Im looking for some solid advise, as far as games for the 360 go the only one that has impressed me enough to play and actually finish is rainbow 6. I have bioshock, Halo 3 and many others but after playing R6LV nothing compares or even comes close for me. So, I picked up GOW today and before I open it and spend another $60 I wanted to ask, being that I really like R6LV and splinter cell type games will I like GOW? Should I open it or return it and look elsewhere? I just cant get into bioshock and well halo III is great but I feel it was a bit over hyped up. Thanks

As far as I'm concerned, you should keep it. Gears of War is an amazing game. It isn't a splinter cell type stealth game, but it isn't exactly a run in the room and blast away FPS either. It has great graphics and great action and is loads of fun.

I like GoW a lot more than Halo3. That's just me.

You can't get into bioshock? I didn't think that was possible. If any game grabs attention from first load to end credits it's that one

In my world there are 2 must play to completion 360 games, Bioshock followed closely by GOW. Honorable mention goes to FEAR

SP is good, MP is bad. Coming from a hardcore R6V player...

Listen very carefully. GOW IS A MUST HAVE GAME! I just bought R6 tonight, and was wondering the same thing about it, before I start playing, how funny! I can't seem to stop playing GOW. I returned SKATE and OBLIVION tonight. I think FABLE 2 will be more of my type of epic role-playing game. And, SKATE became too difficult. But, my attention keeps getting pulled back to GOW on-line anyway. I just forced myself to stop playing and I plan on starting R6:VEGAS in a lil' bit. The rep at Gamecrazy sold me on it. Since I am enjoying shooters so much (especially on-line), and eagerly anticipating COD4, I hope R6:VEGAS will pleasantly surprise me. I've played lots of games, but the only games in my possession right now are GRAW 1 & 2, GOW, BIOSHOCK, HALO 1 & 2, and now R6:VEGAS. Please, give me some feedback right now. The rep said the multiplayer is awesome. But, it is so hard to stop playing GOW! PLAY IT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE! GO!

Quick, hype me up on R6:VEGAS!

GOW, IMO, is one of the best games ever. For that reason alone, I think its worth checking out.

Its not tactical like R6, at least the single player of R6. But, Gears does have a lot of strategy. Team work, weapon selection, cover fire, flanking, communication, and more communication all are necessary to be successful in Gears online. Much more so than the so called tactical shooter of R6. I mean honestly, besides the objective based games, R6 is pretty much a pure shooter.

So, I am not sure if you will like it. You said you didn't like Halo 3, but to me its more similar to R6 than it isn't. Whereas Gears is pretty original. My guess is that you would like it, in that most people do, but I really can't tell based on your explained likes and dislikes.

I say go for it. Worst case, you play it for a while, resell it and are out $30.

looks like you like shooters and follow "hype" so why not play GoW...

for me though unless you're into the Achievement thing, GoW is a rental compared to Vegas.

Im looking for some solid advise, as far as games for the 360 go the only one that has impressed me enough to play and actually finish is rainbow 6. I have bioshock, Halo 3 and many others but after playing R6LV nothing compares or even comes close for me. So, I picked up GOW today and before I open it and spend another $60 I wanted to ask, being that I really like R6LV and splinter cell type games will I like GOW? Should I open it or return it and look elsewhere? I just cant get into bioshock and well halo III is great but I feel it was a bit over hyped up. Thanks

Yes Gears is goddddddd!!!!! It is personally still on top of my list of 360 games though Bioshock for me was pretty close. Well and COD2, RB6 and the GRAWs(for shooters).

I think the GRAWs are closer to RB6 then Gears. Gears does have a cool cover aspect which I actually liked a little better then RB6 but it is not as tatical. You dont really control your guys in Gears, they control themselves and they are idiots. Good news is, unlike RB6 they never really die (it is a scifi game after all). I find Gears more tatical then Halo3 but not as tatical as RB6 or GRAW. I dont see either being comparable to splinter cell (but I only played the first 2 missions of the first game before I lost interest, so different taste). I would certainly give GoW a try, but I am suprised you cant get it for less then $60 at this point.

