Gears of War: Judgment

 Xbox 360
User Score
5.7

Mixed or average reviews- based on 966 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 365 out of 966
  2. Mixed: 297 out of 966
  3. Negative: 304 out of 966
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  1. MosesOfWar
    Mar 21, 2013
    4
    I decided to write this review because I'm one of the people that got Judgement on release day. Being a huge Gears of war fan I was looking forward to a new title, new weapons and Overrun Mode. And ultimately, I find myself SEVERELY disappointed. I will say the game brings to unique aspects that I did enjoy, but it's glaring flaws outnumber any advancements that game adds. As I mentioned,I decided to write this review because I'm one of the people that got Judgement on release day. Being a huge Gears of war fan I was looking forward to a new title, new weapons and Overrun Mode. And ultimately, I find myself SEVERELY disappointed. I will say the game brings to unique aspects that I did enjoy, but it's glaring flaws outnumber any advancements that game adds. As I mentioned, the game does some things right: The addition of "Declassified" missions is a pretty fun take on the general Gears formula. Some missions require the the area to completed in a certain time span, other require the use of certain weapons for example; in any case, it brings in a new level of "challenge" to the Gears formula, that's much appreciated. These declassified missions are of course optional, but unlock various multiplayer items.

    Overrun mode is a solid addition to the Gears of War formula as well. I will say playing as the Locust provides more entertainment than Cog; both Locust and Cog gain "Points" for achieving various objects, healing allies, killing enemies, etc. But ONLY Locust get to use these "Points" for purchasing upgraded Locust minions, such as a Mauler, or Corpser. Cog get nothing, just a competition for who can get the most points. I feel like perhaps the designers could've given the Cog access to upgraded weapons, grenades or powers to spend their "Points" on, but there is nothing. Overrun is is a fun game mode, but it still leaves players with the feeling that the game mode could encompass so much more and not just be a run off of the Gears version of Team Fortress or Return to Castle Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory.

    Now on to the bad news: This isn't you traditional Gears of War multiplayer experience. I understand that People Can Fly has made an attempt to mainstream the series, but this is definitely a multipalyer experience that will upset the Gears diehards and really feels like a couple of steps back from Gears of War 3. To begin, players are limited to four game types: Free for All, Team Deathmatch, Domination and Overrun (VIP players get 4 more game types... Just the VIP version of each of these that offer no additional maps, no additional benefits other than double experience). Players also get the aptly named "Survival" mode, which is similar to Overrun, but against computer Locust; this is like "Horde" mode, but limited to 10 waves, and you're stuck in rigid classes.

    In any case, back to the standard multiplayer it seems a little rushed and severely numbed down. To begin, you now can select one of up to seven primary weapons to start with (Shotguns are now considered "primary") and you get your Snub Pistol.. Not only that, but you only get two weapons to switch between (with the "Y" button) and your Grenade (which you also can choose between 5 grenades to start with). Being able to select such a variety of weapons and grenades before you spawn severely limits battles over the weapon drops on the maps.

    Judgement also removes from multiplayer, some key concepts brought about by the Gears saga (but oddly enough are kept in Campaign). The first is downing opponents and executions. No more human shields, no more stunning visuals of smacking the heads off your foes with the Longshot like Tiger Woods teeing off at the Masters, now you just kill (except in Overrun). No tagging walls with Grenades to step up mines. In fact, there's not even a bullet power bonus from Active Reloads any longer (just fire speed).

    Really with all the changes, many of the weapons have become underwhelming. The weakness of the Lancer, the inaccuracy of the Retro Lancer, the weakness of the Hammerburst without the bonus power of an perfect active reload, just don't seem to do enough damage. Also, Sniper Rifles and Torque Bows just don't seem to have the same effect in Judgement as they did in game past. Multiplayer in Judgement has really become a Shotgun circle, with each team sprinting at each other, Gnashering or Sawed off until no one is left. With the other weapons becoming so Underwhelming (well minus the Boomshot, Booshka and the explosives), why would a player want to pick any other weapon? The cover mechanics of Gears feel very gimped when your target is 100ft away and they rush straight at you, eat an entire Lancer clip and manage to one shot you with a Shotgun, or survive 4 shots from a Marzka, but can kill you mid range with four Shotgun shots. The multiplayer experience seems like it was rushed, or was developed by entirely different team than the campaign. Even fun additions, like being able to wield a shield with any primary weapon, are overshadowed by the flaws in game play. The sad part is, the maps are very well designed but aren't really appreciated due to the imbalances in game play.

