Scariest Moments in Gears Of War
By John Jacques 25 October 2016
Game Rant takes a look at the scariest moments from the entire Gears of War franchise, digging up what we believe are the most memorable moments from Marcus Fenix.
Gears Of War is known as an adrenaline-filled, testosterone-heavy action series, but both Epic Games and The Coalition have combined to deliver some true moments of horror as Marcus Fenix and company have fought the Locust horde over the years. We take a look back through all of the previous Gears of War titles to find what we think are some of the most scary moments in the entire franchise, and we expect they’re some moments veterans of the property haven’t forgotten, either.
It goes without saying that this list contains spoilers from across the entire Gears of War franchise, so those who don’t want any spoilers should catch up before reading on!
Facing The First Berserker
Before gamers even get to experience the Berserker first hand, they hear her horrifying scream fill the halls. The first Gears of War introduces berserkers as uncontrollable, rage-filled husks of blind muscle, and they have remained one of the most horrifying creatures that Marcus Fenix has ever faced off against. Gamers witness the shadowy decapitation of a panicking COG soldier before they’re forced to step into the stone-plated deathbowl that houses the angry Locust, and for most gamers it was all downhill from there.
As Marcus and company soon find out, Berserkers have a penchant for both being immune to bullets and for blindly charging full-tilt at anyone who makes noise, knocking entire walls down in their rage. Using this knowledge, Marcus manages to lure the female brute outside to where the Hammer of Dawn could turn it into mulch, but when it’s hidden under a ceiling, the bersersker is the de facto top predator. We’d rather spend a night in Freddy’s Pizzeria than return to fight her again.
The New Hope Research Facility
As the fight wages on in Gears of War 2, Delta Squad finds itself scavenging for clues about the Lambent threat. This search leads them to the New Hope Research Facility, a classified, shadowy, and downright creepy abandoned building which had accepted early cases of lambency and the children of those who had been mutated by the disease. Instead of becoming a beacon of hope for the infected, scientists performed tests on them as the disease changed them into rabid, violent creatures. As the researchers began to uncover what lambency truly led to, the facility was shut down before the news could become public knowledge.
By the time Delta Squad arrives, the facility has been completely overrun by wretches, and the squad faces resistance from a cryptic AI. Eventually, Delta manages to hack into the building’s system, and that’s when things really start to fall apart: the mutated remnants of the poor remaining infected break out of their stasis tanks, quickly storming towards Marcus and Dom. The sires are undoubtedly one of the most off-putting creatures the Gears of War series throws at players, and many gamers were happy when Delta was finally able to escape from the horrifying laboratory and put it firmly in the rearview mirror of their centaur tank.
Watching General RAAM Kill Kim
When it comes to baddies, General RAAM is often the first one who comes to mind. The hulking Locust warlord rose through the ranks until he was General of the entire subterranean army, and spent the majority of his time terrorizing every human he could from both the video game, comic, and novel portions of the Gears franchise. Out of all of these events, however, the most memorable encounter is undoubtedly when he kills Lieutenant Minh Young Kim.
It’s not just the fact that it occurred that makes this event stand out, though – it’s how it happened. As Kim continues fighting on in one direction, gamers witness a slow and silent General RAAM walk up behind Kim with an almost casual air. The giant mole-man is almost directly behind the Lieutenant before he realizes, but by then it’s too late. As a voiceover from Queen Myrrah describes the bleak situation humanity finds itself in, Kim is picked up by General RAAM and impaled upon a serrated blade as Marcus looks on hopelessly. Delta is forced to retreat, leaving Kim bleed out at the General’s feet.
Perhaps because of his reputation as a horrifying fighter, General RAAM has since been added to the Killer Instinct fighting roster.
The Corpser Ambush
Epic Games had a penchant for making some truly horrifying creatures, so it was almost a given that gamers would find a gigantic spider-like enemy along their way through the first game. If there’s something scarier than watching the giant legs of a Corpser appear above you as the beast completes its ambush, we don’t know what it could possibly be.
In the first Gears of War, Delta has been deployed to plant a resonator-like device deep down in the imulsion mines, although they weren’t the first squad to accept such a task. As Marcus and Dominic make their way across an open space, the first corpser to ever directly engage the pair appears above them, its creeping legs illuminated by its plentiful orange eyes. As the fight commences, the corpser uses its many legs to shield itself, and gamers with a fear of spiders probably couldn’t be blamed for setting their Xbox on fire after surviving the corpser ambush.
Fighting Tickers In The Dark
On a whole, Tickers aren’t the scariest of enemies. They’re tiny, suicidal creatures and they always make a predictable direct line to enemies, and COG soldiers can kick them away before they unload their explosive cargo. However, at one point, Gears of War 2 upped the ante and forced players to face off against a horde of tickers in a dark tunnel, where the screeching Tickers could use the cover of darkness to appear swiftly and with devastating effect.
We assume most gamers don’t enjoy fighting most things in the dark, but proceeding through an abandoned underground road while things constantly explode around you has to be high up on the list of dark battles to avoid.
