beserkers.. that's a little ridiculous. Especially when we got a new PLETHORA of awesome enemies to fight like Brumacks, Grinders, Cantus, Blood Mounts, those pistol guys with the helmets (and I'm sure I spelled most of those wrong), etc. etc.
Like, really? Having no Berserkers bothered you that much? Beserkers served one purpose in the first game.. and it got old real quick (though they were cool). But I'd rather the new Gears impress me with creativity in enemy design than just regurgitate the same things from the first game and give us exactly what you complained about: Gears of War 1.5.
This game was truly Gears of War 2, not complete regurgitation, and that's what it takes to make a successful sequel that doesn't completely thrive off the fact that it shares a name with its predecessor.
I didn't absolutely hate the game, but being a fan of the series and HAVING PLAYED BOTH GAMES BACK TO BACK, I enjoyed the first game more than the second and I want the third game to be the best that it can be. Gears 2 was pretty cut and dry, and I want the developers to know that I, as a paying customer, was disappointed and want to see the third game become more complex and finish the series off the way it should be, in grand fashion. My biggest problem is that no one seems brave enough to try and put Microsoft or Epic Games in their place for, in my personal opinion, they went off track a little bit.
I though that as gamers we are all a little bit more cynical than the rest of the general population, and to see so many people fall head over heels in love with this game is sad a little bit.
And after reading about my experience with the game, does anyone not understand why I gave it a seven???
And no one cares that it's an eight hour game???
No one else was let down buy all of the hype generated for this game???
No one else is even going to question the Almighty Gears of War 2????
1. The game is not 8 hours on hardcore. At least when we played it it certainly didn't feel like 8 hours. I didn't feel like I was cheated out of anything, and honestly, if the game went on any longer it might have compromised the integrity of the storyline AND gameplay. When it ended, I felt like it was right and just enough.
2. It's not about "bravery" of putting Microsoft or Epic in it's place - that's childish and so high school "standing up to the bullies!" mentality. I don't think you have to fear people on here selling out like you think we're all doing because we liked the game as much as we did. That's offensive that you think it's "sad" that we enjoyed it and gave it 9s out of 10 just to please Epic (which I don't understand why, because they aren't paying me either and I'm certainly not afraid of hurting their feelings), because I for one don't eat the every bit of bullshit that's fed to me, and this game wasn't bullshit.
3. The story in Gears too was MUCH more in depth than Gears 1, so I don't know what you're talking about it being so "cut and dry." It leaves room for a Gears 3, JUST like Gears 1 did -- it left room for a sequel.
And if you honestly think that the makers of the game would be so stupid as to stop making a series that generated millions on opening night and the following week, then you're being naive. It's a business first and foremost. Hopefully they won't ruin the series just for money, like we're seeing in the movie industry - but we'll find that out in time, won't we?
I don't know if you're just trying to get attention for giving it a lower review than most, or if you honestly just didn't like the game. But the game wasn't bad by any means, and the little tidbits you didn't like don't bring the overall quality of the entire game down. I think your rating was a little unfair. Again, that's my opinion, and seemingly the opinion of most others. As I said, you're entitled to your opinion too, but don't write things to be rhetorical.
If if you're going to call me and everyone else on here a sell out because we all happen to love the game and disagree that it's not a 7, then that's ridiculous and I'm done checking this article. I guess everyone who loves Star Wars are sell outs too and are afraid to stand up to "the man" that is George Lucas and tell him to cut the shit, because HE AIN'T FOOLIN US and needs to be put in his place.
@HoorayForRobots
I did read the disclaimer, but why were the spoilers needed to inform potential Gears2 players about your feelings for it?
If anybody wanted to read your opinion about this game, they will for sure run into the spoilers that led up to your dissappointment with the game.
So, yeeaaah.....
Maybe instead of using spoilers as a way to review a game, you just do a sumary as to why you didn't care for it and save your spoilers for a different type of documentation. The GV contributers manage to do that very nicely. Thats just a sugestion and no means any form of attack on you personally, just the way you expressed your review. Take it as constructive critisim.
@Hooray: I don't appreciate you implying that I accepted bribes to review Gears of War 2. I purchased the game before release at 7-Eleven (check older posts) and Microsoft didn't even send us a review copy.
Your review doesn't mention the multiplayer until the last few words, where you dismiss it despite being a major aspect of the game. The cooperative play and Horde multiplayer are well thought out and very entertaining, and the single player campaign is deeper than the first game's. It has a metacritic score of 96, with only 6 of the 61 review being under 90%. They must have spent a lot!
I could rant about how your review seems biased, or say that you were "paid off my Sony," but I wont stoop that low because I know it isn't true, and it's juvenile to resort to blatant lies to prove a point.
You should be disappointed in yourself.
How the fuck are you going to say that Gears 2 was a letdown. I can honestly say that if there was not as much hype over this game your score would have been at least a 9 or 10! And the multiplayer is not this games saving grace...while the multiplayer is great there is a wealth of things to do throughout the campaign, and with the cooperative option there is unlimited playability. Your review relies too much on fucking videos showing Cliffy B. and his "BIG MOUTH" as you call it. A fucking developer is allowed to brag about the game they are about to release...THATS HOW IT WORKS! Every developer talks nicely about their product. Actually...I do not think that Cliffy B. is full of shit, as his game has received great reviews. I think YOU are full of shit!
@PimpToast: DOOOoood! Chillax! Go play Gears2 and calm yourself! its just a shoddy review XD
...why so serious XD
@ Robots:
You said to Sarah: " its funny that when reviewers were called out, your reply is that I am dumb, and not why you really liked the game, why it deserves the high rating despite the mistakes, or why I am wrong in my opinion about the two games."
Below, I have listed several reasons explaining why the game rules.
Also, you complain about the game being 8 hours -- well, when you're flying through it on the easiest settings, the game is going to end sooner than you'd like. I played through on Hardcore and while it isn't a marathon campaign a la Half-Life 2, I was satisfied with the 12 or so hours I put in. Plus, I'm going to run through it again on INSANE, which will presumably be more difficult, and thus take a longer time to get through, than Hardcore. I understand your point about game length in regards to content vs. difficulty, but come on ... Casual is like playing NBA Jam with the "dunk from anywhere" cheat on, and complaining that the game is too easy.
Also, the replay value of Gears 2 is tremendous. There are achievements and collectibles hidden within the campaign to lure you back in if you don't think the story itself is good enough, and you could play multiplayer (versus mode or horde) for just about the rest of eternity.
I'm sorry RIDLEY...I just had to let off some steam. But I do agree that it is a VERY shoddy review.