No Baird soars too high

Gears of War 3 may have seen an effective end to the war between the COG and the Locust, but in the game industry, a story isn't over until games stop s?elling. While Epic Games works on an inev?itable sequel, it's joined up with People Can Fly to plunder the past. Yep, it's prequel time!

Cynical though I may be, my respect for the Gears of War series is such that I'm still not quite satisfied with what I have, especially following Gears 3's slightly less riveting narrative. Armed as it is with a unique style of story campaign, as well as two interesting new multiplayer modes, Judgment makes changes that some fans have found co?n??troversial.

Ultimately, however, they work surprisingly well, keeping Gears fresh and familiar all at once. Who?? could ask for fairer? 

Gears of War: Judgment (Xbox 360)
Developer: Epic Games, People Can Fly
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Released: March 19, 2013
MSRP: $59.99

Set in the early years just after "Emergence Day," Gears of War: Judgment tells the story of Baird -- Delta Squad's forever caustic complainer and arguably the best character in the series. Judgment explains why he was a lowly private during the events of Gears of War, despite having served as Lieutenant, and introduces us to Kilo Squad -- comprised of Sofia Hendrik, Paduk, and series favorite Augustus "Cole Train" Cole??. 

As a story, Judgment is largely forgettable -- a bit of a shame for those rare freaks like myself who actually quite enjoy Gears' silly-but-entertaining narrative. Despite claiming to reveal Baird's past and pit him against a terrifying new Locust threat, Judgment doesn't really provide much in the way of compelling information. Baird disobeys authority, fights a bad guy, and that's about it. It's not poorly written, and the Kilo Squad is a likable bunch, but it is by far the least memorable of all Gears campaigns in terms of pure story. 

As far as delivery goes, however, Judgment shakes things up in a big way. Set during Kilo Squad's military ?trial, campaign chapters are presented as flashbacks, each member of the squad taking turns to retell their story. At the beginning of every section, players can select to "declassify" the te??stimony, allowing characters to reveal more information about the events that took place. What this amounts to in gameplay terms is choosing optional extra challenges that change the way a section plays out.

To declassify a mission, players simply approach a Gears logo painted on the wall and confirm the mission condition -- be it reduced visibility in a room, the presence of elite Locust troops, or a lack of ammunition. Some of these extra challenges are damn tough, and can significantly alter the feel of a mission. However, playing the game under the?se difficult conditions leads to a better star rating upon completion -- which in turns leads to unlockable content. 

Judgment places a heavy emphasis on star and ribbon acquisition, encouraging players to kill opponents by gibbing or executing them,? and completing various tasks on the fly to obtain commendations. As players earn ribbons and k?ills, they level up, and as they level up they get to earn Prize Boxes which can award anything from an experience boost to a new character skin. Player progress is retained throughout all modes of the game, meaning players constantly feel like they're working toward an end goal no matter what they do. 

This focus on leveling and winning things leads to Judgment's campaign having a lot more of an "arcade" feel than prior installments. Missions are very short, lasting a few minutes at most, which leads to the already basic story feeling segmented. However, the trade-off is a faster, more chaotic, more varied solo and cooperative experience which, coupled with the declassified extras, leads to an altogether different type of Gears that players are used to. Whether fighting in a room covered in thick dust and full of sword-wielding Therons, or defending a position with sentry bots and turrets, Judgment constantly switches th?ing??s up on the player, and the bite-sized nature of individual missions leads to a feeling of greater replayability. 

As always, the game can be experienced cooperatively, which is as simple as jumping into -- or having someone else jump into -- a game and just getting down to business. Once again, the segmented structure of the campaign makes co-op a more enjoyable option. For those who prefer to play solo, however, the allied A.I. seems to have received a bit of a boost this time around. They're more competent as they're ?less ready to wander aimlessly, and they tend to be quick at reviving you -- a crucial requirement, since staying in "down but not out" status for an extended period of time can cost you progress toward stars. 

After unlocking thirty stars, a shorter, more traditional campaign -- Aftermath -- becomes accessible. This is a little side story taking place during the events of Gears of War 3, and sees Baird return to Judgment's Halvo Bay in o??rder to acquire a boat. While only brief, Aftermath is a neat little chapter that plays with a horror atmosphere and adequately wraps up Kilo Squad's story. 

