Interview & Weapon Guide Don't forget to check out our Gears of War weapon guide, as well as our interview with Mark Rein and CliffyB of Epic Games, for information on the past, present and future of Gears of War. More >
America's Army 2.8 The new version of the popular FREE FPS includes a level editor. Get it now!
December Mailbag Pt. 2 We answer your Gears of War-related questions in the last PGoW mailbag of 2006.
Answer to the Gamers' Manifesto New Planet Gears of War writer Poenas_Dare takes a look at how Gears of War answers David Wong's Gamers' Manifesto.
One of the most popular gaming-related articles on the series of tubes is written by David Wong, over at Pointless Waste of Time: The Gamer's Manifesto- a list of twenty things gamers want. If you've read it, you know what a good article it is, as well as how entertaining it is. If you've not, then go here and do so, or else this article won't make any sense at all. If you're here, I'm now assuming that you've read the article, and possibly have it open in another window, or tab, or printed out. That will make this a bit more coherent.
Generally speaking, Mr. Wong paints a rather pessimistic picture of the future of gaming- one I shared. When it was published in late 2005, it was one of the most accurate portrayal of the state of the art of game design. However, a recent game has changed this, answering the calls of the Manifesto. And since this is Planet Gears of War, I think you can guess what that game is.
Bears of War 5:39 PST | RaptoR | Print News | Mail News Ever wondered what Marcus Fenix would look like if he were a bear? No, us neither, but these guys have, and they've created some sort of comic-blog featuring the adventures of Furgus Fenix & Co.
IGN's Game of the Year Awards 19:42 PST | redef | Print News | Mail News To continue with game of the year awards, IGN has also posted their Best of 2006 awards. They haven’t quite got to the point where they’re ready to proclaim their overall game of the year, but Gears was chosen as the best Xbox 360 action game and best graphics technology. Additionally, Epic was chosen as the best Xbox 360 developer. Here’s a little of what IGN said about Epic:
But it was Epic Games and its massive hit Gears of War that stood on the top of the development hill and roared the loudest. Epic has led this next-generation with its omnipresent Unreal 3 engine, but it was Tim Sweeney and his crew of top-notch programmers who showed us what truly can be done with the software -- and the Xbox 360 hardware. Never have so many IGN editors agreed that one game was so damn good looking -- and by such a large margin over other games on the system.
GameSpy's Games of the Year 19:33 PST | redef | Print News | Mail News GameSpy has published their 2006 Game of the Year awards. There are a wide variety of categories, including the gamer’s choice. Gears took home numerous awards, which include awards for its multiplayer components and was chosen as the gamer’s choice best Xbox 360 game. Here’s a little of what is said:
Gears of War's competitive play over Xbox Live is so clean and refined that it holds your attention as though it were forged out of some strange new substance called Addictium. The cover system, variety of weapons and the raw joy of chewing through a steel chestplate with a chainsaw all combine into a profoundly violent and enjoyable experience.
Gears, Game of the Year 19:17 PST | redef | Print News | Mail News It’s getting to the point where numerous sites will begin publishing their picks for 2006’s games of the year. GameSpot has continued their tradition and, as many of you will no doubt have guessed, has chosen Gears as their game of the year. Here’s a little bit of what GameSpot has to say:
Gears of War is the game that actually fulfills those outlandish promises we've been hearing from the likes of Microsoft and Sony about how earth-shattering the so-called next-generation games will be. OK, OK, we believe it. It's easy and tempting to call this the best-looking game ever made; but Gears of War is a complete package, offering much, much more than pretty visuals. It's a game that takes one of the most basic concepts in gaming--the shooter--and pushes that concept further than any other game has done before.
Cheating Bans Incoming? 23:49 PST | redef | Print News | Mail News Some hints in the official Gears forums suggest that bans may be incoming for those players who choose to exploit. It’s suggested that Microsoft may be less than willing to enact bans, but Epic might take up the responsibility on their own accord (although this is little more than speculation at this point). Check out this forum thread for Epic’s comments in context, but here are Joe Graf's
Rumor has it that Bungie created BanHammer because MS refused to ban people from Live for cheating in Halo. It is unlikely that we will be able to get someone banned by MS.
and Flak's comments:
If you see cheating report the Gamertag to Microsoft. You can also email abuse@epicgames.com if you see any links regarding cheating.
Curious who is reaping the rewards from each $60 game sold? Based on interviews with industry players and experts, we've broken down the dollars and cents of the console gaming industry to see who's getting the most action.
Read more over here. There's even a nice pie chart if you make it to the end.
