Gears of War

Screenshots:

Concept Art:

click to view all 5 concept art

Background:
Sera has endured millenia of conflict, teetering on the brink of a world war that guaranteed Armageddon.
Humanity pulled back from this act of self-destruction and evolved into something nobler. For a time, the hush of peace blanketed the land.
There were still problems: skirmishes, crime, debates over liberties, and a demand for energy that outstripped Sera's reserves of petroleum and nuclear fuels.
There was, however, hope.
Sera's cities became sparkling examples for future generations that this was a new Golden Age.
...or so we all thought.
IMULSION - Discovered by an oil-exploration drill, is a low viscosity fluid that was only a scientific curiosity until a way was discovered to convert a portion of it's mass directly into energy. It was a perfect solution for an energy-hungry world. The few nations lucky to have Imulsion reserves were suddenly the owners of cheap, limitless fuel, and the envy of other less-fortunate nations on Sera.
THE PENDULUM WARS: Hydrocarbon energy was ultimately abandoned in favor of Imulsion. Soon thereafter the world economy crashed due to rampant Imulsion speculation, and as expected, humanity reasserted it's true nature. Under the guise of thinly veiled politics, Imulsion-poor nations attacked those with abundant reserves. For 79 years, nations battled one another for possession of the miraculous energy source.
EMERGENCE DAY: As humanity fought on the surface of Sera, a new enemy, the Locust, gathered underground and launched an attack unimagined in our worst nightmares. On this day, humans ceased fighting one another... they had to. Within 24 hours, one quarter of the human population perished in the locust onslaught. Human forces rallied, but divided by decades of fighting in the Pendulum Wars, it was too little, too late. The Locust captured most urban, military, and manufacturing centers. To deny our enemies this overwhelming advantage, humans did the unthinkable.
Human forces fell back to Jacinto Plateau, a geological region of solid granite the Locust could not penetrate. From this haven, human leaders unleashed chemical and orbital-beam weapons that burned the enemy...along with the Locust-occupied cities...and civilians who could not evacuate. Humans won the E-day invasion, but 90% of Sera's surface was left a wasteland. The Locust, secure in their underground warrens, survived.
OUR LAST STAND: Humanity has been backed into a corner...although some might say that we painted ourselves into this spot. If we hadn't fought each other so hard for so long, would we have been better prepared to face the Locust Horde? Would the nightmares that boiled out of the ground on Emergence Day have faced a strong, united mankind?
...Or would we have all been killed that day if we hadn't been hardened by decades of conflict? Funny that it took our near-extinction to get us to fight together as brothers. So, there's hope that we might have learned something, after all. I just hope it wasn't too late.
(journal entry found on COG GEAR / Morgue Ref No.:086330-KX)

Gameplay:
Gears of War is a tactical third-person shooter (unlike other titles from Epic Games) that incorporates team-based and cover-dependent tactics rather than brute force. The bulk of the game necessitates the extensive cover system and through this you are given options, such as free moving or jumping to and from different areas of cover, blind fire or fully aimed fire.

The player can only hold 4 weapons; consisting of 2 main weapons, a sidearm and a limited supply of grenades. The player can switch between these weapons with ease by using the direction button pad. Plus an 'active reload' system where if you tap the right bumper twice at the correct moment you can reload faster and more efficiently. If timed poorly it will prove to waste time.

The cover system is emphasized on in harder difficulties as being in crossfire for even a few seconds can result in death.