Gears Of War: Reloaded Co-op Review
Gears of War is returning and expanding. The original game has been repackaged, remastered and re-released on Microsoft’s platforms, but this time around it is coming to the Playstation as well. Join Matt Hewson and Paul James as they once again step into the shoes of Marcus and Dom to review this classic as it arrives on the current generation.
Matt: Well, I have to say, jumping back into Gears is like putting on a comfy pair of old jeans. They may not look the best anymore, but boy oh boy, do you love the way they feel. That metaphor, more than anything, sums up how I feel about this remaster. It is a feeling of pure comfort. I have such a long history with the franchise and have adored each entry (well, except for Judgement, which was merely fine), so to go back to the beginning once again felt wonderful. It is also a smart move as Microsoft welcomes the Playstation family to Gears for the first time. That’s your cue, Paul.
Paul: Like you, I’ve long been a fan of Gears. I wasn’t the quickest to adopt an Xbox 360, but I did so just in time for Gears of War 2, and the original title was the first game I played to ready myself. I adored it, and it was the number one franchise that made me into an Xbox fan. That said, I’m a PlayStation fan at heart, and I’d long dreamed of the idea that Gears of War might one day be played with my Dualshock/Dualsense. We came oh so close when the leaked footage of Gears of War 3 running on PS3 surfaced, but now, almost two decades after the phenomenon first kicked off, the PlayStation faithful have the opportunity to return to this beloved IP. This is now the fourth time I’ve played through Gears of War, and like you suggested, Matt, playing this game was like wrapping myself up in a warm blanket – completely soothing, you know, except for churning lancers through flesh, and that awful final encounter with RAAM.
We’re both returning fans, but Matt, what stuck out to you the most about returning to the game?
Matt: Well, if I am honest, and I don’t want to be a downer, what struck me is that it looks a little on the rough side, even on my gaming PC. I don’t mean the graphics, which, to be fair, are fine, but I did encounter a lot of AI Pathfinding problems with my teammates and quite a number of glitches and graphical bugs. I expected it to be a little more polished, if I am honest, after all, this is the 3rd time this game has been released. That said, I was playing pre-launch so that almighty day one patch that all devs love these days will probably go a long way to fixing the issues I had with it. On the looks side of things, though, I still love the almost horror motif of this first game. That creepy, foreboding feeling never really made it into the later games, so it was a bit of a shock to remember that this has some genuinely scary vibes going on. It really makes this first game stand out from the others, don’t you think?
Paul: I’d agree, the AI certainly behaved strangely, leading me to need to restart checkpoints on a handful of occasions, frustratingly in one case being when I was head-to-head with a Berserker, had navigated to the end, only to find Dom standing idly, refusing to come with me, the Berserker then charging back to rip me limb from limb… thanks Dom. I didn’t have any glitches or graphical bugs, outside of once or twice, the environments popping in a little slowly. You’re right, though. I can see this being a quick day-1 patch thing, or very shortly after launch.
The tone of Gears 1 still to this day stands out prominently when compared to the rest of the franchise. Cliffy B always spoke of Gears of War 2 being “bigger, better, and more badass”, and while it was a marketing trick, it also was reflected in the higher stakes “now, with more explosions” approach to the design of Gears 2, leading to a less intimate, larger in scale experience. I always enjoyed returning to the original game, because it was so different to the subsequent titles, and I’m happy to be back again – except for when I’m fighting General RAAM – that sucks.
The experience of Gears of War: Reloaded comes with co-op, which is now awesomely cross-platform, given that the game is now out on PS5, PC and Xbox, and the full multiplayer suite returns. I’ve played a bit of multiplayer, and as I spoke about in my Beta impressions piece a few weeks ago, I got my ass kicked a bit. I started to resettle into the experience, but you could definitely feel the difference between a casual multiplayer fan like myself and the hardcore. Did you dabble in these non-campaign elements?
Matt: Yeah, I did, though, being pre-release, I did have a hard time finding a multiplayer match, so it is hard for me to comment there. What I did do, though, is play some split-screen co-op with my son, which was just as fun as it was in the original. It is also really nice to see the split-screen make it to the PC version, because often that is a feature that gets dropped when a game hits Steam. Gears has always shone in co-op, and that is still evident to this day. It was also nice to be able to relive the game with my son, who wasn’t even born when the first game came out.
As far as a remaster package goes, this is pretty light on, though. It is essentially just the re-release from a few years ago with some higher resolutions. That is a bit disappointing, I have to say. It would have been nice for the team to include some bonus content, making of docs, or even bring in Horde mode. That said, Xbox is doing the right thing and giving players who bought the last release a free copy of Reloaded, so the lack of additions doesn’t sting too much.
What about for a first-time release on the PlayStation? Is it enough?
Paul: I’m in a weird spot as a PlayStation fan because I’ve already played the game in both its original form and through the Xbox One Ultimate Edition. If I try to switch into Sony Pony mode, then yes, it’s more than enough, but as someone who has already played an improved version of the game, this is a bit more underwhelming. That said, for Xbox owners of the Ultimate Edition, Xbox have already sent you a code to upgrade to Reloaded, and of course, it’s also available through Gamepass as well.
Say what you want Xbox and PC fans, but this game isn’t for you, this is to let PlayStation fans have their first bite of the apple, and even as a returning fan, I’m a fan of the taste, and I’m keen to devour more, assuming that Gears Of War 2 Reloaded, 3 Reloaded, and more are making their way in the future. Maybe Microsoft will see enough success with this to launch the upcoming E-Day day and date as well? It’s a good time to be a Gears fan, and an even better time to be a PlayStation fan discovering the franchise for the first time.
Gears Of War Reloaded was reviewed on PS5 and PC with codes kindly provided by Xbox Australia.