Multiplayer is, of course, the main attraction, and it's where t??he majority of controversial changes have been made. Most importantly, classic team deathmatch no longer pits COG forces against Locust players. Instead, regular multiplayer modes will pit red teams against blue teams, with any playe?r free to select and skin their favorite character. You could ostensibly have a team of four blue Bairds against four red Bairds if you want.

An advantage to this decision is that players get to feel more personally attached to their character of choice, giving them a unique look and feeling more like it's their avatar. However, since Judgment goes so far as to pit COG against COG, I don't think it would have been too jarring to allow for mixed teams, and let players select either COG or Locust characters to fight alongside each other. It would have bee?n no weirder than seeing Cole chainsaw his doppelganger in half. 

Sticking to human players only will likely disappoint many players (I personally miss being able to play as a Theron Guard), but the alteration is purely cosmetic, and the game itself is familiar as always -- players are all still rolling around with shotguns and sticking grenades on each other, so don't worry if you feel the game's changed too much. Domination also returns, the familiar capture-and-hold based game type th?at has always been a long-standing personal favorite. Those eager for traditional Gears gameplay will get their fill he??re, but it's the new content that really draws my eye.

The disassembly of the COG/Locust dynamic paves the way for an all-new competitive mode, free-for-all. For the first time in the series, all players can fight for themselves in a mode that dismantles teams and lets personal combat reign free. I actually enjoyed this mode a lot more than I thought I would. No longer having a team relying on you is a rather freeing experience, while having death come from anywhere provides a level of pleasant anarchy matching that of the campaign. While I don't expect many of the hardcore Gears players to migrate away from their beloved team dynamic, ??the ?free-for-all option is a great one to have. 

The second new mode is OverRun, a mod??e I have fallen completely in?? love with. This gametype is the sole source of COG vs. Locust action, pitting teams against each other in a class-based battle of attack and defense. As humans, players must defend barricaded Emergence Holes for a set period of time, while the Locust team must fight their way to it and destroy the barricades.

Played over three rounds, the whole game is over should the players hold out at any stage, but if the Locust can open two E-Holes and eventually destroy a power generator, they win the game. In a manner similar to Left 4 Dead, the advantage lies with the monsters, and it's more a case of seeing which team can hole out f?or the longer rather than who can stay alive until the timer drains -- though it's entirely possible to do so. 

When playing as COG, participants can select from an engineer, scout, soldier, or medic, each with their own pre-set weapon loadouts and combat roles. The engineer is perhaps the most important, able to repair damaged fortifications and slow down the Locust progress, while erecting temporary sentry turrets to score kills. The soldie??r is based around high impact weapons and can toss an ammo grenade to replenish allied weaponry, while the scout uses long-ranged firearms and a grenade that locates and debuffs the opposition. Finally, the medic does as you'd expect, armed with conventional weapons and stim-gas grenades that heal or revive teammates. 

The Locust get a lot more options, and judicial use of all the beasts on offer is key to victory. The first tier of monsters allows players to be explosive Tickers, f??ence-jumping Wretches, deadly Grenadiers, or (my personal favorite) healing Kantus Priests. As Locust players deal damage and wrack up points, they get to unlock more deadly creatures from a second tier -- consisting of the transforming Rager, tank-like Mauler, slithering Serapede, or outright terrifying Corpser. Using these creatures well is not only important, but immense fun.

Sending waves of Tickers out, or having a Mauler and Kantus team up as an unstoppable force, is just fantastic stuff, and the panic felt as the human team, when a pair o?f giant spider monsters start digging their way under barriers, is pretty exhilarating in its own right. I'm a fan of class-based multiplayer in general, and have to say I'm immensely impressed by what Epic and People Can Fly have done with OverRun. Even when I had to get on and test the other multiplayer modes, I struggled to tear myself away from this one. It's a stupid amount of fun, ??and something I plan to keep playing for quite some time. 

