The good, the bad and the really ugly!: Gears of War 3 Beta

The Gears of War 3 beta has ended and people are cleaning their chainsaws before putting their Lancers to rest, but how was the beta? Well for the most it was a good run, we saw some interesting kills and shouted a fair few times at the screen, there were a few annoyances though;

Trenches and super weapons
The 'Trenches' were one of the better maps but too often, when there were super weapons available, you'd find people camping the trench at the very back of the map. Unless your team were well organised then you'd have difficulty getting even two people out of there for any length of tie. On the King of the Hill maps this just meant that two people could exploit the Hammer of Dawn with abandon while their team mates captured the objectives. Not fun, just frustrating!

Gnasher
Sometimes capable of one shot kills, sometimes capable of just annoying your opponent the wild inconsistency of this weapon means the sawed off is usually the more preferred choice. Which is a shame because a good fire fight between people wielding this weapon is good fun!




Lets go team...wait a minute
Due to something being a bit wrong with the re spawn mechanic it's possible to find yourself re spawning right next to a member of the opposing team. Usually this resulted in the one who was paying attention promptly sending their opponent back to the graveyard. Hopefully this will get fixed and situations like this won't exist any more.

BE QUIET!
Why can't there be an option in game that’s easily accessible to mute other players? It wasn't common but there were occasions when you would find yourself with team mates who had confused their headset with a Singstar microphone. Very annoying!

Decals
Yes your flaming lancer is very nice, but what you don't know is that it makes you easy to spot from a mile off. Is that bunker on fire? No it's just somebody with a dodgy decal. If you're going to give people modifications for their weapons try not to make it ones that put them at a disadvantage!

So these are the few annoyances with an otherwise wonderful beta but you may have noticed that the obvious option is missing here, the sawed off. Admittedly a one shot kill weapon is annoying but the fact that the reload time is measured in days and that it's completely useless at range means that it's a perfectly balanced weapon. If someone is giving you grief with it, try using the lancer for a bit that should surely dissuade them.

Gears of War 3 Beta Guides: Guns guns guns!

With the Gears of War 3 Beta in full swing here is the first in a series of guides to help you avoid those humiliating chainsaw defeats.

For the most part the traditional Lancer will serve you well but there may be the odd occasion where it lets you down, or perhaps you would just like to try something a little different? Either way this guide will show you the fun new toys for you to inflict plain with.

Sawed off Shotgun:
The sawed off shotgun is the definitive close quarters weapon. You only get one shot and the reloading time is atrocious but at point blank range this cannon can turn anyone into chunks. If you're lucky enough you may even get multiple targets! Typically this weapon requires hit and run tactics, dash in, turn someone into soup and run away before their friends realise you were there.

Just a little note, this gun seems to be most effective when fired "from the hip". Using the iron sights for some reason seems to reduce the guns power.



Retro Lancer:
Before the COG were attaching chainsaws to their guns they were using these. With a slower rate of fire and a higher recoil than the original, the Retro Lancer's saving grace is it's "bayonet charge". Activating it makes your character start sprinting forward. If they were to hit an enemy while on this charge then you get an instant kill. Much like you would if you were to have used the chainsaw.

The only down side to this is that while you can't be forced out of the charge when under fire, if you are hit you will be slowed down. So if you see someone charging towards you feel free to unload a few rounds into them before rolling to safety.

Digger Launcher:
Is someone hiding being cover and refusing to come out and be shot? How inconsiderate, thankfully this is where the Digger Launcher comes in. The digger fires an explosive that travels through the ground at speed and pops up after it detects an enemy. Aiming the digger launcher you will get a trajectory much like that of the grenade. The key difference being the range of the arc is a lot shorter and it travels under the ground for some distance.

It's quite easy to see the grenade coming towards you as and the explosion can typically be avoided with a swift roll. So if you're not lucky enough to catch someone out with this you can eat least force them out of cover and into the line of sight of your lancer!

One shot:
This is the new "hammer"! It's a heavy weapon like the mulcher and the mortar the difference being this is a one shot, one kill kind of weapon. Pointing it an enemy gives you a sniper scope, pulling the trigger results in some unfortunate soul being reduced to red vapor no matter where they were hit. You only get four shots and people will scatter as soon as they see the red beam this weapon emits but if you're lucky you can get four very satisfying kills.



Incendiary Grenades:
Yes, yes this isn't a gun but incendiary grenades are a welcome addition to the gears of war arsenal. Working much like a molotov cocktail, rather than bounching like others grenades this one leaves large patch of burning death wherever it lands. Incendiary grenades are often preferable to the ink grenades where you only need to cover a small area but want to inflict more damage.

Next guide? The maps, get the best vantage points and hiding places!