    In summary, this game does have some great additions to the series, but takes so much out of the Gears experience, it feels like a step in the wrong direction after such a great experience with gears of War 3.    … Expand
  2. Divio
    Mar 19, 2013
    3
    This game that runs under the moniker of Gears of War hardly qualifies for the title. Epic games has killed off the hardcore fan base and dropped the ball by changing what made gears of war...gears of war. The multi-player made gears it's own shooter and gave it the appeal that kept a solid fan base. This title however bring in changes that unequivocally destroy the unique nature of theThis game that runs under the moniker of Gears of War hardly qualifies for the title. Epic games has killed off the hardcore fan base and dropped the ball by changing what made gears of war...gears of war. The multi-player made gears it's own shooter and gave it the appeal that kept a solid fan base. This title however bring in changes that unequivocally destroy the unique nature of the multi-player that once was the reason people flocked to stores to buy the games. No "down but not out" ,aka no executions, has turned what used to be a game with skilled shotgun and sniper battles into a very vanilla shooter. No more can you wall bounce your way out of a head shot from a sniper. Now he can just clip you to death with poor aim. No more epic shotgun battles that caused your adrenaline to shoot up while you pop'd your opponents head off with a delightful pop.

    Epic games and people can fly have ruined what made this series.

    It's almost like Michael Jordan's return to basketball. It's a sad sad version of what once was, and what hope that had been brought with the thought of a new title to an amazing series has been... dare i say it, curb stomped.    … Expand
  3. KeepersWay
    Mar 19, 2013
    2
    Sigh, by far the worst game in the gears of war franchise I can go as far to say that it does not even deserve to be have the name gears of war in its title. the game has been totally changed the controllers have been turned into call of duty style unlike the good original gears of war controls, only 4 launch maps, around 9 characters (carmines are not included). down but not out mode isSigh, by far the worst game in the gears of war franchise I can go as far to say that it does not even deserve to be have the name gears of war in its title. the game has been totally changed the controllers have been turned into call of duty style unlike the good original gears of war controls, only 4 launch maps, around 9 characters (carmines are not included). down but not out mode is gone so you just die immediately not get downed. the story line has concept but it is badly executed half of the campaign seems like you are playing an online match just setting up defenses and waiting for the locust to come towards you it is boring and nothing but a time burn. I've been playing gears of war since the first one and I can honestly say that this is the first one in the franchise that I will return.… Expand
  4. Sinister_Taco
    Mar 19, 2013
    1
    The game that killed the series. Everything that all fans liked about Gears is taken away and turned into a more arcade COD like game. Disappointed is an understatement.
  5. unicornnz
    Mar 31, 2013
    3
    I pre-ordered this because Gears. I have spent literally thousands of hours on this series and this by far is the weakest. They have a 'VIP' zone, splitting the community into 2 groups. WE ONLY GET 4 MAPS, No DBNO, no meatshields, no active reload, ONLY COMES WITH 5 CHARACTERS, the execution DLC just released includes 1 map with a seriously poor tacked on take on 'execution' The campaignI pre-ordered this because Gears. I have spent literally thousands of hours on this series and this by far is the weakest. They have a 'VIP' zone, splitting the community into 2 groups. WE ONLY GET 4 MAPS, No DBNO, no meatshields, no active reload, ONLY COMES WITH 5 CHARACTERS, the execution DLC just released includes 1 map with a seriously poor tacked on take on 'execution' The campaign should be called arcade mode as is it no way cinematic, just a start-stop point grab. Avoid this game if you want to preserve your fond memories of gears. Gears of war 3 was perfect. This looks slightly better, yet plays worse. The most disturbing thing is the microtransactions. EPIC have created more custom suits and weapons to charge you a ridiculous price for, THESE SKINS COME ON THE DISC. We are paying to unlock them, on top of the DLC and game. this review would of been expletive if It was allowed.… Expand
  6. setriodev
    Jul 11, 2013
    0
    Now they have made the game even worse. They are changing the game as It goes. I just logged in after a month or so cause the game was so boring, to find out now when you pick up ammo you dont recharge your grenades! wtf! one grenade per game? completely change the game mechanics once you get used to them? change the rule of the game in the middle of game play???????????? epic games doentNow they have made the game even worse. They are changing the game as It goes. I just logged in after a month or so cause the game was so boring, to find out now when you pick up ammo you dont recharge your grenades! wtf! one grenade per game? completely change the game mechanics once you get used to them? change the rule of the game in the middle of game play???????????? epic games doent know what the _uck they are doing, they go on pulling to the right, and the a month later to the left. _uck off and get your act together, this game is a joke!!!!!!!!!! ____uck this game is the reason I switched to psp3 the last of us rock great game, no ore epic and microsoft they dont deliver… Expand
  7. Kingpotato
    Apr 7, 2013
    1
    This from a massive Gears of War fan.

