(INITIAL THOUGHTS)
I saw numerous reviews that praise this game and it is on track to be a powerhouse. I saw a bunch of jokers giving this game a 1 & 2 yesterday- did you guys play this game or even buy it? I am not sure what game they were playing....Do yourself a favor and get perspective from a legit review site and not some MW3 or PS3 hyper-fanboy if you need further input in your decision to buy this. They should be jealous. This game looks stunning. It plays amazing and it's ridiculously fun. Ignore the trolls.
(DISLIKES)
My only gripes are small issues unrelated to the game experience itself. First is the manual. I wanted to peak at what new enemies and guns there were before playing so I figured I'd check out the manual. It's just a page or two at best (smallest I've seen) and it tells you to go to the online version....cutting corners (costs) much? Ehh...it's not a big deal but I'm old fashioned. I like to read up and see what I'm dealing with before jumping into things. It would have paid off because I was initially blown away by the new enemies- literally.
Why should I pay for weapon skins? I'm sure that was Microsoft's idea but I dislike it immensely. You should be able to unlock weapon skins or at least purchase them for free using experience points in-game. That would be an enticement to continue to play. Not that I need any more reason to want to play this game though. They do give you a few skins and you have opportunity to get more but most are being charged for 240 points each or buy 'em all for a ridiculously high amount of MS points. I can't wrap my mind around the thought they had that this would be a good idea. Its the only negative thing I have to really say about the game and it really doesn't have anything to do with the game/gameplay itself.
(GRAPHICS)
The graphics are excellent and have clearly been upgraded. The game is visually stunning. Gears is known for being dreary and dark- while this game flips the script and unleashes lots of vibrant and exotic colors. I didn't experience any screen tearing or lag while playing which is fantastic. Every level or map is just incredible to look at. You will find yourself turning the camera to get a sense of your surroundings and you can easily distinguish where you are on the map. The colors balance out quite nicely. I believe it's running at 30 fps so there can plenty going on without tearing or issues. Bring on the carnage ;)
(CAMPAIGN)
Hard to review something I haven't completed yet but I did get a good amount of time into the campaign so far. It is flawless. I won't spoil anything or even really touch on the subject matter but I can say that it is a blast playing through so far. There are vehicles to use as well. The locations are spectacular and the option for 4 player co-op is awesome. I'll leave it at that.
(MULTIPLAYER)
This is where the game truly shines in my eyes as my love for Gears began from playing the Horde mode. I recall a lot of gamers and from my own personal experience- Gears 2 had an awfully ineffective online system. It wouldn't connect with other players and would drop games randomly. That isn't the case with Gears 3 as I can hop into any online mode and connect. It seems like Epic has finally listened to the gamers and they have upgraded their matchmaking to an effective system that actually connects you to players. I didn't notice any real lag issues or any sort of lack of registration while shooting. My bullets hit their targets. Explosions would kill me. The only issue I noticed was in regards to reviving a downed team-mate. I couldn't revive a teammate in time and I was standing next to him but there were a number of issues at the time that could have affected that such as camera targeting, the player was moving, etc...
Regardless- Horde mode (nicknamed 2.0) is ridiculously entertaining. You don't have to unload hundreds of bullets into an enemy anymore as your shots inflict more damage. There are wave bosses (giant bosses), new enemies, upgrades, things to buy, money to make...Beast Mode allows players to be the horde and attack a group of survivors (that increase with each round) for 12 rounds. It is a fantastic addition and refreshing change of pace. Warzone is still Warzone and that is awesome. I don't know exactly how it differs from TDM but I believe you die once per round and while in TDM you have a limited amount of spawns for your team that you all share. There is also a double team mode that I haven't tried yet where you and 3 teams of 2 fight. Capture the Leader is exactly how it sounds and it too is a wonderful addition to the multiplayer experience. I didn't have the ability to try co-op but it is nice to have that option. Most matches last for quite some time and the levels are the largest so far. There are quite a few modes to try here. My money is on another mode popping up in the near future via DLC or Cliffy B/Epic.
(SUMMARY)
This game deserves your attention if you have a 360. If this is your first Gears game you will be playing then I highly recommend it. Campaign-wise you may be a bit lost but you are late to the party and mind as well just play through it. This game is highly-polished as it should be. I skipped the beta entirely but clearly they have made changes for the better. I was absolutely taken back by how much has improved and how much has been added into everything. You will be impressed.
The new enemies are ridiculous. There are tons of modifications to the enemies like the drones & savages and lots of them explode so hopefully you can maneuver well enough to survive. No more will one player be able to destroy everything and save everyone unless down to a handful of enemies. You will lose people. You will lose matches. However, in Horde if you have the money you can actually BUY BACK IN which is awesome! You have the ability to assist your teammates through monetary means or give them some excess ammo you might be holding as well (option flashes on screen). There is a real sense of team work here. You won't always have people coming to your rescue while down but generally people seemed helpful as I would crawl over for safety and get revived 90% of the time. There is always that kid that is either clueless or a jerk that will ignore you when you are in front of them. Yep- they still are out there but that's why you have other team mates.
There is also a very nice rewarding system that similar to Halo Reach gives you medals for individual actions or kills you do. You have a legit stat card as well which lets you know your k/d ration and other stats for each game type you've played, as well as campaign. You level up incredibly efficient as well. You may even be inundated with rewards in the beginning as you level up quite quickly. Regardless of the outcome you are rewarded for your time. Epic should be proud of what they did with Gears 3 as this game justifies being called a sequel and closing a trilogy. It improved everything that I could have thought of from Gears 1 & 2. During one of the Warzone matches I had placed my controller down for a moment and began hearing the `Mad World' piano theme and was just blown away by how the game draws you in. On certain maps events in the background happen which force you to change your playing style such as a sandstorm or earthquake. It's the little things like this that Gears does that truly changes the experience. You aren't just killing, leveling up and moving on. You have a real sense of teamwork here and desire to play and win for that matter. I played every mode of the game I could yesterday to get an understanding of what I was dealing with and to see what would be the downfall for this game...I loved everything. Campaign, Capture the Leader (which should replace Capture the Flag for every game), Horde Mode, Warzone....All of it is fun.
Gears 3 is necessary for any true gamer who enjoys a great story, great multiplayer and just flat out having a good time. For the average rational gamer who doesn't expect every game to be COD...this game is for you. If you don't like every mode, there is still plenty to sink your teeth into for quite some time. Future content will obviously be out as well in a matter of months. I gave it a 5/5 and it is absolutely my favorite game so far this year by a long shot. Those on the fence should buy this. See you out there!
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Reviews with images
The case color isn't accurate, the disk has a few scratches.
The case seems to be a reproduction and while the manual is included some promotional material is missing.The disk has a few scratches but after extensive testing was performed, it showed no issues in playback.
