Here it is, the end of one of the most celebrated trilogies in recent gaming memory. Gears of War 3 has a lot of significance for many gamers, as it was the first “next-generation” series for the round of gaming consoles that we enjoy today. Specifically, this game, along with Halo and Call of Duty, have defined the Xbox 360. Five years later, the trilogy is set to wrap up, but how has Gears evolved since the last game in 2008?

Make no mistake: if you are playing Gears of War 3, either single or multiplayer, then you will be entertained for a good long time. There have been excellent additions to just about every mode, and the gameplay is more or less the same. Couple that with good multiplayer and you have something very engrossing, but isn't too different from what we've already played.


Wait, boobs?! In a Gears of War game?!?! The meatheads will be pleased!

Taking place about 18 months after the end of Gears of War 2, the human population has been scattered around the rest of the planet of Sera. The main characters, including Marcus Fenix and Dom Santiago, are living aboard a large ship called the “Raven's Nest,” trying to escape both the Locust Horde and the Lambent, the new enemy that debuted at the end of the last game. Marcus gets a data disc with a message from his presumed-dead father, Adam Fenix, which is the impetus to try and find him. And so begins a last-ditch effort to not only find Marcus's father, but also to save the human race from both the Lambent and the Locust.

Saying anything else about the campaign would veer dangerously into spoiler territory, but rest assured that there is enough there to keep players coming back. Even better is that the story now has four-player cooperative online play for the first time, which is a welcome addition over just having one other player as in the first two games. The story does have its emotional moments, but the biggest problem is that these come at such inopportune times that discerning gamers will get plot whiplash. Also, I can't help but notice that cover has been somehow deemphasized a bit. Maybe this was because I played cooperatively with three other friends, but I found myself not diving for cover as much as in the past two games. These are but small complaints, as the rest of the game is packed to the gills with content.

Horde Mode, first introduced in Gears of War 2, has undergone a small transformation itself. Using the same wave-themed basis as the original, it seemed to take some pointers from the renowned Nazi Zombies mode in Call of Duty, while adding more strategy and thought to the gameplay. And, you know, not sucking.

Players can build fortifications using the cash they earn from completing waves and also fulfilling special conditions in bonus rounds. The cash earned also allows you to get more ammunition, set up decoys, and set up more bases on the map. Up to five players can try to get through 50 waves, which get progressively more difficult, to the point where players will need a full complement and their heads on swivels to clear all the waves.

Horde Mode's additions give much-needed upgrades to a mode that didn't feel completed when it was originally in Gears 2. Epic could have left it at that, but then decided to add a new mode to the game, entitled Beast Mode. This cooperative multiplayer mode also allows for five players, and puts players in the shoes of the Locust Horde as they try to annihilate the COG forces.


Doo eeeet!! I'm right here! Kill me!! (Predator fans, pat yourself on the back)

Some similarities between the two shine through, as players get money for killing (computer-controlled) opponents and by wrecking fortifications. What makes this mode stand out is that the money isn't used for defensive upgrades, but rather to select the Locust you want to play as. Ever wanted to play as a Theron Guard? How about a Berserker? Maybe one of the new monsters shown in the campaign? There is something for everybody, and even better, the same sense of strategy that players get on Horde Mode.

This is the standout multiplayer mode in Gears of War 3, and must be played by everyone who picks this game up. It's just good old-fashioned fun, and it even has a bit of competition in it, as you and your friends can race to see who gets the most money, and who can unlock the highest tiers of Locust first. The only disappointing thing is that Beast Mode only has 12 waves compared to Horde Mode's 50. Hopefully this will be addressed in post-launch downloadable content.

However, while the cooperative parts of the multiplayer are fine and dandy with plenty of welcomed additions, the adversarial multiplayer just falls flat. Nothing in it is different at all from the first two games, aside from the maps. While taking cover has never been a viable strategy in multiplayer, it is still infuriating to see that all players really need to do is get out their shotguns, run to one spot, get into close-quarters combat, and roll out of the way when getting shot at. It's repetitive, it's boring, and does not require much skill or strategy. The biggest problem is that it spreads to all other modes, meaning that even if you're playing an objective mode, there's no point in changing tactics.

What I am happy to say about all this is that the matchmaking problems that plagued Gears 2 have been fixed. Players can jump right into matches with little to no difficulty or waiting. The back of the game box even touts the “fast and fair” servers on the back, which I can actually agree with!

Gears of War 3 brings a satisfying close to the trilogy that defined this current generation. With a great suite of features that will please any gamer, great cooperative multiplayer modes and refined gameplay mechanics, it's more than enough to overlook the flawed adversarial multiplayer and drab graphics which have two shades: brown and gray.

Gears of War 3 gets a 9 out of 10.