Gears Sells a Million 82
Gamespot reports that Gears of War has sold a million units in two weeks. This has made it the fastest-selling 360 game to date, beating out GRAW and CoD2 for the honor. From the article: "Microsoft dropped some other statistics as well, saying 'more than 850,000 unique gamers have engaged in 10 million [Gears of War] gameplay sessions while unlocking an impressive 7 million achievements.' Since the game went on sale November 7, the rate of Xbox Live Gold subscriptions, which are required for online play, has increased more than 50 percent. According to Microsoft, the impressive subscription rate is because more than 85 percent of Gears players play one of the game's various multiplayer modes, which include full campaign co-op." The GamerScore Blog wants you to know that rumours you have heard about Gears for Windows were mistaken. For the time being, anyway.
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7 million achievements? (Score:2)
Oh, and no. I haven't even seen the game played.
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I'm honestly in no rush to get the game, as I already had two games with the machine when I bought it a little over a month ago, got a third last week, and a fourth (Oblivion, so that should take me a fair while!) shipped this morning.
But most people I know with the game are going straight in on Hardcore, and if they get two achievements per level
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Re:7 million achievements? (Score:4, Informative)
On a side note, was CliffyB famous before Gears of War? I had never heard of him. His wikipedia page [wikipedia.org] doesn't make him sound like a game designer god by any means.
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I'd not heard of it. I clicked on a few screenshots, but I couldn't really see anything. This is a black and white game, right? Played in the dark?
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They aren't easy, and they're not impossible. You get one for each act (and another for full game completion) on each difficulty. On casual difficulty, they are only worth 10 points. More on the harder difficulties. There is one for 100 Live kills for each weapon (that would take some work).
Most notably, there is one called "A Series Of Tubes" for hosting enough games, and Ted Stevens is credited for the inspiration in the ending credits. Also Ted Nugent ("The Nuge" Torque Bow 100 kills).
Anyway, here i
Is this surprising? (Score:5, Insightful)
Is it surprising that a game that is meant to apeal to hard-core gamers sells to people who like to play a game in the way that hard-core gamers like to play their games?
I may be wrong, but I think it would be more impressive to hear that 50% (or more) of people who got the free XBox live subscription with their XBox 360 used it and of those 50% (or more) continued paying for the service when their subscription ended.
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On the easy setting (maybe it's called 'casual'?), the game is quiet easy.
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Quick Review (Score:2)
Bill and John. Pretty amusing actually. Unique, enjoyable. A little confusing. But fun.
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But now I am playing on Insane, and it is VERY tough. It is also a lot more fun. On Insane it ceases to be some crappy shooter, and turns into a very cool cover shooter.
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It all started with a song. (Score:4, Informative)
The rest is history.
TLF
Re:It all started with a song. (Score:5, Informative)
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mad_World_(song) [wikipedia.org]
There you will see the cover was done by Gary Jules for the film Donnie Darko.
Sadly, I cannot award karma points... But I could burn off ten of my own, maybe that's fair?
TLF
Re:It all started with a song. (Score:4, Informative)
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+ or - ?
KFG
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Which leaves aesthetics. To me, the song fit perfectly with the visuals on screen. So much so it was almost eerie. I found it
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I've talked to many people about it, and they all agree it sounds horrible. Apparently someone put together a site with different music dubbed in and every track they tried sounded better.
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Gears of War might be a fun if amazingly overrated game, but that trailer - which was very cool - and that song - which is very cool - have combined to totally negate each others coolness and create a coolness void, where all that you're left with is something that reeks of trying too hard.
Hell, the Tears for Fears version would have worked better than that. Someone should totally dub that.
Don't feel like wading through reviews (Score:2)
What is so great about gears?
I admit, Ihave done no homework on this, and thus am simply relying on the
It is just another FPS, isn't it?
Is there somethign fantasticly inovative about it?
somethign horribly fun?
Somethign original?
please, I am curious. (and lazy)
Re:Don't feel like wading through reviews (Score:5, Insightful)
I can't tell you why OTHERS find it so fun, so I will relay my own personal experiences with it.
To start, the way that the cover system is implemented gives it a greateer sense of realism...after all, you wouldn't just go standing behind a wall in a warzone...you would have your back to it and pop out...you would transfer from one cover to another, not just simply jog over to the next one...I suppose what I am trying to say is the strategies required to play the game succesfully are very different from your typical shooter in that if you do not utilize cover correctly, you WILL die.
Generally, I find graphics take a seat to gameplay and story, but in this case they help a LOT. They are done in such a grity, grimey way that when you finish playing you feel the need to wash your hands. It is a dirty, dirty game.
The reloading system adds alot too. When you mess up a reload and you see your char on screen cussing and getting slightly frantic...you start getting the same way. In the middle of a firefight when you are flanked/pinned down, being stuck with a jammed weapon (just like in real life) is one of the most heart-attack inducing moments you can imagine. There is a great sense of satisfaction and accomplishment with each enemy you take down. While some may cry foul about the AI, on the harder difficulties (not unlike Halo) things start getting really tough.
The char's are developed JUST ENOUGH for you to care about them, which is perfect considering it is supposed to be a trilogy. The first one sets it up, the second gives the backstory, the third concludes everything.
