Gears of War 2 is made by Epic, the keepers of the Unreal Engine, and they always seem to be a step ahead of their licensees. Detailed actors, almost painterly backgrounds, and tech that pushes the 360 beyond known bounds all deliver a visual treat. The monochrome art direction from the first Gears is left by that stomped-upon curb. This game is vibrant, varied, and amazing to look at. The grime and 'destroyed beauty' theme remains, but this time there is emphasis on the beauty.
Gears 2 gameplay is the same cover mechanic from the first. It's been nicely refined with better controls, a few more solid weapons, and some neat monster additions that play well with it. This installment frees you a bit more from absolutely needing constant cover by offering more flanking opportunities with your partner. Level design is very good. Somehow they manage to keep a very simple mechanic fresh. Without this, the game would be more whack-a-mole feeling, something the devs expressed concern about in the first.
There is a story, and a plot, but it doesn't matter. Epic attempts to add a bit more drama and character development, but for me it all fell flat. It's irrelevant, because that's not what the game's for. It was surprising to me that the quality of the in-engine/machinima character drama bits were so poor. Valve really had it nailed with HL2 (4 years ago!), so I'm surprised Epic let something out the door that was vastly inferior to their competition. Although, to be fair, it probably does take practice as a studio to get machinima right. Maybe next installment it will be better
The online gameplay, currently under attack by exploiters (as was the first), is reportedly very good in some modes (i.e. Horde). I rarely attempt to milk the online portions of these console shooters for what they're worth, though. If MS had an option for age bracket matchmaking, it would improve my enjoyment of XBL stuff immensely.
If you have a friend, a 360, and enjoy action, there's no reason not to play this game.
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