Once again, Gears of Wars' commitment to content is laudable, with a full campaign, co-op, and scads of multiplayer options to choose from. I'm a little turned off, however, by the fact the majority of character and weapon skins are gated behind extra purchases, which seems to diminish the importance being placed on level progression and Prize Box acquisition. Knowing some of the better unlockables must be paid for rather than earned reduces my interest in the entire system, and while Judgment does more than e?nough to justify its asking price, it's a bit of an own-goal to undermine the value of what would otherwise be a fantastic ranking system. 

That quibble aside, Epic's latest is still a very worthy purchase for fans of the series, and does enough new things that the previously uninterested may consider looking into it. The campaign is light on story, but heavy on replay value, with an invigorated new approach to solo play and a nice twist on the idea of optional difficulty. The core multiplay??er modes are preserved, but competitive play truly comes back to life with the addition of free-for-all and the stellar new OverRun mode. 

Gears of War 3 was still a great little game, but represented the kind of step down indicative of a series that's running out of steam. Gears of War: Judgment puts paid to that impression, proving there's plenty of vitality in Epic's flagship yet; provided it's willing to try some new spins on its established formula. OverRun alone is worthy of praise, but there's just so much stuff going on in this package, there's something for all followers of the series. A few of Judgment's experiments may not be as fondly received as others, but ?overall it's hard to complain about a game that tries so much, and succeeds in almost all its endeavors. 

This is Gears of War back, unquestionably, on the winning path. 

The post Review: Gears of War: Judgment appeared first on Destructoid.

Grub's up!

Here's a new trailer for Gears of War: Judgment, introducing us to Baird's allies in the prequel campaign. Kilo Squad is the team responsible for the events of Epic's upcoming new game, and you can hear them say?? things while killing stuff in the video above. 

Say hello to Baird, Sofia, Paduk, and Cole?? Train. Except don't actually say it, because they can't hear you. They're fictional, ya goof!

We've got the game in-house rig??ht now, but a review won't surface until next week. In the meantime, watch the video. Or not. It really doesn't matter what you do, because this America, and the choice is yours.

Rock, flag, and eagle!

The post Gears of War:? Judgment ??trailer introduces Kilo Squad appeared first on Destructoid.

Making a real push for story and gameplay refinement

I love Gears of War. Like many earlier adopters of the Xbox 360 (I have and love a PS3 too so don't hate), Gears of War was that first big game that made me very comfortable with my system choice. With roughly a year and half separating Gears of War: Judgment and Gears of War 3 though, I'll admit that I was firmly in that camp of Gears fans who really didn't see Judgment as necessary, and my hands on with the free for all mode at the last?? PAX Prime c?ertainly wasn't winning me over.

Having spent the better part of a day with Judgment though, I am definitely warming up to it. Sure, it's not Gears of War 4 proper, but if you fancy yourself a Gears fan, then there's no reason to not open up to thi?s one.

Gears of War: Judgment (Xbox 360)
Developer: Epic Games, People Can fly
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Release: March 19, 2013

Gears of War has been known more for its scale rather than its narrative; nearly nonsensical in the first, melodramatic in the second, but not half bad in the third. Epic is making a concerted effort with Judgment to change that, bringing? in Rob Auten, a? former Hollywood editor, and Tom Bissell, a former war correspondent.

The duo had actually met prior to their work on Judgment, working together in 2009 on a yet to be announced/possibly defunct game. For a universe as big as Gears, with the games, comics, and the rest of the expanded universe, it can be a bit of a minefield for new writers adding new stories to such an established lore.

"In a weird way we actually wanted to take things back," Auten told me. "Gears has always been about guys and girls saving the world, three times now. So how about we just save a city, almost like a western. Bad guy comes into town, good guys go kill the bad guy. Plus what's adding to this is that we already know in Gears lore that the city is going to be destroyed. So it adds this nice bi??tter aftertaste to the heroic actions in our game whi?ch we get to explore in Aftermath."

A side story unlocked after completing Judgments campaign, Aftermath follows Baird and Cole after they separate from Marcus and Dom during the events of Gears of War 3. Over the course of both campaigns, you will get to see how both stories talk to each other even though t?hey take place many years apart. I got to see this mo??stly in the character Paduk, who's part of Kilo squad, and also makes an appearance early in the Aftermath story.