Listen very carefully. GOW IS A MUST HAVE GAME! I just bought R6 tonight, and was wondering the same thing about it, before I start playing, how funny! I can't seem to stop playing GOW. I returned SKATE and OBLIVION tonight. I think FABLE 2 will be more of my type of epic role-playing game. And, SKATE became too difficult. But, my attention keeps getting pulled back to GOW on-line anyway. I just forced myself to stop playing and I plan on starting R6:VEGAS in a lil' bit. The rep at Gamecrazy sold me on it. Since I am enjoying shooters so much (especially on-line), and eagerly anticipating COD4, I hope R6:VEGAS will pleasantly surprise me. I've played lots of games, but the only games in my possession right now are GRAW 1 & 2, GOW, BIOSHOCK, HALO 1 & 2, and now R6:VEGAS. Please, give me some feedback right now. The rep said the multiplayer is awesome. But, it is so hard to stop playing GOW! PLAY IT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE! GO!

Quick, hype me up on R6:VEGAS!
If you liked both GRAWs and GoW you should like R6. It is more like GRAW then GoW as you have to manage your teammates and keep them alive (SP) but you dont have to worry about them running about willy-nilly getting "downed" for half the fight (useless Dom). I hear good things about the MP but never played it myself.

For me, looking back on my time of play with Gears, it was great, but entirely too short. The online wasn't too grand, either, but that's just personal preference.

Definitely a game that should be in your 360 library, though.

Personally, it was just another third person shooter with a gruff "take-no'****" main character (oh the originality!). There's not much to reccomend it after a few hours, and at this point in it's life - the online will just be an exercise in frustration as the vets gun you down and curse at you for being a newb. So what you're left with is a 3rd person shooter that moves slow because your character is 300 pounds of movie-cliches.

GOW is a must have. since it's old, you can find it in used places for around $30-40.

You could always rent it first just to be certain.

I know only a handful of people who disliked Gears. Some, like me, didn't care much for the multiplayer, but the campaign is excellent. It's a top 5 360 game for me, hands down.

You can also play through the entire game with a friend coop via live.

GOW is great, but since that's opinion, YMMV.

There are lots of people who love the multiplayer (myself included). It's more squad based and slower paced than something like Halo (which relies on run-and-gun and bunny-hop tactics). Personally I think GOW requires more skill to be successful at, but that's probably because I suck at Halo and don't like run-and-gun games.

SP is good too. And co-op is also a lot of fun.

Anyways, I think it's worth the cash. You might be able to pick up it up cheaper on ebay though if you don't want to spend $60. They might also slash the price for the holiday season (but that's a guess).

Gears is a total rental. Way too short for purchase. If you like multiplayer buy it, otherwise, rent it.

So, I tried the R6:VEGAS multiplayer last night,and I didn't like it. It was too stealthy for me. I think I'll enjoy the stealth in single player campaign more. After being dissapointed, I quickly popped GOW back in. Before shutting down, I just played a lil' bit of the campaign.....for the thirtieth time. My t.v. is now perfectly calibrated, and boy, this game continues to amaze me! I think thoughts of GOW 2 are going to overload my brain.:D

I like GoW a lot more than Halo3. That's just me.
It's not just you. ;)

add another point for GoW. I think it was more tactical than Halo, especially on insane with Co-op, which was one of the most fun times I've had gaming in a while. Also, the graphics are just mind blowing, they really created an interesting world. So you may have to get over the "action movie here" BS, but the game is still great.

I say no to GoW, even though I bought it, haha. I am a halo person. I could play (and I do play) Halo campaign over and over on different difficulties with a variety of different strategies and sometimes just to explore and experiment. Then there is multiplayer, which is just incredible. The game is so massive, fast paced and exciting that I can never get sick of it. Gow, on the other hand, is so slow and restricted. It was all aim and shoot. Some good weapons, but not much more. The chainsaw was cool, but there was no real control over that either. I always felt like I was just walking slowly down a straight path, taking cover, shooting, and so on and so on. I tried xbox live with it and it was still boring. I tried playing campaign by myself and it was still boring. The only real value it had for me was playing co-op with a friend for some fun teamwork. And then there were the glitches. I'd get stuck in a rock, do ninja flips with a car for 5 minutes, lose the ability to switch weapons, and so on. Replay value was very bad for me. I got sick of it after a few days. So I pretty much retired from that when I got Bioshock (awesome game!), which has at least a little replay value. And now that I have Halo 3, I'm going to have to beat that at least 10 different ways and spend every other night in matchmaking. Call me a fanboy if you must, but I've been playing a lot of games lately, and I still always go back to halo- it's just too much fun. IMO, GoW is the game that has been overhyped. Good to play and beat, but not much more.

