Sep 11
26
Gears of War 3
The Heroes
My first memory of Gears of War came well before I even got the chance to play it on the Xbox360. Back in 2006 before its initial release, Gears of War ran this quick one minute commercial as a teaser to get some interest in the unknown title. I didn’t actually get a chance to play Gears until just before the release of Gears 2 in 2008. However, the imagery and power of that one minute video remained with me before, during and now after the completion of the Gears trilogy.
The feeling of a hopeless struggle, out numbered, alone, trying desperately to survive in a world that had truly gone mad. It’s almost funny to think that this video was able to capture the entire tone of the Gears trilogy. The developers must have thought so, as the song “Mad World” was used once again in Gears 3. In what was the most powerful and emotional moment of the entire series, enemies completely surrounding the COGs, a failed attempt to complete an essential task, only seconds between utter annihilation or a mad plan of escape, events unfolding without the ability to control the outcome or the survivors. During all this chaos, the sounds of the battle soften a bit and the melody to “Mad World” begins to take over. I get goosebumps just thinking about the scene.
That one minute commercial for Gears 1, the heart wrenching scene from Gears of War 3, brings the trilogy full circle to paint the bleak picture of events that have befallen our beloved heroes. For me, these two moments are all you need to understand what it’s like to play the Gears of War trilogy. I’m sad that the story has come to an end, but happy with the hours of enjoyment it has given me and my co-op wing men that have shared the journey. Hats off to the makers of Gears of War for creating a unique franchise that got me a little choked up along the way and kept me and my friends invested throughout.
SPOILER: If you want to see the Gears 3 scene I described above, find it here. If you want to understand the true magnitude of what it means…play through the whole trilogy.
