Gears Of War: Xbox 360 By Friend Neighboorhood Cynic By FriendNeighboorhoodCynic on Jan 27, 2008 - Updated Oct 15, 2011

In Gears of War, you play as Marcus Fenix. Not a whole lot of information is given about him or any of the other characters in the game, but the opening scene involves Dom Santiago (the AI or Co-op partner of Fenix) informing Marcus that he's been pardoned of some crime and leading him out of a prison. A particularly gloomy prison that happens to be attacked by the Locust, the antagonist alien race of the game, immediately after you complete the optional tutorial. Marcus is out of jail so that he can participate in a war, and he makes several wise-cracks about how Dom should have left him in jail throughout the course of the game. And that's about as in-depth as the storyling gets. There is the occasional twist just so that you can keep playing, because if the plot was as straight-forward as it seems, the game would be over in about four hours of gameplay. Speaking of gameplay, it's excellent. It is almost entirely based around your ability to cover behind nearly any object and the speed at which you can change cover. The battle flows very well, and the locust make for formidable opponents. That is, unless you get to know the lancer rifle's chainsaw bayonet. Then you can cut them in half and they'll leave you alone. As far as Dom's AI goes, he's not bad at fighting a standard battle with the standard locust, but in the "boss-fights" he's about as effective as the teddy-bear from Dead Rising. This is where online cooperative play comes in handy. Also, the online team play, while limited to four on four and plagued by the occasional glitch-abuser or just plain obnoxious person, is excellent. I would definitley recommend Gears of War for anyone who loves graphic violence and fast-paced duck-and-cover style gameplay.