Gears of War 2

Following up on the success of Gears of War, developer Epic Games is set to take gamers back to the war-ravaged world of Sera this summer with Gears of War 2. Gears 2 is set to take place about six months after the first game with players once again assuming the role of Marcus Fenix, member of Delta Squad and all-round badass. Accompanying Marcus are the returning members of Delta Squad - Dom, Cole and Baird with newcomer Dizzy.

In Gears of War 2 you’ll be facing off with the Locust forces. In the first game the Locusts burrowed up through the planet's crust to destroy humanity and it was your job as resident all-round badass to stop that from happening. With humanity currently bailed up in Jacinto Plateau, one of the last safe havens, the Coalition of Ordered Government (or COG) forces are left with no choice other than to take the fight to the Locusts. Enter the grind-lifts, mobile elevators deployable in certain zones that will act as a ticket to Locustville, sending two soldiers down into the breeding areas and back up again once all the Locust have been cleaned out.

Careful analysis of the recently released trailer showcasing two minutes of gameplay from the game's second level has revealed some interesting gameplay changes. Chief among these were the new chainsaw duel system and living shields. The chainsaw duel (thankfully not a quick time event) is shown when Marcus locks blades with a Locust grunt before cutting through him. A living shield is, as the name suggests, the ability to pick up fallen Locust (and hopefully players, although little information is available at this time in regards to multiplayer) and use them to absorb enemy shots. You will be able to either use the shield until taking hits starts to remove some of the poor Locust's limbs, or if you decide to execute your hostage at will. Did I mention there’s an increase in blood and gore over the original?

Gears of War 2 looks set to follow in the footsteps of the original Gears by pushing the Xbox 360 to its limits by providing both stunning visuals and increasing the amount of action on-screen. Numerous tweaks have been made to the Unreal Engine 3 - in particular the new lighting engine making good use of the HDR lighting effects, as well as improvements to the soft particle and soft body physics engine (meat cube, anyone?).

“Bigger, better and more badass” is how Cliff Bleszinski, lead designer for Gears and Gears 2, is describing his plans for the sequel. With the gameplay additions, rebalances, engine tweaks and greater emphasis on the game's story (aided in part by the hiring of writer Joshua Ortega) I’d say Gears 2 is shaping up to be just that. Stay tuned to NZGamer.com in the coming months for more Gears of War 2 coverage and updates.

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