Gears of War. Is there anyone in the gaming world, who`s never heard of Gears of War? Perhaps alongside Halo, Microsoft`s biggest gaming franchise, and one of the most well-known and loved franchises for the brand. We`ve seen 4 games in the franchise in the form of Gears of War 1, 2, 3 and Judgement, and 3 years after the release of Judgement, we`re seeing Gears of War 4 released for Xbox One. Is it a game that`s going to live up to the hype of the series? Or is it going to be the first disappointment to the series? Well, it`s fantastic, stunning and I could well run out of words throughout this review. It`s that incredibly good.
Gears of War 4 is developed by The Coalition and it`s the first game of the franchise to not be developed by Epic Games. It follows the story of JD Fenix, son of the legendary veteran Marcus Fenix and Anya Stroud, and follows the story of JD and his team (consisting of new characters Del Walker, and Kait Diaz) as they follow the road to capturing back Kait`s mother Reyna, who has been captured by “The Swarm” and are the new enemies to the Gears of War series. They must get to the dam where the Swarm have made their hive, and try to save Reyna before it`s too late.
Now, before we go into the game itself, the game is absolutely beautiful and stunning. I think that it stands alongside Rise of the Tomb Raider as in the top 2 games to graphically take full advantage of the Xbox One`s graphical capability. It was absolutely stunning, and when watching the cinematic scenes, I`d even risk my neck out and say that it`s graphically better than Sony`s Unchartered 4 (that was released this year and graphically probably the best game released to date). Whether you`re playing on a Xbox One S with the HDR Functionality or whether you are playing on a standard Xbox One, the game is beautiful and graphically is up there as being the best released to date.
Now, the game itself is very much gears, and if you`ve played a Gears game before, you`re not going to get much change. There`s a few new weapons that have been introduced, but the characteristics of the gears game are very much there. Cover and reload, fire in the hole, and hope to see what comes out isn’t a nasty site. 99% of the time it will be covered with The Swarm, who are this games addition and take on the locusts. One thing that I actually quite like and recognise within the game, is that some of the enemies that they have added, such as the Deebees (which are little balls that run around and then open up and explode when near you) could be seen as a take on the tickers that use to cause so many problems in the past. We`ve seen new enemies too such as the pouncers, snatchers, and perhaps the most difficult one to take on, the Swarmack, which are a take on the historical Brumaks from the past, and are heavily armored with armor, weapons, and ammos to wipe out the team. You`re going to need conserve your ammo and re-stock whenever you see an ammo box, as you`re going to need them. At times throughout the game, they seem to be endless and don’t seem to stop. However, the enemies are a great addition to the series, and as I`ve already mentioned, you`ll be able to see some of the similarities between the new enemies, and perhaps some of the older enemies from the older titles.
The story is great, and although it may not live up to the same story telling of when Gears of War 3 first launched, it`s a game that offers a great gripping and story with a compelling and emotional ending. I won`t spoil the game in anyway or form, but the story is something that will grip you and it does it very well. We`re even left with a hint at the end of the story of a shock revelation, and I won’t spoil, but it was something that certainly left me shocked. Story telling wise, perhaps it`s ones of a few games that do it extremely well.
Now, one of the modes that the Coalition talked a lot about, was the new Horde 3.0 mode. Horde is a mode where you must team up with up to 4 other players to survive and wipe out several waves of enemies, and it`s down to you to show how long you can last. You`re going to need to make sure that you are keeping your traps and enforcements up to scratch, and one of the newest additions to the Horde mode is the new addition of the Fabricator. The Fabricator allows you to build your defences around where ever you are setting yourself, and killing enemies will enable you to pick up power, to keep your fabricator powered throughout the game. You`re also able to collect the dog tags of fallen comrades, and take them to the fabricator where it will enable for the downed member of your team to be revived and thrown back into the game. You`re able to take on Horde in 3 different difficulty types, and for a real challenge, you want to be going for the highest one possible. Simply because I found casual mode far too easily and actually quit out after around 10 waves because of how easy I was finding it. But one of the interesting things within Horde that they`ve added this year is the use of skill cards, that will enable you to enhance your point skillage, such as 10% more points on hits, and 10% cheaper on the Fabricator etc. There are many different cards on offer, and the higher rank you go, the more you have unlocked to you, meaning the more you can have on-going at the same time.
Co-Op wise you have the option to take on the horde mode with your friends, but similar to the last gears games, you have the option to play through the campaign together too. At times throughout the game, I found the AI quite frustrating so it may feel good to know that you`re playing with other human players.
Multiplayer wise is very much Gears of War, and there aren’t really too many new additions to the game, and the Gears of War MP is very similar to before. I personally can’t stand the MP side of Gears, and I never really have, but for those who loved the MP on previous gears, will be pleased to know that nothing has changed, and it`s the same in terms of MP than before.
Gears of War 4 is a fantastic title to the series, and visually, is one of the best, perhaps the best game to be released on a console this year, and that`s a pretty bold statement. The story is gripping and compelling, and is a story that will certainly be loved by most. They`ve made a cracking title to the series, and I can`t wait to see if we`re going to see any more of JD Fenix, Del and Kait in the future. I hope so. But in the meantime, if you`ve not already, pick up Gears 4, and have a play of what is set to be one of the standout games of 2016.
A huge thank you to XCN for supplying us with a review copy.
Game: Gears of War 4
Developers: The Coalition
Publishers: Microsoft Studios
Genre: Third-person shooter
Price: £41.74