Cover mechanics are like 3D Space Invaders

[J T]

I played Gears of War for the first time yesterday. I've heard people complain about cover mechanics before, and usually site Gears of War as either the biggest offender or the exception to the rule. It struck me as I was playing the game though that it became like a complex form of Space Invaders. You hide behind barriers for protection, bad guys approach, if you don't kill them before they get too close they become a problem. I wasn't enjoying Gears of War as an FPS because I couldn't move around freely, but once I started seeing it as 3D Space Invaders I began to enjoy it. Just a thought.

[noiseredux]

intriguing.

[dsheinem]

3D Space Invaders sucks:





Also, GOW is not a FPS For an FPS with good cover mechanics, give FEAR 3 a try.

[noiseredux]

3D Space Invaders sucks:

?

[Hatta]

FPS in general are like 3d versions of Robotron 2084.

[jfrost]

But Gears of Wars isn't an FPS, it's a TPS.

[The Last Horseman]

Gears of War is the only game that I've found where the cover mechanics are actually useful. Part of the reason I love it, its unique.

[Hatta]

But Gears of Wars isn't an FPS, it's a TPS.

That's even more like Robotron 2084, which has a third person perspective.

But really, using the perspective as a genre defining feature is kind of silly. For example, you can press F to toggle between first and third person viewpoints in Fallout 3. Obviously that doesn't change the genre.

[CRTGAMER]

I played Gears of War for the first time yesterday. I've heard people complain about cover mechanics before, and usually site Gears of War as either the biggest offender or the exception to the rule. It struck me as I was playing the game though that it became like a complex form of Space Invaders. You hide behind barriers for protection, bad guys approach, if you don't kill them before they get too close they become a problem. I wasn't enjoying Gears of War as an FPS because I couldn't move around freely, but once I started seeing it as 3D Space Invaders I began to enjoy it. Just a thought.

Comparison to older games
I find myself doing this all the time, enjoy rediscovering an older form of gaming or game play in a completely different game. Maybe part of the draw for me when I am playing a game?

@ J T - Good call, I never realized the similar concept of hiding behind a barrier in Gears of War vs Space invaders.

[jfrost]

But Gears of Wars isn't an FPS, it's a TPS.

That's even more like Robotron 2084, which has a third person perspective.

But really, using the perspective as a genre defining feature is kind of silly. For example, you can press F to toggle between first and third person viewpoints in Fallout 3. Obviously that doesn't change the genre.

Because the perspective doesn't change too much how the game is played. FPSs are classified like FPSs because the perspective changes a lot how the game is played. The limited view area is a very important aspect of their gameplay. By contrast third person games allow you to pretty much be a ninja.

Mirror's Edge and Mario are both platformers. They are also played very differently (partly) because of the perspective. Fallout isn't.