I sold Gears of War a month after it came out. Beat it on coop with a friend and tried some multiplayer matches. When it comes down to it, it's rather boring for me. The gameplay is not very good and the game is extremely linear (normally only one way to accomplish something). I got tired of it quickly.

Most will tell you that the graphics are the best they've ever seen, which is completely untrue. Sure, it has a lot of high resolution textures and such but those are wasted on a horrible color palette of black, white and red. The game is rather bland looking if you ask me.

Overall, I wouldn't recommend it. It's going to be tough if you only like one type of game (Raindbow Six Vegas). I personally love that game, but I enjoy something with a little more sci-fi storyline... Like Half-Life 2.

-Brad

wanted to add that I usually give a recommendation to any game to play that I like, what you do after you beat it is up to you. For me, I buy most games, beat them and then flip them on eBay. I get to play a lot of games on the cheap, and if there is a game with a lot of replay, like Halo 3, I'll keep it. I got GoW free with my used XBOX, so I kept that too.

in my opinion, GOW is a must buy. This game is one of the most addictive games i've ever played. The campaign is good but what i really liked about the game was the multiplayer.

I'll put it this way. I bought GoW at launch and here we are almost a full year later and I'm still putting 90% of my gaming time into it even with all these other superb titles coming out.

If you like multiplayer this one is a no brainer. You can drop 60 bucks and be playing it for years. The co-op is also so incredibly smooth (the interface, etc) that as my first online co-op game it has totally spoiled me and left me frustrated with every other game out there that they can't do everything as seemlessly as Gears does.

That said, the multiplayer is a little slower and more squad based (if you like r6v/splinter cell you will enjoy this multiplayer immensely), but the single-player (especially when not playing co-op) is much more straight forward. Whereas you encounter many combinations of player and weapon matchups in multiplayer, it all stays pretty much the same in single-player. Enemies always react the same way (although your first berserker battle will be something you never forget).

Basically, if you enjoy any type of multiplayer/coop you will love the game like most do. If you're buying it to play through the campaign one time by yourself then you may feel you didn't get your money's worth, especially if you couldn't get into Bioshock (which is a much deeper single player experience than Gears). Although to be fair, Gears was the first FPS campaign I played through multiple times (3 in total), although that was largely due to the online co-op.

Personally though, I don't see how I could bring myself to miss out on experiencing this game.

Most will tell you that the graphics are the best they've ever seen, which is completely untrue. Sure, it has a lot of high resolution textures and such but those are wasted on a horrible color palette of black, white and red. The game is rather bland looking if you ask me.
-Brad

Because post-apocalyptic worlds are sunny happy places full of color. The graphics were stunning, and perfectly paletted for the scenario that the game was painting IMHO.

I loved the co-op and did both hardcore and insane. I also spent at least 30 hours plus online. Definitely a purchase for me.

Yes it is that good (if you like 3rd person shooters). Great graphics, fun gameplay.

BEST GRAPHICS ON THE 360, PERIOD!

My t.v. is so awesome!:p

I have purposly avoided R6V and GRAW 1/2 because there are so many excellent shooters on Xbox. That being said, I still think that Gears of War is still the best game on Xbox. No, you do not get Viva Pinata colors with GoW, but if you adjust your set properly there are great colors, textures, and the 'theme' of the color palate is most appropriate for the game. The graphics are phenominal, and nothing is even close (the game is almost 1 year old) so far. UT3 will likely look the same, and I doubt it can look any better.

