Now that the second title fix has come for Gears of War 2, a lot of people are just getting to grips with the various multiplayer modes, simply because they haven’t been able to get past the matchmaking phase before. My favourite has to be the Horde Mode. No smack talk, no opposing team. Just working together, a la Nacht der Untoten, or Left 4 Dead, against wave after wave of steadily more resilient, accurate and powerful Locust. So, here is another set of tips, this time to survive in Gears of War 2.
- Choose your maps carefully. Not all maps play into your hands in Horde. Examples such as Pavilion and Day One are more suited to Versus multiplayer, rather than Co-op multiplayer. Security (for the laser-fence), River (for the two houses that can be booby-trapped, and overlook each other for opportunities to give cover fire), and Blood Drive (for the ability to overlook all the Horde spawn areas from almost any outside spot) are my favourites, because they play into my hands on the harder waves.
- Pick the Hammerburst if you can handle it. As much as we all remember the Lancer being the go-to weapon in Gears of War, the sequel has a better weapon available at spawn; the Hammerburst. It’s the weapon that is dropped by non-specialised Drones, and has a single fire functionality, but with increased power. The clip is ~17 rounds, but that’s more than enough to take down a Drone, Sniper or Bolter.
- Get the Revolver. The Revolver is the most powerful pistol in the game at power-per-shot, and it can lay waste (in the earlier waves) to Wretches with one bullet, Drones, Snipers and Bolters with two bullets, and a Butcher, Flame Boomer or normal Boomer in five or six, dependant on where they hit. Active Reload is a must for this weapon, simply because it takes too long to reload otherwise, and since the clip is so small, you’ll be doing it often.
- Know where the Ammo is. This is pretty standard, but I still hear people complaining about running out of ammunition. Remember that apart from the Hammer of Dawn and the Flamethrower, all weapon ammunition is available in the standard boxes (Medium or Large sizes). Also, any weapon that a Locust drops will have more ammo in it than the amount you will get for a single weapon from the Ammo boxes (apart from the Lancer and Hammerburst)
- Take your Time. Horde is all about survival, not about dying and taking as many of them as you can with you. If they’re out of range, don’t rush in. Try and find extra Ammo, or tag a grenade to a wall that you know they will go past. Preparing for the Locust coming by, especially on maps like Day One where the heavier weapons are either blocked by fencing, or are too far away to do any damage, will mean you have a lot less coming in at close range for a cover-to-cover firefight.
- Reload and Replenish at the near-end of a Wave. When the Horde count comes up (when there are less than six Locust alive and waiting to spawn), then is the time to load up on dropped Ammo and weapons. Make sure all your weapons have a full clip, and make sure you’re not low on Ammo for a weapon you’re not currently using.
- Don’t assume Sires are dead. Sires get up after falling down. NEVER assume that just because they fell down that they are dead. Look at the bottom left to see if you killed it, or put your crosshairs over it. If it’s red, shoot it or smack it about some more. Dismemberment isn’t a guaranteed death, either, as they will often come back at you with an arm missing.
- If you’ve got no enemy to yourself, help out another Gear. I see enough people going ‘YOU STOLE MY KILL!!!!!111one’ to warrant me to smash my head against the wall several times, but remember that this is a game of survival, and once that emblem starts to appear on your screen, it’s not that long until you’re downed. I’ve occasionally stood in front of a teammate with my shield up to lower my head enough to allow him to fire, while all the Locust bullets ricochet off the shield and I’m firing my pistol. It’s very effect at stopping bullets, and means that if I fall, said teammate can rush forward and pick me up to start again.
- Don’t go off on your own once the later waves start. After about wave 20, you’ll want to start sticking together until you see the Horde count. After level twenty, they are twice as accurate and twice as strong, meaning that you could absorb up to four times the damage from them as you normally would. Keep together, keep reviving, and don’t hog all the Ammo.
- Shields are a Gear’s best friend. Shields are dropped by Maulers only, but have a spawning spot on a few maps. They can be used as moveable walls, or they can effectively render you invulnerable to everything from the direction that the shield is raised in, apart from flames and the Mauler’s weapon. If you go on your own with this, make sure you know what’s behind you, because you have to aim your weapon to raise the shield, and that makes your field of vision much smaller. Also, these are excellent when becoming a distraction while your teammates lay the fire down, so long as you can make sure none of them get behind you. If you do use them as a wall, make sure to pick them up again at the end of a wave, as they can disappear if left in the ground for too many waves.
Also, one final note: If you can get into a private match for Horde, do it. Public matches don’t have the same sense of teamwork as you and a few friends, and you will more often than not have headsets, so you have that dimension of communication as well. Remember these tips, and you’ll get at least half way there with a good team. The rest depends on skill and thinking ahead.
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