All things combined, it is plain fun. It isn't particularly revolutionary, it won't change HOW games are played or anything...but it will most likely change how much effort people put into games. I lack the vocabulary to describe to you how excited I am for the second and third installments.
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SNES - Secret of Mana
Genesis - Kid Chameleon
N64 - Goldeneye
Dreamcast - Time Stalkers
Saturn - Die Hard Arcade
Xbox - Scrapland
PS2 - God of War
Gamecube - Metroid Prime
Xbox 360 - Gears of War
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If it wasn't time stalkers, I would easily say Shenmue...graphics, story, etc. Reminds me of the early-mid 90's adventure games
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I take it you're an Emacs user. How droll.
Re:Don't feel like wading through reviews (Score:4, Informative)
Graphically, it's a pretty nice game. Sure, PC shooters already surpassed it but for a console game it's quite magnificent. Lots of detail gets rendered nicely for HD content.
Its gameplay is nothing ground-breaking, but it remains quite fun. The enemy AI isn't super intelligent, but smart enough for a good time. The whole game is big on taking cover: IE you walk up to a wall or ledge or stone debris and hide behind it. Then you peak out and fire, run to some different/better cover and repeat; failure to do so results in your death. Sure, there are places with little to no cover at which point it is simple shoot them until one of you die, but those environments are sparse.
The game takes place in a post-warzone Earth. It's been invaded by beings that have burrowed beneath the surface that pop out to slaughter the surface dwellers. Most of the creatures are bipeds (walk on hind legs like a human) with scatterings of more monsterous animals. The atmosphere is pretty dark (literally and metaphorically). The world is in shambles, there's not a building or neighborhood that isn't trashed. You meet some survivors who feel the military has turned their backs on the people, and see that their lives really really suck.
Pretty much, it's THE big console shooter (for the moment). Personally, I found it a lot more enjoyable than the Halo games.
GOW = Not "just another FPS" (Score:4, Informative)
It's not "just another FPS". In fact, it's not a first-person shooter at all. It's third-person, which is an important distinction. Like many people, I prefer my FPS games on PCs, where the keyboard/mouse combination really can't be beat (at least IMHO). When I play a typical shooter (which have been mostly first-person based, hence FPS) on the console, I get the sense that I've lost a lot of control. For some reason, the third-person controls in Gears
As for innovation, it's got plenty of interesting bits to it: a very comprehensive "cover" game mechanic, a new twist on reloading (called "Active Reload"), and the concept of being able to revive your teammates on the fly. None of them alone are "OMG!!!" material, but all together, makes it one very nice package.
Also, one huge bonus to the game is that it has Live-enabled co-op through the "single"-player experience. It's very seamless. I haven't tried it myself, but friends can't stop talking about how cool it is. Apparently that's a similar sentiment with many other folks. It's a feature that many folks wished Halo 2 had.
Does Gears have flaws? It certainly does. Zonk and other reviewers have pointed out that the AI can be fairly dumb (although many people, myself included, think it's just fine), and the multiplayer is somewhat shallow (not enough modes). That said, the sentiment is that the game is just so much fun that despite some flaws here and there, it's very much Game of the Year material.
Oh, and one last thing, yeah, the game is very pretty. But graphics alone don't sell a game, and the things people love about it, go beyond graphics. That's nice to see for a change.
So, in short, give it a shot. It's quite original for a shooter, and a whole lotta fun.
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Just for the record, using COD2 as an example, I use the two analog sticks on my 360. They give me an infinite amount of very fast control (My sensitivity is ultra high) in camera and movement, assuming my thumbs are on their game. The game on the computer uses the mouse for camera (infinite)
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Technically, you're correct. However, I've been playing FPS games on PCs for years longer than on shooters. Also, I use the mouse
Removed from Reality? Well Duh! (Score:1)
this is surprising (Score:1, Troll)
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Actually, yes ... it's the gameplay (Score:4, Insightful)
Yes, the game is pretty, no doubt about it. But if you read through a lot of the comments, opinions, reviews, etc., you'll quickly see that it's actually the gameplay that people are gushing over. Nice, no?
If this game were released last generation on the Xbox, PS2, or GC
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you'll quickly see that it's actually the gameplay that people are gushing over.
I found it more "A-Play" than "gameplay" ;-) IMHO the button configuration could've been better thought out.
If this game were released last generation on the Xbox, PS2, or GC ... then yes, people would still be gushing over it. Frankly, it raises the bar in what I expect from shooters from now on. I don't want just prettier graphics.
I think Halo 2 proves this in the past however many months (up until GoW was released) it was topping any 360 game on the most played on live lists. The true test will come after all the hype. will people be playing this game after the fad is over?
[commence rambling]
Personally, I was over-hyped by the press; and upon inserting my newly purchased copy (of the collectors edition no less) I fe
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I haven't watched the collector's DVD myself yet, but it definately makes sense what they are saying. There are many times in the single-player campaign where things are MUCH easier if you figure out the right way to flank the enemy. It's the same way in multi-player as
Not an FPS (Score:3, Informative)
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Just the 3 first responder posts above yours on my screen currently show corrections, and those posts were made at least an hour before yours!
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wait till halo 3 comes out (Score:1)
Looking more attractive (Score:3, Insightful)
Unreal 3.0 (Score:2)
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I have no idea why you don't think the combat system is elegant or clever, it is definately both of those.
Hype (Score:1, Troll)