So, which of you is a Gears of War fan? And if you are, what are your thoughts on Gears of War?
Personally[]
To me, Gears of War is my favorite game series, because it takes meat headed one liners to the next level, manages to beat every game of it's time in graphics(On console, that is), and has the most depressing campaign out there(It's the only game to ever make me choke a little).
Gears of War is not about war, however, it's about the Human Race fighting for survival, in a alternative universe on a planet called Sera. They fight against the most genocidal monstrosities ever born in a video game, which are known as the Locust Horde, a race of subterranean monsters who have enslaved creatures of various make up and design, effectively turning nature's blessing's into ugly weapons of destruction.
The rundown: The locust attacked in full force on E-Day, eliminating most humans within months of their attack. The creatures sent no warning, asking for nothing from the human race, who have endured war since their petty creation. The war is personnel for every character, and for some, such as the members of Delta Squad, it's far more than war: It's just revenge.
The members of Delta Squad are a bunch of bull headed, pissed off, jackasses on steroids(No exaggeration, their government, the Coalition of Ordered Governments, or the COG, began injecting them with drugs to enhance performance). Despite their appearance, Delta is made up of several, very realistic and unique characters.
The most human of them all is not the protagonist, Marcus Fenix, but Dominic Santiago, a young, sharp, and caring Gear. Dominic has the most character of anybody in Gears of War. Dom's war is extremely personal, as his parents and two children(One around six or seven, the other is either a year older or younger), were consumed by an Emergence Hole, a "portal" from the Locust Tunnels to the surface.
Dom's wife, Maria, went missing months after, even though she was under Adam Fenix's(Marcus Fenix's dad) protection, and ever since, Dom has been searching for at least seven or more years. All Dom knows is that his wife hangs with humans known as stranded, groups of survivors after the Coalition dropped the hammer's(The Hammer of Dawn systems that drop powerful beams of super heated lasers on the ground from space) on the cities of Sera to stop the locust, which was a failure.
Dom does indeed find his wife(Gears of war 2), only that when found, she is a mangled and scarred mess, taken captive by the Locust Horde and used as a slave, and tortured so that she would work more like a machine than a person. Dom is forced to euthanize her to end his wife's misery.
Dom becomes emotionally scarred(Gears of War 3), and fights recklessly for the rest of his wife, and accepts death without second thought; Although he will never go without fighting. Dom is a changed man, grows a beard, and would rather work on his crops then keep fighting.
Dom does eventually die, he saves Delta squad from certain death. Let's go back a little further:
Delta Squad is now fighting the lambent, locust who have mutated horrendously after exposure to imulsion, the main fuel on the Planet Sera. As they visit Dom's home town, known as Mercy, they discover a pocket of humans have also gone lambent, much to Dom's horror.
They fight through the town, finally arriving at the church, and Dom finds Maria's family tombstone, and says his farewells to his wife and family(This is one of the saddest things I've ever seen). Dom and the rest of the squad begin to leave, as they have now resupplied and connected the fuel network again.
As they leave, they are attacked by a small group of locust, lambent locust, and formers(Lambent humans) There are literally hundreds of them, and Delta begins running out of ammo. Dominic then sees the only solution if his friends are to live; Suicide. He blasts through a few locust, gets in an APC, and drives away; Much to Marcus's dismay, who believes his best friend has deserted him.
Dom drives down the tunnel, and speedily turns back. As he drives towards the imuslsion pumping station, he meets closure with himself, knowing he will once again see his wife. Dom rams the fuel station, destroying every locust, former, and lambent in sight, and successfully saves Delta Squad. This was the single saddest death in gaming, I've yet to see any come close.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aq_zW5mR2pg&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-6f_6eRI5w
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PT3_sZXI7to&feature=related
And finally a tribute:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4th1iPLjAY
I understand this is Mass Effect, But I decided to share a great game. Remember Dom.