We all love to jump on the hype train for the arrival of a hot new game, but Gears Tactics is a very different animal. Aside from viewing some early trailers, I approached final code with no expectations - I really didn't know what to expect at all. I went into this one almost completely 'unspoiled' then but suffice to say, I'm blown away by the quality of this game: both for its gameplay and technological design.
Gears Tactics is a turn-based squad tactics game made by Splash Damage and The Coalition, where you take control of up to four individual Gears troopers. The aim? To clear out Locust enemies, set-up defences and utilise special abilities and weapons to complete the mission at hand. In between missions you retreat back to your mobile base to equip new gear, including improved weapons and armour, and to upgrade your hero characters or surviving troops. It's a game that's one part X-Com and one part Dawn of War 2: you have a command unit, a Paladin-like brawler, troopers that excel at closer range and subterfuge, and of course, the requisite heavy weapons guy. It's a great squad tactics game, but what sets this one apart is its excellent triple-A presentation powered by one of the most potent engines in the business.
Much like Gears 5, Tactics has many cinematic sequences in between missions, showcasing a number of ultra high quality features, like lavishly detailed character models, great-looking bokeh depth of field, impressive facial animations and so much more. The triple-A graphical splendour is not just reserved for cutscenes, as the gameplay itself and environments are of a rather high quality, with rich textures, real-time shadows and dense geometry.