When the first Gears of War came out, it seemed like the next generation of gaming had come. It had amazing graphics, an amazing storyline, great characters, and great weapons. The same cannot, unfortunately, be said about Gears of War II. Gears of War II was released with the expectation that it would give gamers the same great experience the first one gave. It turned out to give a decent experience in respects to online play. But with the campaign, it was just too much like the first. While having good graphics and online play, Gears of War II seemed to fall short of the hype.
Gears II continues where Gear of War left off. The lightmass bomb that blew up the tunnels seems to not have done anything spectacular. In fact, the Locusts appear to be even stronger than before. Now they have machines that can sink entire cities! You, the gamer, still play as Marcus Phoenix, and your trusted companion Dom Santiago is still with you. Cole and Baird are also back, along with a few new faces (Tai, Dizzy, and the dead Carmine's brother). The storyline is focused around the fact that Jacinto, the last human stronghold, is in danger of being sunk. The locusts are still strong, and the COG army is taking heavy losses. The COG army is therefore sending soldiers underground to fight the Locusts, and find their stronghold, called the Hollow.
Although there are some new characters and settings, the gameplay is very much the same as the first Gears of War. The shooting is the same, and there isn't anything very innovative about the story. There is a flamethrower, a new pistol, an ink grenade, a mortar, and turret added to the weapon arsenal, but neither adds to the game experience. There were chainsaw duels added, but even in multiplayer, they are very rare and nothing special. The new characters, sorry to say, also don't make the game experience any better. They stunningly serve very little purpose in the long run. The campaign is filled with tips and turns, and a lot of what happens isn't described fully. By the end of the game, the gamers are happy to be finished. There is so much that is unanswered in the game, and gamers are left wanting to know so much more. Many chapters even seem pointless. There are heartbreaks in the game too, and that is another downside to the story. Most of them are not necessary and just make the story worse. The story gets very boring very quickly, and seems extremely long. With great graphics but a flawed storyline, Gears of War II can only find glory in one aspect... Xbox Live.
The online play is the only thing that brings this game out of the dark. The teams can now be 5 on 5, which is a decent addition. There are new multiplayer modes added (Guardian, King of the Hill, and Submission) which gives the gamer a much better online experience. The old war zone, execution, and annex are back, and there are a whole new set of maps. Gridlock is still there, but not the gridlock Gears 1 gamers know. It is covered in green moss... There is also a gameplay mode called Horde added. This can be compared to Call of Duty: World at War's Nazi zombies. You have to fight off wave after wave of Locusts, and the difficulty can be changed. You can play Horde on casual, hardcore, or insane. You can also invite friends and have a 5-way co-op game on Horde. There is a matchmaking system now for ranked and player matches, and it is a reminder of Halo 3. You can invite friends, and all of you can get into a ranked or player match together. From there on, it is more or less the same experience in Gears 1. There are 11 different executions in Gears II, including the well-known curb stomp. Achievements are very exciting to go for in this game, and are not so out of reach like the first games (100 kills with this, 100 kills with that). While the campaign suffers, the multiplayer of Gears of War II shines.
Overall, Gears of War II came up very short of its predecessor Gears of War. Although all the characters are back and the multiplayer is great, the campaign seems to ruin the game. There is not that same "good feeling" that Gear of War had. There is no more depth to the characters (except Dom), and that was a good thing to the first. The characters lack personality and seem useless. The storyline is flawed, and the game is not addicting at all. Gamers will end the Gears of War II campaign with a feeling of disappointment and confusion.
That's all I can say about Gears of War II. In short: Don't play the campaign, play Xbox Live!