"Paduk by the end of Judgment is a really pissed off guy. He just completely removes himself. He doe??sn't believe in the COG, he doesn't believe in the war, and i?t's how he remains when we see him in Aftermath."

In terms of gameplay, Aftermath gets to shine from Judgments subtle tweaks. Movement speed is raised just slightly, weapons now have a quick swap button on Y, and grenades can be quick tossed with LB, or you can hold it for the traditional arc. Aftermath is essentially a lovely little taste of Gears of War 3, but with the finer amenities of Judgment, and so far my most compel??ling reason to get t??his game.

This is still a Gears game mind you, so the majority of your attention is still focused on shooting Locust in the face in as fun a way as possible. As many of you know, Judgments narrative is a series of flashbacks, as Kilo squad try to explain away the actions they're being? held on trial for.

Apart from being a new narrative style,? the story adds new wrinkles to gameplay with the Declassifications.  If the main campaign is the public record of Kilo squads story, Declassifications are the bi?ts of the file marked in black ink, shedding light on what really happened.

Speaking with senior producer Alan Van Slyke, "When we had this framework of Kilo squad gone rogue, and now they're giving their testimony in a military tribunal, it made sense for us to give ?the player options to opt in and hear the testimony that not only the Republic knows about, but what really went down."

In combat, Declassifying acts as mutators, adding additional challenges to the game. These range from reduced visibility, to weapons restrictions, to fighting modified enemy types. Really, the Declassify system adds more to the gameplay than the story, but more hardcore Gears fans will recognize the story significance of a few of these challenges. Early in the game I ran into a Declassification that would turn all the Wretches in the chapter into Lambent Wretches. Lambent Wretches don't actually make their appearance until later in the story of Gears of War 2, some 15 odd years later, but the Declassified variant of the level shows t??he COG knew about them for a while, but buried that knowledge.

Declassifications also feed into Judgments scoring system. A relatively simple system, scoring in Judgment has you attempting to get a three star rating, with rewarded actions running the gamut of headshots, multi-kills, finishing a chapter without getting downed, and the like. The scoring itself can be simple, but Judgment aims to make the combat anything but. Like with Left 4 Dead, Judgment has a smart-spawn system that reads your? play style and tries to fight back.

"We tried to make it so that the game reads you," Alan told me. "So that if you're being really ??aggressive and rushing through a level we might spaw?n Wretches to come up behind you, or if you play it super defensively we might start bringing in more Tickers and Kantus."

It remains to be seen just how dynamic it is, as I only had time to run throu??gh the chapters once, but at the very least Epic i??s promising the system is dynamic enough to spawn different enemy types during different playthroughs, rather than the previous system of scripted encounters.

Between the story, subtle control tweaks, Declassifications, and Aftermath, I can feel the ice breaking between me and Judgment. I still carry a few reservations mind you (still not into free-for-all) and while the effort is sincere, I'm going to need to experience the full campaign for myself before I get hyped at the possibility of a good story in a Gears game.

Such is the mind of a fan. But again, I am just that, a fan. And if you are too, then let me tell you there is no? reason to not keep your eyes peeled for how this one turns out.

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Is this really a surprise?

Like Gears of War 3, the newest Gears iteration, Judgment, will be getting a Season Pass. The pass will be available at the game's launch (March 19) for $20 (1600 Microsoft Points), which is a 20 percent discount compared to buying ever?ything p??iecemeal.

Content??-wise, it'll offer six maps, two new modes, and nine unlocks. You'll also get a permanent double XP boost, early access to maps, and weapon/armor skins.

Ok, so this is all typical Season Pass stuff -- you know whether or not you're for or against them at this point. But the permanent double XP boost? That's a litt?le scummy I? think, to the point where I can easily see it fracturing the fanbase.

Why punish people who like to "wait and see" on DLC offerings like that? Just treat it like Call of Duty Black Ops II did, and have it be a temporary weekend eve??nt for early adopters.

This never would have happened with Cliffy around!

