[Deepblue]

I wouldn't be surprised...

[BlackDove]

Of course you wouldn't, you know just as I do what the D3D10 optimizations in Vista mean.

[Deepblue]

I was actually thinking about Halo and how many sales it has garnished on the PC despite being an Xbox port.

[BlackDove]

No, I'm pretty sure you were thinking about the fact that Vista is primarily designed to handle the 360 > Vista game ports in the easiest and fastest way possible, so that the game market domination would be as effective as it hasn't been so far.

[aldo_14]

Now there's a reliable source.

In addition, while I don't know anything about the story and how those aspects of the singleplayer game handle, that multiplayer fragfest really does look like 5 out of 5.

All the previews of GoW have been sufficiently glowing to indicate 5/5 (or in the 90s; I think out of '5' scores are largely useless) marks are the norm.

I'd expect MS to pay fat sacks of cash to keep GoW 360-exclusive.......for about a year.

[Deepblue]

They're publishing...

[Deepblue]

Gamespot's review is up early as well:

http://www.gamespot.com/pages/video_player/popup.php?sid=6161197&pid=

No score is given, but It sounds AAA.

[Deepblue]

Gamespot gave it a 9.6 according to Cnet.

http://reviews.cnet.com/Gears_of_War_Xbox_360/4505-11457_7-31414802.html

Nice!

I'm thinking the only game that will review better this year is Twilight Princess.

[Roanoke]

Now there's a reliable source.

In addition, while I don't know anything about the story and how those aspects of the singleplayer game handle, that multiplayer fragfest really does look like 5 out of 5.

All the previews of GoW have been sufficiently glowing to indicate 5/5 (or in the 90s; I think out of '5' scores are largely useless) marks are the norm.

I'd expect MS to pay fat sacks of cash to keep GoW 360-exclusive.......for about a year.

Took Halo what, 3 years ? I give GoW 2 years. Just enough to milk the 360 market. But leave it too long, as with Halo, and none will care about it anymore.

[Deepblue]

Actually until recently, Halo PC was on the top 10 list of best selling PC games.

[aldo_14]

**** knows why, it's one of the worst conversions in history.

[Deepblue]

No kidding.

Anyway, I think it's safe to call Gears of War a killer app now.

Gamespot : Jeff Gersttman
Gears of War is an outstanding technical achievement, but in addition to looking and sounding amazing, it's a seriously awesome action game.
The Good: Stellar graphics reset the bar for what consoles can do visually; great soundtrack and killer sound effects; satisfying gameplay in single-player mode; very addictive online play; best use of a chainsaw in any game, ever.
The Bad: Story could have been a bit more fleshed out; difficulty could have used some slight tuning.
-Link: http://www.gamespot.com/xbox360/acti...ar/review.html (be careful, first paragraph contains plot (spoilers) I'm told)

1up.com: Dan Hsu
-(my summary)Despite the shortcomings and flaws too many reasons to give it a 10 because overall quality and awesomeness
-Link: http://www.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=3154958

IGN: Jonathan Miller
Presentation: 9.5
Epic has created an immersive universe that will probably turn into a sequel, a movie and a licensed breakfast cereal. Amazing cinematic flair, gritty attitude and a one-of-a-kind artistic style.
Graphics: 10
The most beautiful game on the Xbox 360. Amazing attention to detail and vibrant, diverse environments make for a feast for the eyes, even on a standard-definition set.
Sound: 10
Virtually flawless. An excellent musical score, awesome atmospheric audio cues and spot-on sound effects. Crank it up.
Gameplay: 9.0
Simple, accessible and tremendously fun, and that was before the chainsaw. In close, the combat gets wonky, but that doesn't take away from the awesome new cover mechanic and exploding head shots.
Lasting Appeal: 7.5
The single-player/co-op campaign is over too soon, although bumping the difficulty to Insane just about triples the length. For what Versus lacks in gamemodes, it makes up for in fun.
Overall(not an average): 9.4/10
http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/744/744356p1.html