    This is the most heinous entry in the series to date. While the single player is at least mildly enjoyable (if not grossly short) if you can get over the completely gutted controls and that you can now only carry 2 weapons. The multiplayer is however where this product has become a disgrace. They have removed locusts so now its only Cog vs Cog    This from a massive Gears of War fan.

    This is the most heinous entry in the series to date. While the single player is at least mildly enjoyable (if not grossly short) if you can get over the completely gutted controls and that you can now only carry 2 weapons. The multiplayer is however where this product has become a disgrace.

    They have removed locusts so now its only Cog vs Cog only. No active reloads, horribly designed levels that play atrociously because they are COD maps not gears of war maps and there is only 4 of them unless you want to pay for more. The entire weapon system has been changed for online, shotguns are now as crap as they were back in gears 2, you die from 1 shot of a flame thrower and a micro burst from a lancer will kill you too.

    The entire game has been ruined to the point it is no longer recognizable, it has now turned into and call of duty/halo game with a gears makeover. It is in no way shape or form a gears of war game, its almost indescribable how terribly they have destroyed a beloved franchise.

    If that wasn't enough there is less than half the content of the previous game, Gears of war 3. This game should be liable for false advertising, it is NOT a Gears of War game.    … Expand
  8. Branz
    Mar 25, 2013
    2
    The campaign is fun, short and with a few random transitions which are never explained, strange seeing as it's a courtroom testimony. The kicker is that there's no feel for characters whatsoever. Everyone knows Cole Train and Baird from Gears 1, 2 & 3. And in Judgement we get no feeling of their characters, or Padak or Sofia. Apparently Sofia was a critic of the CoG, it'd be nice if theyThe campaign is fun, short and with a few random transitions which are never explained, strange seeing as it's a courtroom testimony. The kicker is that there's no feel for characters whatsoever. Everyone knows Cole Train and Baird from Gears 1, 2 & 3. And in Judgement we get no feeling of their characters, or Padak or Sofia. Apparently Sofia was a critic of the CoG, it'd be nice if they included that in the storyline but unfortunatly it's hacked into statistical chunks for how stars you earn so any sense of immersion or connection with the character is stopped when Epic comes along to tell you how well you did didn't do. Cole might make a remark about his wealth, but that doesn't expand on his character other than "he's rich", which we kinda gathered. That's as deep as characters get.
    Stars have been added for reasons I cannot fathom except for unlocking Tai and telling you what a bad job you did. Or rather how bad the AI is because you get peanalised for DBNO time, which is irritating when the AI have regressed in intelligence since Gears 3 and now ignore you for a long while as you watch your stars drain away until the decide when they want to revive you. Another banailty of Gears J is that on starting it, it asks if you're familiar with the controls. You'd think after three games of similar control you would be familiar with the controls and hit yes. Well guess what, they're brand-new controls all together, with only two weapons available and the weapon switching being changed to the Y button, quick-grenade throwing on the left bumper and tac/com being stuck on the D-Pad so have fun throwing your grenade when trying to check where your objective is and trying to remember how to swap to your Gnasher when Therons are trying to chop you into CoG paste. Declassified Missions are nice addition, a fun way to change up the action and really test your skill and it's one of the finer points of the campaign. However, if you don't choose the Declassified Mission then have fun only acheiving two stars (on Hardened at least) as though Epic's punishing you for not doing a time-trial or using only Boltoks. The big evil boss has about as much screentime as T-Dog in the Walking Dead, appearing in the most clichéd plot-twist. In all it doesn't do much for a Gears fan, you don't see any glimpses of the characters you would know from the other Gears, there's no addition to the storyline or canon of the Gears universe. In all it starts strong and quickly collapses like a deck of cards and finishes with an ending that left me stumped with no sense of acheivment or finality for completing it. Multiplayer is my biggest gripe with this game however. The only reson I bought Xbox Live was the play Gears 3, and I played it religeously. It's combat was unique and fun, requiring skills and tactics even in quick TDM. And this has all been thrown out the window. Firstly, there's no Locust vs. CoG, just CoG vs. CoG. And with only eight characters to choose, have fun trying to remember which of the four Bairds are on your team. And the idea of 'Team' goes out the window with random spawns all over the map, so you're all scattered throughout the map. No unlockable characters, no unlockable skins; you get nothing for levelling or for getting medals. If you want skins, you either have to spin the roulette wheel in hopes that it pops out of prize boxes or pay for it. Simple as. Removing all sense of acheivement that I had from running around as Prescott or a Kantus, nope I'm just Cole with stupid neon face paint. The combat as a whole had been ruined. No