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At GameStop

Your pre-order of Gears of War: Judgement at any GameStop gets you three-day early access to the game's five-on-five, Locusts vs COGs OverRun multiplayer mode. G?ameStop PowerUp Rewards members that get their pre-order in will be able to start playing on March 15 (at 11:59 p.m. Pacific??), days before the March 19 launch date.

A demo will be available f??or all Xbox Live Gold members on March 19. 

Multiplayer experience points earned during this time will carry over to the final game, giving these people the jump on the rest of the world. Two pre-order bonuses are also included: a Young Marcus skin, a Lambent weapon skin, and the Classic Hammerburst? weapon.

The post Early access: Gears of War: Judgement mode via pre-o?rder appeared first on Destructoid.

Also, new GOW: Judgement trailer

Gears of War: Judgement launch copies will include an Xbox Live download token for the original Gears of War (except in Germany, as the game is banned there). Microsoft and Epic Games say that moe than half of gamers that played Gears of War 3 did so without playing the original game in?? the series, so this $19.99 value will let new fans experience the series' origins for free.

A new video called "The Guts of Gears" was also released today. Narrated by Lt. Baird, the video sh??ows the Smart Spawn system, new rewards, missions and more. 

Gears of War: Judgement launches on March 19.

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Get a free gun, because videogames!

You know what's a weir?d thing? Opening up pre-orders on a specified day. I remember when the name of a title was known, you could just roll up in any old game store and put down a pre-order. Now you have to wait until "participating retailers" are on board with a game. Things use??d to be so simple, man.

At any rate, you can now go put $5 down towards Gears of War: Judgment from one of these fine retailers so they know that you will be buying the game from them on March 19th. In return, you'll get a free gun! Well, just the Classic Hammerburst for multiplayer. You know, because videogames. The above trailer shows it off in action, but if you've played any other Gears of War, I'm sure you'll know what to expect.

Oh, and if you do pre-order the game, there's a chance that the retailer you chose might get a Young Marcus, Young Dom, Anya, or Alex Brand character skin. These will be announced in the next few we??eks, so that's exciting, I guess?

The post Gears of War: Judgment pre-orders are now open appeared first on Destructoid.

Gears of War: Judgment is bringing with it a new multiplayer mode called Overrun. It's a first for Gears as the mode focuses on class-based gameplay, with a major focus on teamwork. While I dug what I played at E3,? it turns out there's a lot more to it than I?? previously thought.

Epic showed off a full version of ??the gametype during Comic-Con, which sees COG players defending multiple objective points against the Locust. We played on a new map called Island, and it looked to be at least three times the size of the Rooftop map we last saw. Both maps, by the way, are based on levels from the main campa??ign.

The Locust team needs to destroy an objective point defended by the COG team within a set amount of time. If they succeed, a new section of the map opens with a new objective on the line. There's a total of three sect?ions to the map, each with its own point that needs to be defended or destroyed. COG soldiers will get some minor assistance further into a level as more fortifications get put into place. Granted??, fortification meant nothing to me as I wrecked things up with the Corpser on the Locust side.

The Locust players will get to use Tier 2 type characters once they've gotten enough points. They're all basically overpowered and pretty awesome. I'm not the best Gears player, but when I realized? I could just destroy everything with the Corpser, I ended up using him over and over.

The Corsper has a special ability where he?? can dig underground, letting him bypass fences and destroy obstacles directly abo?ve his path. Once above ground, the Corpser has these powerful claws that he can slam into opponents, usually killing them instantly.

Admittedly, it's very overpowered and the other team was ?quick to abuse the Corpser themselves once we had to switch sides for the next round. Overall, the match took aroun??d 15 to 20 minutes on each side, with the game ending in a draw.

While I did like the Ti?er 2 Locust characters as they were, I do hope they get properly balanced in the final product. There needs to be some better limitations on how much players can use them. Otherwise, teams of Corpsers can easily dominate and destroy every time.

All in all, Overrun is simply a blast to play. Like Horde mode before i??t, I wonder how soon other games will try to mimic Overrun once they see the potential -- it's a great way to break up the monotony of traditional shooter games.

The post SDCC: More fun times with GoW: Judgment’s Overun mode appeared first on Destructoid.

