ABSTRACT
Gears of War is a squad-based third-person shooter that shares much with the same developers’ earlier FPS Unreal (1998 EG) designed by Cli Bleszinski and James Schmalz. e setting is an interstellar colony planet, ravaged by subterranean aliens known as the “Locust Horde” and defended by the titular human soldiers. e tone is that of the more clichéd kind of military sf; Gears features orbital laser weapons and a main character who begins the game in prison, enthusiastically macho dialogue, and a great deal of splattered blood and body parts, all within a brutal world where humanity’s army must destroy its own cities to deny them to the enemy. As might be expected, the gameplay focuses on a largely realistic approach to combat. ere is much emphasis on the need to take cover from enemy re, whether in the single-player game or in the variously competitive and cooperative multiplayer options. In essence, Gears of War is a well-cra ed action game, with impressive visuals and a primarily linear narrative based around a formulaic war story that is delivered with considerable verve and an abundance of references to popular culture.