longer is is cover-based heated battles, now it's CoD-style running around like a headless chicken with a shotgun in the hopes that you can kill someone before inevitably being shot from behind by someone using the same tactics. No skills, no tactics, no cover-based shooting (which was the signiture mechanice of the first three games). Or just throw frags everywhere, they're common as muck; stim and becon grenades are about as useful as a pillowcase in multiplayer. The maps are so dark that it's hard to see what the hell I'm doing, it's dark even for Gears, and they're set out in a way to discourage anything except my afformentioned headless-chicken tactic. And kiss goodbye to gruesome excecutions, no more DBNO. You just keel over and respawn. It sucks. In all, I am irritated that I pre-ordered this game. I would've waited until it was cheaper, played the campaign then gone back to played Gears 3 multiplayer. Instead I forked out extra money for it to be sat there, with it's horribly broken multiplayer and water-weak campaign. If the title is anything to go by, the devs at Epic must have judged this 'adequate' in order to wring money out of its fans with skins and VIP Passes, because I cant belive they could think this as good as Gears 1, 2 and 3. I shall be playing Gears 3 multiplayer instead, because that was a well-made game. Buy that rather than this cash-in.    … Expand
  9. ronjowe
    Mar 26, 2013
    0
    Do not buy this game. It is a pretty, heartless It masquerades itself as a true Gears title, but almost every line was cringe worthy. My friend and I had ourselves saying "Wow that line wasn't that bad" when we were surprised by one that wasn't awful. The game's story is predictable and uninteresting, filled with banal and under cooked characters. Lazy level design made me feel like I wasDo not buy this game. It is a pretty, heartless It masquerades itself as a true Gears title, but almost every line was cringe worthy. My friend and I had ourselves saying "Wow that line wasn't that bad" when we were surprised by one that wasn't awful. The game's story is predictable and uninteresting, filled with banal and under cooked characters. Lazy level design made me feel like I was playing a horde mode during every level and the boss fight was painfully typical and unimaginative. I could go on for so much longer about how bad this game was....but the graphics are pretty....so that is a plus...… Expand
  10. M0RR0W1
    Mar 26, 2013
    2
    Not happy at all! What is with the annoying habit of developers making the menu and in game language set to the country that you purchased the game in? There is no language choice option either... I live in Norway but I'm from Australia, therefore the menus and in game text etc are in Norwegian which even my Norwegian friends can't fully understand and do not like... As soon as I startedNot happy at all! What is with the annoying habit of developers making the menu and in game language set to the country that you purchased the game in? There is no language choice option either... I live in Norway but I'm from Australia, therefore the menus and in game text etc are in Norwegian which even my Norwegian friends can't fully understand and do not like... As soon as I started it up I was pissed at seeing the Norwegian text, I have even changed my xbox region to the UK previously due to daft developers like Ubisoft having the same stupid language thing. Dear game developers...Just because you live in a country, doesn't mean you want your freaking games in that country's language!!!!!! STOP IT! Being a massive Gears fan the game is disappointing to say the least, graphics are substandard, the campaign is glitchy and stale to the point where I will not bother completing it, it just seems like a chore to get through the missions not much fun. The multiplayer is pants, not just because I can't understand what is what due to the stupid google translated Norwegian, but gameplay is again disappointing... Just seems like a money grab to me, the series has gone backwards. I'm trading my copy in today for Bioshock. That is all....… Expand
  11. habanero63
    Mar 30, 2013
    3
    Easily one of the year's most anticipated titles has failed to deliver as a whole. The few new and pleasing aspects of the game are overshadowed by bland and uninteresting characterisation, uninspiring multiplayer modes and a general feeling that the developers did not care about the finished product enough to craft it properly.
    GoW3 was an experience that left me with a sense of    Easily one of the year's most anticipated titles has failed to deliver as a whole. The few new and pleasing aspects of the game are overshadowed by bland and uninteresting characterisation, uninspiring multiplayer modes and a general feeling that the developers did not care about the finished product enough to craft it properly.
    GoW3 was an experience that left me with a sense of accomplishment and one that tempted me back time and time again. GoWJ, on the other hand, has left me feeling a bit hard done as not only did I pre-order my copy, but also purchased the VIP content prior to the game's release. Once bitten, twice shy... I'll not be making that mistake again.    … Expand
  12. eranger
    Mar 28, 2013
    2
    I have played Gears of War since the very first game and have spent a massive amount of time on the 3 games in the series. Gears is my MP game, I hardly play any others, I don't own a single COD or Halo game...it's all gears for me. I am a HUGE gears game. With that said, writing what follows is a bit painful.

