In only eight short months, March 2013, the most important piece of the Gears of War puzzle will be in stores. Gears of War: Judgement is a gutsy move in the right direction, taking a well known franchise and switching up the gameplay that set the game apart in first place. Epic Games is positioning itsself as the Cold Stone of the gaming industry, adding a little People Can Fly (BulletStorm) into the already delicious Epic/Microsoft mixture to shake up the franchise.

This is such a good decision by Epic Games, one that I wish other companies had the balls to make. Gears of War: Judgement with this new People Can Fly infusion promises to be a departure from the stop and pop cover driven gameplay that the Gears games are known for. After three games, switching to the People Can Fly run and gun style is exactly what the franchise needs to stay fresh and keep the gears moving forward.

Continuing their tradition of game mode additions with each new title Gears of War: Judgement packs OverRun. Gears 2 introduced Horde mode, Gears 3 brought us Beast mode, and Gears of War: Judgement combines the two into one competitive game type. Teams take turns playing as the COG defenders and the Locust attackers with a generator as the objective. Distinct classes with special abilities adds depth and strategy, keeping OverRun from being just another twist on One Flag or One Bomb.