The 5 Best Things About Gears Tactics (& The 5 Worst)

Gears Tactics is the first game in the Gears of War franchise that isn’t a third-person shooter. And for a spin-off, it plays remarkably well. The game is a turn-based strategy where the player controls a group of soldiers who take on the series’ infamous aliens. The game hurls tons of enemies at the player, but it also provides plenty of powerful weapons to take them down w

The new take on the series has landed with mostly favorable reviews , applauding its commitment to a complete gameplay overhaul. Here are five of the best things about the new game, and five of the wo

The Protoss single-player campaign will focus on Hierarch Artanis and span approximately 20 missions. At the helm of the glorious arkship, the Spear of Adun, you’ll be tasked with uniting the Protoss factions to stop the evil Xel’Naga Amon from laying waste to the entire universe courtesy of his army of bastardized hybrids. You’ll be able to customize your army in a number of ways as well as your ship, unlocking powerful gameplay-altering abilities to use from the skies, like Orbital Strike and Time Stop.

In addition, several Protoss units are gaining abilities or having slight tweaks to their existing skillset. Tempests are gaining the Disintegration ability, which deals massive damage to single units either in the air or ground as well as structures, but their normal attack can no longer hit flying units. In addition, they’ve gained a buff to their movement speed. Disintegration does not require the Tempest to remain in proximity for the duration of the ability, and is a scary new target-removal option. Immortals have had their Hardened Shields removed (!) but gain the Barrier Shield ability, which grants a short-duration damage absorbing shield. This will reward intelligent use as well as improve encounters where the Immortal was formerly unstoppable.

Gears Tactics is a great way for many fans of the Gears of War series to get into the turn-based strategy genre if they haven’t already. Even if gamers aren’t interested in the genre as a whole or are already into it, there’s a lot of extra things to do in the slg game units after beating the story of the g

Some substantial changes have been made to the existing insectoid arsenal as well. Swarm Hosts are now significantly more mobile, likely as a result of Lurkers being in play and filling the Hosts’ former role. Their Locusts are now stronger can now spawn while the Host is in motion, and they can be upgraded to fly over terrain. Infestors have had the underused Neural Parasite removed in favor of Aggressive Mutation, which grants units in an area an additional 5 attack damage for 30 seconds. Corruptors can channel a la Void Ray, attacking a ground target and massive damage if a structure is targeted with their Caustic Spray ability. The ever-horrifying Nydus Worms are now invincible while unburrowing, making them a powerful tool for harassment.

In a game where troops can be killed permanently, it is both a gift and a curse that the soldiers level very slowly. On one hand, it can make the pain hurt less when a troop is killed and they aren’t insanely str

For instance, all the customization options are gender-neutral. The player can also color each piece of armor however they want. And let’s not forget the plethora of neon options to make each fighter stand out. Basically, players can make their units as flamboyant, macho or ridiculous as they w

The number of troop types and the number of abilities that come with them make every turn feel like a game of Risk sponsored by an energy drink. Using stronger weapons, equipment, and even special moves can lead to some chains of kills that are more satisfying than anything achievable in traditional Gears shoot

Wretches are a more volatile class that, while still weak in terms of hits they can take, they will rush friendly units and attack with melee attacks. Overwatch is best used against these enemies as they will never attack from far off and will always try to get as close to the player as possi

While that’s all well and good, the important, succulent bits of news-meat we were able to gleam focused on what makes StarCraft II the glorious game it is: competitive, intense, unforgiving multiplayer. Keep in mind that all of the multiplayer changes below are subject to change, and any of these could be removed a la Warhound from Heart of the Swarm.

Though it’s definitely not the shortest game out there, Gears Tactics takes, on average, around 25 hours to beat. While this is a good thing for some, it compromises the otherwise vibrant and tactical g

To maximize the effectiveness of heavies, it’s best to let them attack enemies from a stationary position. This lets them stack up Anchored, which increases their accuracy and damage. To maintain these stacks, the player should use Redeploy when a round ends so that their heavy can move three AP while maintaining Ancho

Lastly, it is important to know your enemy. There are four different classes of enemies in Tactics, and each one has their own abilities and stats. It is important to learn what classes look like and what they do before rushing into battle because some enemies are more dangerous than others. Knowing how to defeat a certain type of enemy before engaging can give the player an upper h