Let's not jump to conclusions...
I bought Gears of War PC as soon as it came out. I've been playing it non stop ever since. This title does not compare to Halo 2 Vista. Everything is tighter: graphics (customizable options, almost the same requirements as H2V - and GoW is a 360 title!), functionality (I haven't found any real problems with any part of the game - only the CD key thing, which isn't really a bug at all - it's just not out in the open), gameplay (no gamebreaking issues - period), AND the Live implementation.
I agree that they shouldn't be charging us to use all the features in a game we already purchased, but that's beside the point. I have a 360 and a pretty high-end PC, and I found the Gold subscription was a good purchase. Anyway, Gears uses it much better, and get this: there's ranked matchmaking and quickmatch, unranked quickmatch and a server browser. The server browser is available for free along with the unranked quickmatch.
Graphically, the game is stunning. Here are my specs: Intel Core 2 Duo E6420 @ 2.13 GHz, 2GB RAM, eVGA 8800GTS 320MB (got it for $200), Vista Home Basic 32bit. I can run the game with every option on high/enabled (except texture quality - which is on medium). The game uses DX10 and there's the option to turn it off, on, or on with antialiasing (4x). I run it at 1024x768, and unlike H2V, there are tons of options when it comes to resolution.
The game uses the Unreal Editor, so hopefully that clears things up. I watched a short clip showcasing the basic steps to making a map. It looks incredibly simple, and Epic released lots of documentation. The community isn't very big (that, or I haven't found the popular forums yet) but the users show potential.
In all, this game sets itself apart from Halo 2 Vista completely. I haven't even played Halo 3 since I picked up Gears. It even makes the Live service actually satisfying. It doesn't feel like I'm paying for useless features. I never played the game on the 360, but from what I've heard, the PC version is the defining version of the game.
Plus, there's online coop.
Bookmarks