New Gears of War impresses fans

This past week, Xbox owners saw the return of a franchise that many have been waiting for: Gears of War. The new entry comes packed with fundamental elements from the previous games, including a thrilling multiplayer experience, a new Horde mode, and a campaign that is set 25 years after the events of the original trilogy.

Gears of War 4 is the first in the franchise not published by Epic Games, after Microsoft purchased the rights to the franchise and revealed a new game would be developed by an in-house studio recently renamed The Coalition. The game was also directed by Rod Fergusson, the former director of production at Epic Games, and he ensured that players with experience from the previous games would feel right at home with this new game.

What’s most surprising, yet also impressive, aspect of the game is that even with how technically demanding it is, Gears of War 4 offers local split-screen multiplayer, giving fans the ability to dive into the classic couch co-op play style. My own brother, who has been a fan of the series since the beginning, jumped at the chance to play it at the earliest opportunity possible. Back in April, those with a copy of the Gears of War Ultimate Edition, a re-mastered version of the first game, were given access to a multiplayer beta for Gears of War 4. This allowed my brother and I to test the game’s multiplayer capability months before its release, and we quickly became excited.

As soon as the full game was available my brother and a friend of his who played all three previous games were instantly ready to embark on the campaign. And now that they have finished the eight-hour story, they told me it was awesome.

The gameplay is smoother than ever, since this is the first Gears of War to be released on the Xbox One. All the level design is visually appealing, and the story features new weather elements that actually affect gameplay in certain areas. The weaponry includes all the old favorites plus a few new choices like the Overkill, a hi-tech double barrel shotgun, and the Embar which is a non-scoped railgun.

In addition to the updated equipment, Gears of War 4 also featured a new and improved version of Horde mode, the game’s popular wave-based defense mode. Horde 3.0 offers five-player co-op across 50 waves of enemies, with a boss wave every 10th wave. The new Horde also allows players to set up base anywhere on the map they may please, with a transportable fabricator that dishes out weapons, barricades, and turrets.

With all the new additions in play, the balancing of the multiplayer was designed in hopes to popularize Gears of War 4 with the eSports community. The blend of tactics and gritty, fast-paced action of Gears of War has always been an attraction for many since the game’s beginning, and with my experience I think the game’s competitive aspect has the potential to really catch on with both casual and hardcore players.