I actually liked the campaign, I played easy by myself, mainly because I was embarassed to play with someone else, for the fear of looking like a noob. I then played Insane on Coop, and it was by far one of the best gaming experiences I have had on the Xbox. The key is to have someone (like members here on AVS) to play with.

I personnally still prefer GoW online to all other shooters. I have been getting into CoD3 lately, and have tried Halo3, both are different games, different demographics of players (in general). Keep in mind that most of the fun with GoW is seeing bodies being splattered around, heads being blown of with shotguns, the thrill of sneeking up behind someone and chainsawing them, taking out the pistol and smaking the back of someone head and pistol whipping them, taking the sniper and getting a headshot (and seing the head splatter), etc, etc. The constant cussing by the characters in game, is actually kind of funny as well. If you can accept these parts of the game, then you will enjoy it (especially if you have a couple of drinks inside you, and especially if you play with some friends). Also, when you are dead, you are dead, no reserections, and you then are able to watch your teammates play, and chat with the other dead people, which many times is just as fun. most games only last 2 minutes anyways so waiting is not that big a deal.

The game was designed to be tactical (3rd person, with cover system) need to flank enemies, plan strategy, and during the campaign you do play that way, but on-line it is a free for all. The campaign can be considered short, I thought it was great, but the real fun is on-line. If you only want to play campaign then rent it. I also still use GoW as the 'demo' game when friends come over to show off the system.

Gears is a great game but if you're not sure...you can always buy it used at Game Stop....and if you don't like it you can return it and get your money back or another game.

No its not good. There are no rankings the matchmaking stinks every game is uneven teams people come and go every 2 seconds when I play or anyone I talked to. Dont get it.

It's not just you. ;)

Me too. In my opinion Gears is much better (than H3)

ps. an extended version is soon about to come out for the PC..

No its not good. There are no rankings the matchmaking stinks every game is uneven teams people come and go every 2 seconds when I play or anyone I talked to. Dont get it.

what exactly do you enjoy playing? Your review of every game seems to be "it sucks" or it "makes me want to kill people"

what exactly do you enjoy playing? Your review of every game seems to be "it sucks" or it "makes me want to kill people"

I'm thinking the same thing. I can see how someone might like, say, Halo or GRAW better than Gears, but I am suprised to see so many people hate on it. Gears is simply one of the best games I've ever played.

Because post-apocalyptic worlds are sunny happy places full of color. The graphics were stunning, and perfectly paletted for the scenario that the game was painting IMHO.

I loved the co-op and did both hardcore and insane. I also spent at least 30 hours plus online. Definitely a purchase for me.

That's cool... To each their own. I thought the HDR in GoW was way too overdone. Playing online was a chore as well as I always had a hard time telling my teamates from the enemy.

I look back now and wish I would have rented it. I'm not much of a multiplayer person other than coop, so that was really time wasted for me playing all the deathmatch games I did.

I'm going to change my recommendation from not recommended to rent it first. It might not be your cup of tea, or it might be. Better than wasting $40-$60 buying it.

-Brad

Two words, HELL YEAH! :D

Listen very carefully. GOW IS A MUST HAVE GAME! I just bought R6 tonight, and was wondering the same thing about it, before I start playing, how funny! I can't seem to stop playing GOW. I returned SKATE and OBLIVION tonight. I think FABLE 2 will be more of my type of epic role-playing game. And, SKATE became too difficult. But, my attention keeps getting pulled back to GOW on-line anyway. I just forced myself to stop playing and I plan on starting R6:VEGAS in a lil' bit. The rep at Gamecrazy sold me on it. Since I am enjoying shooters so much (especially on-line), and eagerly anticipating COD4, I hope R6:VEGAS will pleasantly surprise me. I've played lots of games, but the only games in my possession right now are GRAW 1 & 2, GOW, BIOSHOCK, HALO 1 & 2, and now R6:VEGAS. Please, give me some feedback right now. The rep said the multiplayer is awesome. But, it is so hard to stop playing GOW! PLAY IT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE! GO!

Quick, hype me up on R6:VEGAS!

I dont game on line but put it this way the day I brought Halo III home I played it for 20 minutes and went right back to rainbow6 Its the best shooter/ combat game ever made period the end..