    This game is garbage. It is easily, by far, not even close the worst game    I have played Gears of War since the very first game and have spent a massive amount of time on the 3 games in the series. Gears is my MP game, I hardly play any others, I don't own a single COD or Halo game...it's all gears for me. I am a HUGE gears game. With that said, writing what follows is a bit painful.

    This game is garbage.

    It is easily, by far, not even close the worst game in the series. It feels like something they threw together at the last minute. I honestly don't have the time to list every single thing wrong with this game, and besides I will probably run out of room. I'll try to give a very brief overview.

    Campaign: Entertaining but lacking the depth and character development in past campaigns. The action and gameplay is fun, the missions are cool but it just feels....hollow. There's really no substance there.

    Multiplayer: This is where the game completely falls apart. A massive amount of changes were made that were totally unnecessary and ruin the game. This is what happens when a developer tries to satisfy multiple fan bases of different games instead of building a game that caters to fans of the series. This is a Halo-Cod-Gears abomination. It's awful, it's terrible, I can't stand playing it for a hundred different reasons that would take an hour for me to type here. It just sucks, period. And it really hurts me to say that because I really wanted to like this game, I was excited for it before launch, bought the VIP pass and then it just....fizzled.

    Bottom line: Save your money and wait for the next game on the new console (hopefully we get another gears game and they get a chance to redeem themselves after this mess.)    … Expand
  13. pmidnight
    Apr 14, 2013
    0
    complete waste of 60 dollars. 4 maps for multiplayer? the campaign story is garbage, hit detection like always, characters, no active reload, no downs, no executions,2 piece is back, cog vs cog? no locust, the list never ends.... its exactly what a gears fan doesnt want.. EPIC games you are anything but epic... youre an epic FAIL.....
  14. Bres1
    Apr 25, 2013
    1
    Being a huge fan of both the Aliens and Gears of War franchises, 2013 has been a terrible year for gaming for me personally. The reason people still play GoW 1 today is because of the competitive multiplayer, not because of the campaign or the well written story; the success or failure of GoW games has always been determined by the multiplayer. Which is why GoW judgement is such aBeing a huge fan of both the Aliens and Gears of War franchises, 2013 has been a terrible year for gaming for me personally. The reason people still play GoW 1 today is because of the competitive multiplayer, not because of the campaign or the well written story; the success or failure of GoW games has always been determined by the multiplayer. Which is why GoW judgement is such a disappointment to me that it actually makes me angry. It's so glaringly obvious that people can fly tried to make judgement like call of duty, for example: the shotgun doing next to zero damage, the fact that you cannot down enemies in multiplayer (if anyone mentions overrun i'm going to scream) and the introduction of the Free For All playlist which feels out of place. "Domination" is another shining example of this, why not just stick to the class annex or king of the hill which was successful in previous games? Because Call of Duty had domination so now Gears has to have it, ridiculous, so insulting as a avid Gears of War fan. Another point which I feel I should make is the crosshair. Its not permanently fixed into the middle of your screen in single player which is the way it is meant to be, but because some other successful shooter had it (wonder what it could be) now gears has to have it, because for SOME reason it must appeal to the "casual" gamer and totally rebuff the hardcore fans of the series; the fans who put the game where it is today. I know this review seems scathing and perhaps overly critical but thats only because I absolutely LOVED GoW1 and GoW3 multiplayer and playing judgement just feels like a third person CoD. In conclusion if you are a hardcore gears fan stay away from this game, if you like CoD then keep playing it because this game will offer you nothing that the newest installment of CoD cant. So very disappointed.… Expand
  15. HATEPOLICY
    May 4, 2013
    0
    lol the ppl posting 9s and 10s to "combat" the low reviews,
    I will give it a 1 then, so as to combat all you Epic fanboys, note, I am with Epic since UT2k3, but this?
    This was a money grab, no effort, greed, pure n simple, its bot city in MP, no comparing G3 to this, It is a blatant step backwards. Epic really took a big dump on its fanbase this time, (B)ad PR, (B)ad design choices,    lol the ppl posting 9s and 10s to "combat" the low reviews,
    I will give it a 1 then, so as to combat all you Epic fanboys, note, I am with Epic since UT2k3, but this?
    This was a money grab, no effort, greed, pure n simple, its bot city in MP, no comparing G3 to this,
    It is a blatant step backwards.

