Gears of War 4 has to be one of the only games recently that has gotten me to really invest into the campaign and tear through it. Usually when I play games I really don’t care about the campaign, I always go for the multiplayer. There was something different in this game. Maybe it’s my years of background with the franchise, or the stellar voice acting, and I’m sure that the fact that this game shares composers with Game of Thrones had something to do with it. I really enjoyed the new characters and their chemistry with each other. I liked JD far more than I thought I would. Oscar stood out to me as a very unique character to the franchise, and I loved him. The returning characters were also wonderful to see. Gameplay was kept interesting by adding a special mission every so often like riding motorcycle or dodging lighting strikes. I’m looking forward to seeing how the story progresses in future games.

Multiplayer was everything that I wanted it to be. The addition of a ranking system is great for playing with equally skilled players. What I found amazing was how fun the new game modes are. Dodgeball is probably my favorite. It follows dodgeball rules but takes the form of a shooter. It’s genius. The more competitive mode, escalation, is very well designed. The matches can get very intense in the later rounds. It’s the first to seven wins so expect to spend a lot of time every match. The new weapons also feel right at home, as if they could have been in any of the previous titles.

Horde mode feels like everything we’ve experienced from before, but with more freedom. The ability to place fortifications wherever you want is really nice, and adds a lot of strategy. The use of two different enemy types makes waves way less repetitive. Many of the new Swarm enemies are smart, and bring a welcome challenge. The class system seems like it might be restrictive, but it’s really not. It allows you to upgrade different abilities which can completely change the way you play. So far I’ve found myself being drawn to the soldier class.

If you’re a long time Gears of War fan, or someone completely new, there’s plenty to do in this game. I would definitely recommend buying it. Thanks for reading.