[Update: Epic Games and People Can Fly have announced that Gears of War: Judgment is (more specifically) going to launch for Xbox 360 on March 19, 2013. Mark your calendar and read our latest impressions.]

Oh, that Twitter news. In this case, the service was a perfectly fine medium for the information in question. According to X-Play, Gears of War: Judgment will be releasing in March of next year, as relayed by Epic Games director of production R??od Fergusson.

That's the beginning and end of this story, which now leaves it up to me to pad this post out with text you'll probably ignore, instead jumping straight into the comments to argue about Gears of War, this sequel, ?or maybe even?? console gaming in general. And ... GO!

C?onfirmed: Gears of War: Judgment ??out in March 2013 [El33t Online via Polygon]

The post SD??CC: Gears of War: Judgment scheduled for March 2013 appeared first on Destructoid.

Gears of War: Judgment is the latest in the Gears saga, and with it comes a really fun new multiplayer mode called Overrun. The mode sees a team of COG players defending a generator, while a team of Locust players has to destroy the generator. After the round is over, teams ?switch sides and the team that was able to destroy the Generator the fastest wins. 

The big change here for Gears players is that the characters in Overrun are class-based. (Think along the lines of Team Fortress 2.) The key here is that you'll need to really work with your team as classes are?? able to strengthen and enhance each other during matches. 

Overrun is a five-versus-five setup, with COG players being able to choose from four different classes. The Engineer (Damon Baird, in this case), can deploy an auto-sentry gun and fix fortifications. Scouts rock out with a sniper rifle, can climb up on are??as no one else can, and deploy grenades that send out a pulse to show where enemies are within the pulse range. You can even see Locust through walls if within range. Soldiers use the Boomshot, and deploy ammo to resupply the team. Medics heal, and throw down a stem gas grenade that heals/revives anyone in the vicinity.

The Locust side has some more diversity in the lineup, with at least eight different types playable. Corpsers can burrow underground, the healer does this crazy dance thing that heals anyone nearby, and there was a big heavy Locust dude rocking a giant shield and flail. I spent the most time with the Ticker, which is kind of a combination of the two Tickers from Gears of War 3. Lead producer Chris Wynn described h??im to ?me as a "Super Ticker." I was crawling under buildings, using its new sprint ability to run around and then explode on COG soldiers. 

Epic brought just a small taste of Overrun out, and from here they're going to start playing with the maps, weapons, and how the rest of the mode will work for the 2013 release of Judgment. Wynn told me some history with Overrun: they've been playing with the idea since Gears of War 3. They wanted to include it in the last game, but they "couldn't make it work" at the time. So when they started work on Judgment, they went back to the idea of Over?run, "??and took another stab at it [to] see if we can make it work."

Pretty fun, and pretty simple. I'm not the biggest Gears guy, but I really loved the c?lass-based combat ??and fast-paced nature of it all.

The post Hands-on with Gears of War: Judgment’s Overrun mode appeared first on Destructoid.

That brief trailer for Gears of War: Judgment was a nice start, but now we're talking. Epic Games' Rod Fergusson describes this prequel's gameplay as being a lot more open than other Gears titles, and while it's hard to tell based on the embedded video, we are given a solid preview of Judgment's new multiplayer mode, Overrun.

Overrun pits class-based teams of COGs directly against the Locusts in an attack-and-defense multiplayer scenario. Medics, in Gears of War? And I get to play as that damned Serapede again? This could be incred??ibly hectic in the best possible way.

The post ??E3: Our first glimpse of Gears of War: Judgment ??gameplay appeared first on Destructoid.

I promised myself that I wouldn't get excited for a new Gears of War game after the third installment wrapped things up. Maybe a game about the Pendulum W??ars would be cool, but I thought I was pretty much done with fighting the Locust and the -- ugh -- Lambent.

But this trailer for Gears of War: Judgment? Hot damn, this is looking good. Plus, Baird was easily one of my favorite characters, so seeing him in charge instead of Marcus "Jake the Dog" Fenix will be a great change of pace. I think I can forgive this for not being Bulletstorm 2.

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