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Gears of War 2 (November 7)

The Scoop: Gears of War 2; Genre: tactical third-person shooter; By: Epic Games; From: Microsoft; For: Xbox 360; Rating: Mature

Info: Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the wreckage, out pops more of the original game's ostensibly routed alien Locust Horde, hell-bent on trashing the human race and stopping your well-armed posse from saving it.

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Matt: For all its hype, the original Gears of War was pretty paint-by-the-numbers, one long sprint between chunks of concrete and piles of slag, tripping invisible wires to make the bad guys go "boo!" Make no mistake: Gears of War 2 is probably this year's Halo 3. I just hope they've fixed the lousy enemy AI and tweaked the glitchy "take cover" mechanic that glued you to walls and made peeling off in a hurry difficult. One of the game's voice actors claims that the sequel's story will be "more emotionally affecting than Bioshock." That's grand and all, but I'll believe it when I see it.

Darren: To put the original Gears of War in more conventional terms, that game was like watching a 1980s Schwarzenegger movie while pounding a six-pack of Red Bull. I'm not saying it was a bad experience, but you kinda knew where the game was headed. Walk behind a turret, and--poof!--a wave of enemies would appear. As for the story...look, I don't care if the voice actors promise Academy Award-worthy performances coming out of the game. I will likely play Gears 2, no matter what. Sometimes you just need to blow something up, no questions asked. My only request is that the world have a little more color variety and a lot less brown.