Updated: 01.01.17

At last, I managed to grab some time to sit down and start Gears of War 4.

As per usual I ramped up the difficulty to Insane and away we go…………Um, after the first ten minutes I’ve realised I’m getting to old for solo Insane.  It was ugly.  I’m glad no one was there to watch.

After a much more sensible but still challenging move to Hardcore mode away I went, happily finding my roadie run feet again.

This game looks ‘awesome’. (Please read awesome in a rainbow way for best effect)

I’ve completed the first chapter which is sort of a flash back catch up of how the world stands today and acts a tutorial for weapons, movement and some of the baddies ahead.

I think I’m in for a real treat here.  It feels like a comfortable pair of slippers.  I must have played through the Gears 3 Campaign half a dozen times so I can’t wait to spend time with this over the Christmas period.

23.12.16

I quite like these new characters.  A new generation of COG takes to my screen with some pretty sharp lines and funny quips.

The first moment of doubt crossed my mind in my session this morning……ROBOTS?  Tons of drone guards of various flavours arrived to brighten up my day with a bullet or two to the head.  OK, not the worst enemies in the world and I suppose the clockwork minions from Titanfall have to go somewhere for a holiday.

The main nemesis, or at least I presume so, turned up on a screen attached to a robot.  Quite clever, the screen was oval and mounted on the robot as its head.  Neat.

I’ve just quit before being introduced to some of the local country folk.  Before I go for a while I state again…….this game looks gorgeous.

27.12.16

I’ve had a few sessions since my last update and I’m enjoying the game.  It’s correct what a lot of reviewers have said that the game is really solid but not groundbreaking in any way.  The new younger characters are great and the banter back and forward between new and the old crew is even funny at times.

I said above that playing this new game was like getting into a comfy pair of slippers and it is, but after a while new slippers get a bit loose and this is applicable to Gears 4. Its cool, the graphics are superb, gameplay is solid but if you’re hoping that Gears has evolved, it hasn’t.

Enough moaning……nothing better than chainsawing an ugly big monster in half.

28.12.16

The more I play the more familiar the game gets.  I’m getting hints of Gears of War 2 with some of the level design and the blood and guts.

Playing on Hardcore feels just about right.  I do get killed here and there but not too much.  Its a good challenge.

30.12.16

Almost at the end methinks.  I’m in a massive boss battle with a brumak with skin problems.  Had to quit for a while cause damn hardcore is now hard.  The game is throwing everything at me.  Hopefully my next session will see it to completion.

As game stories go this one is easy enough to follow.  Not the most complex of narratives but understandable.

01.01.17

Well now, that ended in a hurry.  I was girding my loins for a final big bash and seemingly I’d already had it.

I struggled with the last chapter.  Hardcore really made you work hard for it.  Quite a few horde style stand offs on the way to the credits, and although I didn’t mind this it really was a pain in the ass when you managed to get yourself killed seconds from finishing. Getting killed is part of the game but when the save point puts you right back at the start of the horde encounter and you’re doing it for the forth time it gets a bit rage quity.

During the last chapter you get to control a Transformer style bot and that is pretty damn cool.  You are in full badass mode and the monsters that gave you trouble earlier in the game are turned into mincemeat with ease.  This is exactly what I wanted from a new Gears but sadly it wasn’t to be in this iteration.  Hopefully next time around we’ll be given more original and exciting ways to kill things.

Overall, Gears of War 4 is a solid game.  It looks good, plays as Gears should but just left me feeling a little flat.  It didn’t help that halfway through my achievements stopped unlocking.  I read this is a common problem and I hope that within a patch this will be sorted.

The game is cheap enough and I would suggest that its well worth a discounted price. I bought for £25. If you’re new to Gears you’ll have a good time with it but for regular Gears fans don’t expect anything new.

#VictoryAchieved Game Complete.