One week after the release of the third-person shooter video game “Gears of War 4” on the Xbox One and the PC, gaming critics are saying that the latest iteration has made the franchise feel alive again after five years.
It can be recalled that “Gears of War 3” was released on the Xbox 360 and the PC in 2011 and it was the high-water mark for the series up to that point, notes Giant Bomb.
The game did not release on the Sony gaming platforms since it has Microsoft Studios for its game publisher.
But the franchise has lost its way since then as the game developer The Coalition seemed to have drifted away from game development with its then-owned studio, People Can Fly, doing a Gears side story that filled in story gaps that did not need filling at all. Worst, it offered gameplay twists that were occasionally interesting but superfluous nonetheless.
“Gears of War 4” seemed to have wakened up The Coalition from its obvious stupor. The game feels like a blend of old and new, capturing the characters and gameplay moments that made the series feel so impactful in the first place.
The game also advances a new set of characters along with a new and very good story, as well as a multiplayer option that gamers would really have to have in a third-person shooter video game.
“Gears of War 4” might not have reinvented the franchise, but it made terrific headway to make the franchise feel alive again after five years. Likewise, gamers and critics felt more compelled to want more from the franchise and the team behind it in the not-so-distant future.
A new setting and a new protagonist
“Gears of War 4” is set years after the events of “Gears of War 3.” Instead of Marcus Fenix, the gamer takes on the role of Marcus’ son JD Fenix.
JD and his colleague Del have abandoned their post in the Gears who are committed to protecting against Locust threat and joined some outsiders.
The COG may have successfully fought off the Locust, but in the years that followed, they seem to have become quite the oppressors using robots knows as DBs doing most of the heavy lifting as they attempt to rebuild the planet and repopulate the race.
“Gears of War 4” does not spend much time actually exploring the storyline as a new and old threat of creatures known as the ‘Swarm’ rear its ugly head halfway through the game. Although the airdrops of robot troops made the game’s opening chapters feel a little different, the Swarm comes off as the Locust troops of the previous games but with some better AI.
A great-looking game
Overall, critics think that “Gears of War 4” is a great-looking game both on the Xbox One and the PC, though with its higher frame rate potential and better resolution options, the PC version is the better way to go.
The only real obstacle for gamers is if they are looking to capitalize on the competitive side of the game where all players need to commit to the same version of the game to stick together. So if they all agree to play on the PC, the rest of the pack should do the same. If they agree to play on the Xbox One, the rest have to do the same as well.
Meanwhile, PDP, the video game accessory company, has released the first “Gears of War 4” replica weapon, which is called as a Customized Lancer, notes IGN.
It’s actually a replica of Marcus Fenix’s weapon, modeled off from in-game files. It has an adjustable sight, levers, switches, and triggers, as well as a fully functional and removable flashlight. The weapon itself lights up with blue COG-style LEDs and takes four C batteries.