    Epic really took a big dump on its fanbase this time, (B)ad PR, (B)ad design choices, just (B)ad!    … Expand
  16. Fixjudgementnow
    May 4, 2013
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Where is active reloads? Why is the 2 piece back? Why do I want to smash my xbox everytime I get a grenade thrown at me and it tags me? Why are the maps not symmetrical and so big? Why is the reticle on my screen not an option?? why is it red bs blue not cog vs locust? WTF IS STIM GAS DOING IN MULTIPLAYER? a good a idea that originated from a brain would be to have STIM pickup downed team mates only, oh wait dbno is gone. Why can you start with any rifle/shotgun/grenade you wish? Why have you destroyed all competitiveness for this series? Spoiler alert WORST CAMPAIGN ENDING POSSIBLE… Expand
  17. savagejoe444
    May 26, 2013
    3
    Another case of a great franchise ending with a game that's very disappointing. The original controls from previous GoW titles were changed for Judgement, it all fell apart. The weapon selection is f***ed up, no Horde mode, and the story is just plain forgettable. Iv'e been a fan of GoW since Gears of War 1 and Gears of War 2 was my all time favorite, same with 3, but Judgement is just aAnother case of a great franchise ending with a game that's very disappointing. The original controls from previous GoW titles were changed for Judgement, it all fell apart. The weapon selection is f***ed up, no Horde mode, and the story is just plain forgettable. Iv'e been a fan of GoW since Gears of War 1 and Gears of War 2 was my all time favorite, same with 3, but Judgement is just a complete waste of time and money.
    Gears of War Judgement is guilty for ruining a great franchise and sentenced to game prison for its entire lifetime.    … Expand
  18. Jackpp1997
    Jul 23, 2013
    3
    I am not normally a person that likes to complain about games check my reviews most of my reviews are positive but this game is just terrible i have known die hard fans of the series that have given up on playing gears of war altogether after playing this so do not buy this game trust me if you want a gears of war then get gears of war but not this one
  19. An_English_Spy
    Jul 18, 2013
    3
    This Game took everything i loved about all the previous Gears of War It annoys me that this may of destroyed the franchise They made it like Call of Duty Style and it makes me Sick.
    The Games Campaign was ok but was a little cheesy id give it a 6 out of 10.
    Multi Player Was horrific and boring Call of Duty Style 2/10.
    Do not buy this game go play Gears of War 3
  20. HBTB
    Jul 30, 2014
    3
    This is by far the most disappointing entry in the Gears of War franchise. Why they decided to make this is beyond my question, but when you change nearly everything from game play to the heart and tone of the classics, that just shows that this is a cheap cash grab, for people that adore the crappy CoD games and have no idea what Gears of War is about to buy or squeeze a little bit moreThis is by far the most disappointing entry in the Gears of War franchise. Why they decided to make this is beyond my question, but when you change nearly everything from game play to the heart and tone of the classics, that just shows that this is a cheap cash grab, for people that adore the crappy CoD games and have no idea what Gears of War is about to buy or squeeze a little bit more money from it's adored predecessors. There are a few nice things in it though, like playing as Baird. Story wise, this was average at best, but multiplayer and combat was BUTCHERED! Instead of keeping the beautiful combat system like in 2, they have to dumb it down for idiots to understand. STOP IT! This game, is pointless, with a boring story, with no soul like the classics, and while the graphics might be the best in the series, graphics don't count in my opinion. This is a 3 at best, and they should have stopped at number 2.… Expand
  21. Jayce814
    Apr 25, 2013
    4
    Took everything that was good about Gears multiplayer and ruined it. This isn't Gears of Duty, bring back executions, actives, D-Pad switching, DBNO, no starting grenades so many things that made it a great series. Only points given in this game should go towards the campaign and overrun which are both pretty solid and enjoyable. BUT FIX MULTIPLAYER.
  22. gamjuven
    Mar 22, 2013
    4
    This game was okay, but had too many negative points to receive a good score.

    This game completely lacked a decent story and character growth. In fact if you've never played a Gears game, your opinion of the regular characters would not only be bland, but probably inaccurate, as the writing was that bad. However, it seems the makers of this game did not attempt to make a game similar to    This game was okay, but had too many negative points to receive a good score.

    This game completely lacked a decent story and character growth. In fact if you've never played a Gears game, your opinion of the regular characters would not only be bland, but probably inaccurate, as the writing was that bad. However, it seems the makers of this game did not attempt to make a game similar to the previous ones, but rather an arcade game set in the same universe.