Tuesday, 19 December, 2006 – Gears of War News
New Poll: Most looking forward to in 2007 11:19 PST | RaptoR | Print News | Mail News Head over to our right sidebar to vote in our last poll of 2006 - which are you most looking forward to in 2007? Gears of War bonus content? A possible PC version of Gears, or news of a sequel? Or maybe it's Gears' sister title Unreal Tournament 2007.
Saturday, 16 December, 2006 – Gears of War News
Festive Mailbag Posted 6:02 PST | RaptoR | Print News | Mail News The last Planet Gears of War mailbag of 2006 can be found over here, with a selection of your comments and questions from the past couple of weeks.
Friday, 15 December, 2006 – Gears of War News
Re-Emergence Day Confirmed As Hoax 10:29 PST | RaptoR | Print News | Mail News Sorry if this got anyone's hopes up -- Epic VP Mark Rein has since clarified that this is not legitimate and is in fact a hoax. Looks like we'll have to wait a bit longer for Gears bonus content, though this certainly was a very well-planned and well-executed hoax.
Folks,
This is a hoax.
We've already stated that we are working on releasing an update soon but we don't know the exact date of the release yet because it has not passed certification yet.
Original story follows...
Alleged viral marketing text messages being sent from a "domsantiago" point to a possible release date of 24th December for Gears of War bonus content. This follows admissions from Epic at the VGA awards that such (free) downloadable content had been in development for quite some time.
The messages sent were:
Beware the locusts. They will come from the ground……stay tuned for alerts!
Today we stand proud amongst the ruins of Sera, beware chosen one for Raam is watching you
The time is almost here. We fight in your domain. 24.12.06. Be prepared
Inhabitants of Sera, we shall complete your annihilation on the above domain. Come and prepare for your final destruction!
We wait for you.
The guys on Xbox 360 Leagues have discovered a website for this viral campaign at TheAboveDomain.com, which features the title "Re-Emergence Day", together with an some concept art and "12-24-06". The domain is registered to a fake company based in the Gears of War universe. The domain was registered on July 2nd 2006, indicating that this campaign was planned a long time in advance.
A video game champion has been crowned as today "Gears of War" made history by becoming the fastest-selling next-gen game of 2006 and the fastest-selling exclusive Xbox game of all time.
Microsoft Game Studios and Epic Games Inc. today confirmed that "Gears of War," the Xbox 360-exclusive title, has sold more than 2 million copies worldwide since its release six weeks ago.
"'Gears of War' clearly has won the battle for the title of the must-have game of the year," said Richard Teversham, Director of Platform & Marketing, Home and Entertainment Division EMEA. "Its phenomenal success is one of many reasons why Xbox 360 is the ultimate place to get together with friends to play this Christmas."
"We've always held high hopes for 'Gears of War,' but we never expected such an overwhelmingly positive response from critics and gamers all over the world," said Michael Capps, president, Epic Games. "I can't describe how stoked our team is right now. Our fans can absolutely count on Epic to keep delivering new gameplay through Xbox Live."
In addition to being the must-have video game of the holiday season, "Gears of War" continues to rage on the Xbox Live battlefield as well, with more than 1 million unique gamers engaging in 10 million online gameplay sessions and unlocking an impressive 7 million achievements. On top of being the No. 1 title on Xbox Live, "Gears of War" has driven new members to the network; paid registrations per day have skyrocketed more than 50 percent since the game's launch.
Thursday, 14 December, 2006 – Gears of War News
Gears of War Crowned King of Game Sales, Iron Fist, France, The Hill 15:45 PST | RaptoR | Print News | Mail News According to NPD Group's sales statistics, Gears of War was November 2006's top-selling game on any platform in the US. Two Final Fantasy games also graced the list, XII (PS2) in second place and III (DS) at 13. For the uninitiated, Final Fantasy is a series of games about chocobos and getting randomly attacked walking through forests while controlling a cast of androgynous, jifftastic misfits.
Other notable entries include Zelda on the Wii (3rd), Guitar Hero 2 (4th) and New Super Mario Bros (16th), which is still clinging on to a top-20 place seven months after its release.
No Microtransactions for Gears Content 15:32 PST | RaptoR | Print News | Mail News Kotaku is carrying a story about Epic Games' confirmation that, unlike some games, Gears of War's downloadable content will be completely free (no microtransactions or Microsoft points required).
This is reassuring in a world where the likes of EA, Sony and even Microsoft are using this route to squeeze more money out of gamers (I'm looking at you, Lumines Live), however it shouldn't come as a surprise given Epic's impressive track-record with Unreal Tournament bonus packs.
