Tendo City

Quote:Pre-E3 2005: Xbox 360 Gears of War
The visuals in this Xbox 360 title are unreal.
by David Clayman

May 12, 2005 - As far back as June of 2004 we had slight glimpses of Unreal Engine 3. The demo included some foreboding architecture, a scary amount of detail, and a few shots of one ugly creature. Until now we simply referred to this artwork as a technical demo or an unannounced title using the new engine. But after visiting Microsoft to get a preview of their 360 lineup, we can safely say that these assets are from a new game from Epic called Gears of War.


This version of the Unreal Engine includes a 64 bit color pipeline, dynamic shadowing and a huge amount of texture effects. Because Epic licenses their engines out to numerous developers, this is a glimpse into the future of what many next-gen games will look like.

The trailer that we saw focused on a set of large marines dressed in futuristic armor. The team entered a large courtyard where the main character motioned for his squad to hold their position as he surveyed the area. The surrounding buildings were constructed of the same stone and metal gilding that was displayed in the UnrealEngine3 demos. The most striking aspect of the imagery was attention paid to smaller objects. Bits of ivy covered the walls and each piece of metal had its own reflective gleam.

Just as quiet settled over the marines, gun fire erupted from the abandoned building ahead of them. The camera then swooped in over the shoulder of the main character, known as Marcus Phoenix, and an aiming reticule appeared on the screen. What looked like a pre-rendered cinema was actually in-engine. Phoenix began blasting away at his unidentified targets causing structural damage to everything in his line of sight. One enemy appeared on the second floor of a building behind some boarded up windows. When fired on, the wood was ripped from the side of the structure and crashed to the ground.

It was difficult to tell what exactly was attacking the soldiers until the side of the building was torn apart in an explosion of rubble. A creature about two stories tall with a multitude of sharp teeth towered over the good guys and let out a roar as the scene faded to black. We were given another look at this monster in a slow-motion depiction of it continuing to smash through a stone building.

This third-person shooter will be available on the Xbox 360 and the PC. We were told by Peter Moore that Gears of War is currently running at 80% of the visual bar that Epic believes it can achieve on 360. It will also include online play, and should be available after the holiday season. Stick with IGN for more information on this game next week at E3.

Source: IGN

Quote:More Gears of War Info Revealed
Epic developer lets the cat out of the bag.
by David Clayman

May 13, 2005 - In a recent interview posted on the official Xbox site Epic developer Cliff "CliffyB" Bleszinski gave away a bit more information on Gears of War. The first section of the interview is spent touting the power of the Unreal Engine 3. Bleszinski doesn't only talk about the graphical prowess of the engine, but states that it allows the team to change things like camera movement, A.I., and weapon damage models in a number of hours.

The main character of Gears of War is a former prisoner named Marcus Fenix. On the planet Sera the human forces call themselves "The Coalition of Ordered Governments" and are locked in a struggle with an enemy known as The Locusts. The enemy forces are made up of foot soldiers, the giant ogre-like creatures shown in the Unreal Engine demos, and flying menaces known as Kryll bats.

Bleszinski revealed that the game would include co-op and multiplayer modes. Players can take on the enemy from a single front or split up to approach a problem from separate paths. The single-player experience joins gamers with team members equipped with highly advanced A.I. A versus mode is expected to be in the game, but Bleszinski stated that they are not yet ready to discuss this aspect of the game.

The third person perspective comes into play during battle as players will spend a lot of time taking cover by diving out of harm's way. Seeing a character moving through the heat of battle also increases the cinematic experience that Epic is gong for with this game. Players will have to "kick over tables, knock over pillars, and blow apart foes' safety spots" to vanquish The Locusts. We already know that Gears of War features beautiful environments and it sounds as though they will also be highly destructible. As for transportation, there will also be an assortment of Coalition robots and vehicles, while The Locusts rely on beasts and organic weapons.

Since the unveiling on MTV, Epic has presented the most visually impressive next-gen game by far. We'll have more information on this game as we head into E3 next week.

Source: IGN















Official Gears of War website

This should be Xbox 360's flagship title. It's the most "next-gen" looking game for the system shown so far.

Now that's next-gen, baby!

Yeah, although I'm much more interested in seeing this engine put to use in Unreal Tournament 2007.

This game does look the most impressive out of the titles. It looks great as is and I can't help but they plan on improving it some.

Quote:Yeah, although I'm much more interested in seeing this engine put to use in Unreal Tournament 2007.

Unreal Tournament 2007 is definitely a game I'm very excited about. I've played the original and 2004 quite a bit and they're both excellent games.

Okay, that's next gen... It is.. acceptable...

Stilll....

*sigh*

Another shooter, but it does look more next-gen than most of the screens we've been seeing from Xbox 360.

Yes, we know, Unreal Engine 3 is the best...

The best there is!