    In this light the game does well. The game play is entertaining and trying to get all 3 stars on every stage will keep you coming back for more. I enjoyed how the Declassified missions made the various stages more difficult in different ways, although I fail to see why anyone would opt to NOT play with them on. I played this with a friend on local co op and we beat the entire game in roughly 7 hours on hardcore, doing all the Declassified missions. It had it's difficulties but it wasn't too hard. We still had an entertaining and fun time, but since it lacked an interesting story and really lacked any character development it felt rather bland. The campaign felt like a fun multiplayer variant but didn't deserve a game of it's own. The multiplayer aspect of this game is atrocious. We had no fun at all. It was very constrictive in how you have to play (heaven help you if nobody chooses a Soldier or Engineer), and the gameplay just felt boring even when we played correctly with using all the different character types. I just did the same thing over and over again and there was hardly any real strategy. Horde mode in the previous game was much better although I think that could have done with some more objectives. I was sad to see it go. The main multiplayer is nothing special anymore either. I remember when I played the 1st game's multiplayer. It was so different. You really had to have good squad tactics and use cover in order to perform well, unlike the CoD or Halo games out there at the time. This game felt like they were trying to make it more like CoD or Halo making it Red vs Blue, and it ends up just being the worst of both worlds. They messed with something good, and ended up with something worse.

