3.5/5 ★ – vassm's review of Gears of War: Ultimate Edition.

After a whole year and a half, I can finally say I've beaten "Gears of War"... and what a ride that was. The funniest part was that my partner and I had no idea we'd been playing this game on hardcore difficulty the entire time, until we unlocked the achievement for beating it at the end. We spent the whole game ranting about how hard this game was for no reason, just to find out at the end that we somehow messed that up XD. We WILL be making sure we don't make that mistake again lmao. But despite the unexpected challenge and some issues, I had a blast. The games two protagonists, Marcus and Dom, are insanely iconic even to this day, their over the top design and gruff charm perfectly match the game's gritty yet slightly absurd and campy tone. Their designs are fantastic. Even the enemy designs were great, ESPECIALLY General Raam, the level of detail gave me imposter syndrome and I'm not even a character artist XD. The shooting mechanics felt satisfying, with a solid variety of weapons that struck a good balance, the range of guns wasn't too overwhelming, but it was enough to feel like I had options. That said, the movement was janky as hell. The sprinting camera angle even though it was lowkey iconic, was a pain in the ass. Half the time I ran, I would sprint right into walls mid-battle and get obliterated by an enemy because of it. Level design was a mixed bag. Some sections, like the tank mission, the train finale, and that RIDICULOUSLY tough theater fight in act five, were standout moments. But a lot of the smaller encounters felt repetitive, recycling the same enemy types and environments over and over again. The objectives also had a habit of failing at the most inconvenient times, which got old fast. A little more variety in puzzles and layouts would've gone a long way, and I hope they fix that going forward. Story-wise "Gears of War" doesn't try to do something crazy and that is totally fine. The main plot does its job, and the characters keep things engaging. The voice acting was solid, though enemy callouts sometimes tricked me into thinking they were right behind me or next to me, which was horrifying for some reason. The audio mixing could have definitely used some more work. THE MUSIC!! Chef's kiss. I'm listening to it as I type this review, and it just goes so incredibly hard. I love how sort of comedic it sounds? Like for such a seious situation, it had a sort of whimsical and goofy cadence to it that I just can't help but love to death. It fits the characters designs so perfectly, and I can tell the creative director behind this game was a genius. The score reminds me very much of the "Star Wars" OSTs :P "Gears of War" was a great experience, flaws and all. And, I'm really excited to keep playing these games, and see how this franchise evolves! 7.8/10