It is a great game with good co-op play, great graphics, cool weapons, and great mechanics.

Definitely a must-buy for the 360.

I just recently played GoW for the first time and finished the campaign. The single player experience is extremely short, that is my main gripe with the game. I do not play a lot of multiplayer, other then co-op, so I won't speak about that part of the experience. The graphics are the best on the 360 imo, and the cinematic story and cutscenes are well done. The game did feel rushed to me (the length especially speaks to this point), but I certainly look forward to part 2.

I dont game on line but put it this way the day I brought Halo III home I played it for 20 minutes and went right back to rainbow6 Its the best shooter/ combat game ever made period the end..
Well, I just tried the first level of R6:VEGAS. First, I think it's looks and sounds great! But, as I thought , it's just too stealthy and tactical for me. It's takes alot of patience, and, I enjoy more action. That's the difference between GRAW, and GOW vs. R6:VEGAS. Tactical is just not my thing....yet. Alot of reviews claim R6s' cover system is a liitle better than GOW. I don't see how, when in GOW, all you have to do is press the button once, you stick to the wall and shoot in any direction; while in R6, you have to hold the trigger to stay in cover. And, my last gripe is the on-screen position of the gun. I prefer it on the left side. At least in GRAW you can switch the position of aim. Every shooter must include that option. I got lucky with GOW being positioned on the left side of the screen. Oh well, now back to GOW!

What I've come to find out is that these games are pretty much what you make of them. I would never in a million years thought I would like GOW but a girl on my FL insisted that I try it out. I didn't buy it release day but I went ahead and picked it up when she and a few others kept talking about it. Funny thing is I don't see them playing it much anymore but I got hooked and been hooked ever since. I have a nightly group who I play with and we always get 3 hours min. on the game.

Graphics A+. After playing this and popping in Halo3 you see just how silly Halo 3 looks and sounds in comparison. Halo 3 was the first Halo I ever purchased even though I've been on xbox 1 and 360 for years. First thing out the box was the colors. Too "cartoonish" then when shooting the little creatures and hearing them speak just totally took me out of the experience. I played through it and enjoyed it and finished it but I can't honestly say I like the action better than GOW. I don't care for the multiplayer in the game so much although I did have some good fun a few times online. But GOW I always have fun.

Put it this way...I bought the 360 for it and I don't regret it to this day. It is a blast. I have only played co-op over live so I don't know about multiplayer but it is a lot of fun.

That's cool... To each their own. I thought the HDR in GoW was way too overdone. Playing online was a chore as well as I always had a hard time telling my teamates from the enemy.

I look back now and wish I would have rented it. I'm not much of a multiplayer person other than coop, so that was really time wasted for me playing all the deathmatch games I did.

I'm going to change my recommendation from not recommended to rent it first. It might not be your cup of tea, or it might be. Better than wasting $40-$60 buying it.

-Brad

I agree 100% with the problem telling my teammates apart from the enemy. It sucks having to pop a quick shot into someone to see if they curse back at you, to determine whether they're friend or foe. The design of the characters and the colors used in the game contribute to the confusion, I think. And before someone tells me "it's realistic, blah blah, of course there's going to be confusion, blah, colors will be washed out"... they're alien-type creatures. So the realistic argument can't be used. :D

I'd rent it first. I am also a big fan of the "tactical" shooters and Splinter Cell type games. In my opinion GoW was o.k. but I am enjoying HALO 3 just as much. I actually sold GoW back around Feb. of this year. The graphics are great (even if not colorful) and game play is fun but I'd rent it first.

I agree 100% with the problem telling my teammates apart from the enemy. It sucks having to pop a quick shot into someone to see if they curse back at you, to determine whether they're friend or foe. The design of the characters and the colors used in the game contribute to the confusion, I think. And before someone tells me "it's realistic, blah blah, of course there's going to be confusion, blah, colors will be washed out"... they're alien-type creatures. So the realistic argument can't be used. :D

Been awhile since I played, but I believe the target reticule turns red on enemies (so if it's not red, you don't need to "pop a shot" into the person). Or am I getting GOW confused with Crackdown, where I know the target turns red on enemies? I can't remember.