Teamxbox: Will Tuttle
Gameplay: The stop 'n pop mechanic works well, although hardcore shooter fans might want to up the difficulty for more of a challenge. The action is intense and very well-paced. 9.3/10
Graphics: This is by far the best looking video game we've ever seen. 10/10
Audio: Crank up your surround sound, rev your buzz saw, and feel the adrenaline pumping through your veins. 9.8/10
Longevity: The intense, brutal multiplayer modes will keep you coming back for a long time. Online co-op is lot of fun. 9.5/10
Innovation: While there are some cool weapons, most of them fall into the "old standby" category. The active reload and roadie run mechanics are nice touches. 9/10
Overall: 9.6
Link:http://reviews.teamxbox.com/xbox-360...ars-of-War/p1/

OXM: 10/10
XPlay: 5/5
Playboy: 4 bunnies out of 4 bunnies
Yahoo Games: 4.5/5 Link: http://videogames.yahoo.com/gamerevi...&page=0&eid=-1

[Inquisitor]

I actually LIKE Xplay reviews. Better than any of the other G4 attempts.

[aldo_14]

I'd ignore OXM, though - the same magazine that was once sent a complaint by a developer because they hadn't actually played their game before reviewing it (and scoring it highly).

[BlackDove]

Mhm I read Gamespot's review, said there was little in the way of story, and that it's mostly hiding behind a rock and shooting stuff, or the occasional chainsaw.

While it is very pretty and the deathfragmatch is there (probably one of the best concepts I've ever seen), I'm not really interested in a game where that's what the whole package entails.

[Turambar]

when will people learn that they need writers and a GOOD story.

[aldo_14]

when will people learn that they need writers and a GOOD story.

 

Did you really expect a good story looking at it? We all, I would think, know Epics' strengths by now, and they certainly aren't believable characterisation and convincing dialogue

 It's a post-apocalyptic shooty thing that does post apocalyptic shootiness extremely well by all accounts, and if you want a good and pretty looking post-apocalyptic shooty thing for the xbox360 then it's the one you'll get.

I have to admit being interested in how it'll be rated vs Resistance on the PS3, because both seem to be covering the same basic ground (although arguably it's a mite unfair to rate 1st vs 2nd gen, that's the market it's in).

[Roanoke]

when will people learn that they need writers and a GOOD story.

Why do people place so much fuss over a story ? Tetris didn't need a story. Street Fighter 2 didn't need a story. Gran Turismo didn't need a story.
Don't get me wrong, if it's a story driven game it needs to be good if it's all about playability screw the story.

[aldo_14]

when will people learn that they need writers and a GOOD story.

Why do people place so much fuss over a story ? Tetris didn't need a story. Street Fighter 2 didn't need a story. Gran Turismo didn't need a story.
Don't get me wrong, if it's a story driven game it needs to be good if it's all about playability screw the story.

Well, a story is generally regarded as the 'driving force' for modern games of a certain ilk, adding a dramatic context and meaning to events that transpire.  For certain genres such a thing is self evident - sports/competition being one example, where it obvious why you're trying to win - but for others it needs to be inserted and thus takes more importance.... otherwise the likes of an FPS end up being little more than a botmatch.

EDIT; 8/10 in Eurogamer (http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=69696&page=2); I don't trust IGN or Gamespy (dunno the rest), because they historically overscore everything.  This quote indicates why it's not a killer app for me personally.  Of course, I only ever played 1 console FPS - and haven't wanted to try anything since.

But, let's face it, looks aren't everything. Cutting through the bull****, on a purely gaming level Gears of War is not doing anything extraordinary or new on any level. A few novel camera and control tweaks aside, we're in pretty familiar territory with a broadly well-established load-out of weapons, fighting a familiar battle against enemies that for all their gloriously elaborate alien exterior might as well be humans for all the differences they represent in reality. These are AI routines we're well versed in, and familiar duck and cover tactics that we're used to from other games, and, yes, they work to good effect in Gears of War, but let's not pretend that we're wallowing in the future of entertainment. What we have here is an extremely competent action game that's as polished and refined as it could be, and is therefore very enjoyable. But if Epic had applied the same widescreen scope and ambition to the gameplay as it did to the engine we'd be much more excited than we are.

[BlackDove]

Yeah, that's how I'd describe it as well.