A compelling storyline along with breathtaking visuals and solid game play make Gears of War 2 a phenomenal sequel.
You start off as Marcus Fenix, six months after the events of the first Gears game. Your goal in the game is pretty much the same, kill all the locusts before they annihilate the human race. It may sound bland and boring, but the level designs, frequent plot twists and depths of all the characters and even the locusts are more than enough reasons for you to stay engaged for hours. One disappointment I had with the first game was that the characters didn't seem to have an identity, we didn't really know a lot about them. This time around the makers have taken this into account and have attempted to give some of these characters a bit more depth. But unfortunately, other than your partner Dom, I didn't really see any other major character build up. I still wonder about Marcus's past and what happened to him before Gears one.
The graphics and audio is where this game truly excels. Everything from the environments to the armor look absolutely stunning, and the breakable objects add a nice touch. The level design in this game is absolutely fantastic, you are never in the same type of area two levels in a row. You go from a dark, frightening ghost house to a bloody and disgusting innards of a gigantic worm to a snow filled mountain filled with locusts. But no matter which level your on, it always looks great.
The audio in this game is also spot on. Sound effects are great, everything from the growling noises of a nearby locust to the slaughtering of wretches by your chainsaw all sound incredible and are awesome to hear. The music in this game is also brilliant, really gives a sense of a Gears game. Lastly, the voice acting is again amazing although it can get quite old and corny at some moments of the game.
The game play is solid just as the first Gears. The shooting mechanic is great, and many of the new weapons are great fun to use; chainsaw battles are awesome! My only complaints are that the A button has many functions just as the first game which can hamper your game when you are in serious combat. Another is that the vehicle controls are quite uneasy to use. But all in all the game play is great and is really fun.
I have not spent much time with the multilayer but I can still say from what I have played that it is very engaging although does have some issues. There are many modes to choose from, and all are good, but I have to say that Horde is very addictive and fun to play. My complaints are that there are some connectivity issues and some points while playing I have noticed significant lag a couple times.
Gears of War 2 is in my opinion the best third-person shooter to date. Even the minor issues this game carries it will not hamper you from one of the greatest video game experiences on the Xbox 360. If you own a Xbox 360 and do not own either Gears one or two, then shame on you and I highly recommend you run to your nearest super market and pick this up. Gears of War 2 is truly the most bad ass game out there.