Impale, skewer, slice and maim
Indeed, the regular scraps in GoW3 often make you feel like you're totally against the odds, combining well with some memorable big-boss battles against an incredibly varied force of creatures that barely give you a moment of solace throughout the 10-hour campaign. And, just when you think you've seen it all and have fought your way out of a crazy situation, even assuming that the game may be nearing its conclusion, it all kicks off again and intensity levels once again step up a notch.The variety of enemies, and the way in which they adapt their tactics, never fails to impress. Lambent stalks explode through the ground spewing out ground troops, such as Drudges, who mutate into more-powerful creatures with tentacles that sprout out of their backs and hurl exploding projectiles. Grinders lay down thunderous suppressive fire with their Mulcher Gatling Guns, while large flying Locust creatures pester you from the skies. With over 30 different enemy types, and a handful of intense big-boss encounters, Epic Games has mixed up the action superbly to keep you on your toes and give you opportunity to test out the incredible arsenal of weapons.
With the return of classic firearms such as the Lancer, which doubles as a chainsaw, and the Hammer of Dawn, which can zap the biggest of enemies into dust, fans of the series are well-catered for. New weapons include the One-Shot, a heavy-class sniper rifle that takes an enemy down with a well-placed headshot, while the Digger Launcher, which fires a small creature with explosives attached to its back, proves to be one of the highlights of the new armaments. With such a variety of weapons and enemy types, GoW3 constantly encourages tactical thinking and gives you all the fire-power you'll ever need for some devastating and explosive battles.
Gears of War's trademark cover system helps to give you that tactical edge with handily-placed cover spots dotted across every location. Moving between cover is slicker than ever and you can roll swiftly and smoothly from one spot to the next, flanking your opponent, or leaping over barriers to tactically rush and impale them with one of the new stars of the show, the rather brilliant retro lancer.