    I thought this game had a lot of potential and I thought could have had a good story. Their idea was good, but awful execution. They obviously spent way more time trying make a good arcade game rather than a good story and I'm sad they didn't work harder on both. This really should have just been a series of add-ons to the previous game rather than a game of it's own.    … Expand
  23. seoslashgamer
    Mar 25, 2013
    0
    This is even gears of war anymore. Multiplayer mode is destroyed while only the campaign seems to stick to gears tradition, and it still sucked. Y to switch weapons, cant be revived anymore, terrible graphics, no active reload, the list goes on and on... If you loved gears in the past, this is not the game for you.
  24. CTHULHU_CALL
    Mar 21, 2013
    4
    this entry is indeed the weakest of the series. the constant dumbing down of our games these days is becoming tedious. numerous devs including the new epic (minus cliffy b, now i see why he left epic) and people fly, are dumbing down, and "younging-down" our games. stop it. this game is a rent, just so you can see what i mean and perhaps so you can experience the free for all multiplayerthis entry is indeed the weakest of the series. the constant dumbing down of our games these days is becoming tedious. numerous devs including the new epic (minus cliffy b, now i see why he left epic) and people fly, are dumbing down, and "younging-down" our games. stop it. this game is a rent, just so you can see what i mean and perhaps so you can experience the free for all multiplayer which is one of the only things i liked about it. dont you dare buy this game if you havnt yet.… Expand
  25. anonymousone
    Mar 30, 2013
    2
    I am a long time gears of war fan but honestly, anybody who gave this game more than a 5 is either a fanboy, doesn't know gears or games or both. this is game is an insult to gears of war ESPECIALLY multiplayer. They took out DBNO, meatshields,executions, active reloads and wall tagging frags. They also took out the ability to have a tertiary weapon. In other words you can only have oneI am a long time gears of war fan but honestly, anybody who gave this game more than a 5 is either a fanboy, doesn't know gears or games or both. this is game is an insult to gears of war ESPECIALLY multiplayer. They took out DBNO, meatshields,executions, active reloads and wall tagging frags. They also took out the ability to have a tertiary weapon. In other words you can only have one big weapon and a pistol with a grenade to start each match. there is no horde and the campaign is, quite frankly, boring; it's stale. the only half decent part of the campaign is "aftermath" and I'm pretty sure it's a lost DLC from gears of war 3. I beat the campaign because that's how much hope I had in the game, telling myself "the story will get better" but to no avail. people can fly are trash for even allowing themselves to think of this as a game. all they did was make a game, skin their character with the franchise game, slap on the gears name and told us real fans that it's gears of war it's not. I recommend this game to no one… Expand
  26. GidBix
    Apr 5, 2013
    4
    As someone who played Gears of War 3 for over 250 hours, I was excited to experience all of the changes Gears of War Judgement was gonna bring to the table. Only problem, there aren't that many! The menus, music, animations, are exactly the same! The only changes they did make, made the game worse! Just save your money and keep playing Gears of War 3.
  27. gowgearhead
    Apr 3, 2013
    4
    i don't know how you people can say such good things about this game i will admit the campaign was ok but it was sunshine and rainbows compared to the other 3 gears of war games you go in expecting something sad but epic this game has disappointed me to no end its an abomination of halo call of duty and the shadow of gears this game was a waist of money and i would gladly sell it away ifi don't know how you people can say such good things about this game i will admit the campaign was ok but it was sunshine and rainbows compared to the other 3 gears of war games you go in expecting something sad but epic this game has disappointed me to no end its an abomination of halo call of duty and the shadow of gears this game was a waist of money and i would gladly sell it away if my inner gear would allow me to give up hope on this game the challenge is gone the fun is gone sadly gears of war is dead R.I.P… Expand
  28. Bardolf
    Apr 5, 2013
    2
    This is the worst Gears so far. The campaign is ok the rest is horrible. Buy it when it goes down to $15 to $20 on the third market. I wasted my money on this pre-ordering it.
  29. Maxxis
    Mar 24, 2013
    3
    Imo, the game does deserve a 7/10 (it's good, not great), but to take what gears was and develop a short arcade campaign (that, personally, did not get me invested) then to take away Horde mode and add some non-gear like changes in other mp staples nets me scoring it in the red to bring it down. It's what has been lost that has me scratching my head; why remove Horde (survival is in no wayImo, the game does deserve a 7/10 (it's good, not great), but to take what gears was and develop a short arcade campaign (that, personally, did not get me invested) then to take away Horde mode and add some non-gear like changes in other mp staples nets me scoring it in the red to bring it down. It's what has been lost that has me scratching my head; why remove Horde (survival is in no way a replacement), people loved Horde mode, Horde mode received great aclaim; this omission of Horde and the other changes to multiplayer modes (some changes are good however, and it's still fun), have to me, taken away what gave the gears series it's own flavor in the multiplayer sense. Overrun is a welcome addition and would have been more appreciated by myself if it stood along side Horde mode, not the "overrun with bots" mode that survival is. Scoring this in the red because HORDE MODE!… Expand
  30. HuppShady
    Mar 20, 2013
    3
    doesn't feel like Gears, trying to be like other games. only 3 real kinds of multiplayer games; tdm, free for all, domination.
    no Horde.
    new controls. throw grenade with LB. change weapons with Y. LB no longer shows where weapon pick-ups are and where teammates are. there is no button with this function now. only one primary type weapon and a pistol. it's still called an active    doesn't feel like Gears, trying to be like other games. only 3 real kinds of multiplayer games; tdm, free for all, domination.
    no Horde.
    new controls. throw grenade with LB. change weapons with Y.
    LB no longer shows where weapon pick-ups are and where teammates are. there is no button with this function now.
    only one primary type weapon and a pistol.
    it's still called an active reload, but it's really not. there is just a fat white line that you have to hit when reloading and that is how you reload your gun. there is no added damage (at least that I've noticed).
    everyone has a grenade now, not a pick-up weapon anymore.
    grenades are very hard impossible to plant.
    also the grenades stick to whoever they are thrown at now.
    ink grenades don't seem to stun. just walk right through them and take minimal damage.
    not enough maps for each game mode.
    have to pick up ammo. run out of ammo all the time if you don't pick some up.
    some of the maps are built kind of like a maze where there are areas that have no importance, but take forever to get through.
    i guess domination was supposed to replace KOTH, but it is a completely different game mode, not really comparable, and it is just like every other game like Call of Duty.
    instead of cogs vs locust, it's just red cogs vs blue cogs.

    this game is basically the same thing as Gears 3 just with less features. it looks the same visually. they would have been better off just making another season pass for 3 and putting these maps on there    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

44
#44 Best Xbox 360 Game of 2013
6
#6 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2013
9
#9 Most Shared Xbox 360 Game of 2013

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 81 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 58 out of 81
  2. Mixed: 23 out of 81
  3. Negative: 0 out of 81
  1. Hyper Magazine
    May 9, 2013
    70
    It's Gears 3, minus pacing and ambition. It's still fantastically enjoyable, but it's easily the least interesting Gears game. [June 2013, p.64]
  2. CD-Action
    May 7, 2013
    80
    Judgment shows that the People Can Fly team knows its way around triple-A titles. They managed to squeeze a lot out of Unreal Engine 3 – the game looks great even compared to Crysis 3, which set new standards in terms of visuals, also on consoles. And when the technology restrained them, they creatively found a way around limitations. [CD-Action 05/2013, p.60]
  3. GameFocus
    Apr 21, 2013
    78
    Judgment feels a bit like an excuse to provide the Xbox 360 with one last first-party game for what is likely to be its final year as Microsoft’s flagship game platform.
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