Earth is under attack and only a handful of surly guys in chunky suits of power armour can save the day. It’s hardly an original premise but then nobody is going to play Gears Of War for its story – it’s the incredible visuals and non-stop action that are guaranteed to rope you in here. Unlike the majority of shooters, tactical use of cover is key here with the game encouraging you to duck behind scenery and assorted debris to avoid showers of bullets before returning a similarly deadly response. No punches are pulled with the game’s brutal violence either, chainsaw attacks cleaving through enemies like butter and sniper shots popping skulls left, right and centre.
From a visual standpoint, Gears Of War is, in a word, stunning. By far the best looking game on the market today, everything about the game oozes quality and the intense action is relentless from start to finish. A selection of superb online modes (including the ability to play through the whole campaign cooperatively over Xbox Live) round off the package perfectly, making Gears Of War the only true must-own title on the console to date. The second generation of 360 games officially starts here.
See how Gears Of War did on our list of the 100 greatest games.