Anytime a sequel is announced, I find myself both excited and worried. Will the game live up to its predecessor? More importantly, will it surpass it? Luckily for video games, they rarely suffer the sequel curse that seems to plague the film industry.  Nevertheless, with a high profile franchise such as Gears of War, there is a lot to live up to.

I am probably the biggest Gears of War fan you are likely to meet, so naturally I expected quite a bit from GOW 2. Gears 1 was damn near perfect, so if GOW2 were a massive transformation, even for the better, I would be a bit disappointed. Gears has such a great formula already; it would be a shame to see it changed. Luckily Gears 2 offers the same satisfaction and enjoyment, with a few welcome additions and changes.

I finished playing through the co-op campaign on Tuesday, and I can definitely say the campaign is more varied than Gears 1. The game simply never let up, with some truly epic battles, somehow more frantic than the first game.

Horde mode alone merits the price of admission, and my first 5 player match was the most fun I have had in a game in a LONG time.

Gears of War 2, while lacking much innovation, is one of the best games of the year, and I suspect I will still be hooked by this time next year.