Gears of War 2

To put it short, Gears of War 2 is a phenomenal game. The campaign is so varied and intense, multiplayer is fun and challenging, and the new horde mode is absolutely ridiculous, in a good way. 

There are numerous reviews you can read out there, but I will keep it short and simple: The Campaign is out of this world. It's predecessor, Gears 1, kept the combat mostly on the ground, with only a few vehicle missions. Gears 2 changes everything by throwing the player in a large rig right off the bat. Vehicle missions are plentiful, however, almost overused.

Gears 2 outdoes its predecessor in length, Gears 2 will take the average gamer about 11 hours or so to complete depending on difficulty. Once you reach Act 4, the game seems utterly endless as you keep going on and on and on, but this is a good thing.

Multiplayer is fun, and all the new maps (save for Ruins) are good. Some controller throwing frustrations still remain: Host advantage, chainsaw melee bullcrap, and other various forms that will have you scratching your head, or banging it against a table. Still, multiplayer is fun and involves a lot of teamwork and strategy. 

Gears of War 2 is a real solid game, certainly game of the year worthy. Next up: Left 4 Dead...time to take out some zombies!