Plus, the most people on your team is 4, so if you're communicating (as you should be) it shouldn't be that hard to keep track of the other 3 people on your team.

I guess I prefer that to the big green arrows over people's heads (ala COD4) or bright red/lavendar/royal blue (ala H3). But that's personal preference. Of course in games like COD4 and H3, the characters all look about the same, so it's harder to keep track, as opposed to GOW where the bad guys are either big lizards or humans (depending on your team).

Been awhile since I played, but I believe the target reticule turns red on enemies (so if it's not red, you don't need to "pop a shot" into the person). Or am I getting GOW confused with Crackdown, where I know the target turns red on enemies? I can't remember.

You are correct, the reticule turns red when you have an enemy target.

Why even rent it? Isn't the demo still available? That was enough to tell me that I'd like it.

Simple way to differentiate teams is to look at the glow/lights on the weapons. The Locust have the Red glow, and the Cog blue. In actual fact it is no different than playing painball, or lasertag. Once you train yourself to look at the weapon, immediately (even across the map) you can easily see the colors on the weapons and determine friend or foe. Similarly, hitting the R bumber (I think) it tells you where your teammates are.

You young kids must have better eyes than me, I suppose. And communicating is difficult when I can't wear my headset due to my hearing aid. The one time I had my headset in, all I received were curses and insults because my bad hip slowed me down. It's a shame I hit that melee button when I did - anger is never good.

"Gears of War is it that ggod?"

hell yeah. it's good enough to make even you stutter.

Im looking for some solid advise, as far as games for the 360 go the only one that has impressed me enough to play and actually finish is rainbow 6. I have bioshock, Halo 3 and many others but after playing R6LV nothing compares or even comes close for me. So, I picked up GOW today and before I open it and spend another $60 I wanted to ask, being that I really like R6LV and splinter cell type games will I like GOW? Should I open it or return it and look elsewhere? I just cant get into bioshock and well halo III is great but I feel it was a bit over hyped up. Thanks

Play it, you'll like it. If you need another guy to play with you co-op let me know:)

I don't know, I love GOW but don't play it anymore. I am definately into the online Halo 3 experience. Come to think of it, I never even beat GOW. Wow, I should probably go back and do that sometime.

I'm still waiting on my friend to let me try his copy of Gears, but from his word, he thinks it's just average.

I don't know, I love GOW but don't play it anymore. I am definately into the online Halo 3 experience. Come to think of it, I never even beat GOW. Wow, I should probably go back and do that sometime.

Yes, you are severely missing out on some fun. Beating RAMM on Hardcore single player was a fun challenge.

loved it - sick graphics and beat in in co-op. Very fun and entertaining first time through. Common - rodie (sp?) running is awesome!

Gears of War is a fun game. The single player is entertaining though it was rushed at the end and is lacking story transitions that should be there. It's online pales in comparison to Halo 3 and RB6:V. Too many bugs and glitches made playing it online a chore unless it was with a group of friends only. I don't think too many new people play it so there may be a steep learning curve. I'd say pick it up on the cheap if you can $30-40. It should be nearing that price range soon if not at least occasionally on sale.

Its an eye candy game IMHO, I bought it and didn't even finish it. I think the game was overly hyped. The gameplay has no substance at all for replayability for me. IMHO. Online play is OK but gets really old fast. Maps are small which is a big turn off.

... In the end, no more monster games for me. I'll pass when GOW2 comes out because I just have a feeling its going to be the SOS.

I dont game on line but put it this way the day I brought Halo III home I played it for 20 minutes and went right back to rainbow6 Its the best shooter/ combat game ever made period the end..

Well if you don't play online then I recommend you just rent GOW. Its a great game and in fact, its top three games I have ever played, but its the multiplayer aspect that makes it great IMO. The solo campaign is cool too, but as most games, you can only play the campaign so much. And I agree that R6V is a great game, but I traded it in 5 months ago. In fact, the only game I have right now that I had when I first bought my X360 last year is.....you guessed it, Gears of War.