Zigzagging through different perspectives is one of the tentpoles of storytelling in Gears of War 3, so it makes sense that the game’s campaign DLC would follow suit. But instead of hopscotching between various bros- and bro-ettes-in-arms on the COG side of things, RAAM’s Shadow gets fancy on us. You’ll spend part of your time playing as the grumpy-faced General RAAM and crew, mowing down humans at scripted switchpoints during the brief retelling of Zeta Squad’s attempt to evacuate Ilima City immediately after Emergence Day.
It’s a fairly involving tale, even if you couldn’t give a Wretch’s backside about Gears’ beefy backstory or who’s who among your Locust and COG quartets. On the human side, your job is to hightail it out of Ilima with as many survivors as possible before the impending swirl of COG-eating Kryll descend on the surface like carnivorous flies at a BBQ. As RAAM and his armored henchmen, you’re issued marching orders from Queen Myrrah (through voiceovers) to take out as many generic helmeted podunks as possible, using scary powers such as a pinpoint-accurate mini-Kryllstorm you can use to devour multiple COG in one go. While it doesn’t add much dimension to the lore — these bad guys do little more than grunt and follow orders — it’s a giggle to trample the good guys alongside three Locust co-op buddies outside of Gears 3’s Beast Mode. RAAM is the original supervillain badass of the series, and he doesn’t disappoint as a playable character.
Really, though, RAAM’s Shadow is meant mostly as a somber account of Zeta Squad’s lost mission. None of the team — baldy Barrick, softie Alicia Valera, or Gears vets Tai and Lt. Kim — handle any differently than their main-game counterparts, nor do they get any spiffy new weapons outside of a cool airstrike-style Hammer of Dawn. Still, their adventure packs a handful of moments unique to the DLC.
An abbreviated runtime (three to four hours per playthrough) and the absence of any new gameplay modes don’t diminish the joy of facing RAAM in a boss fight, or of leveling a building to crush a string of Seeders, or of defending against a horde of Reavers. It’s these Gears-specific thrills that make RAAM’s Shadow a short but worthy co-op–able history lesson told with guns and roadie runs.
PUBLISHER: Microsoft • DEVELOPER: Epic Games • ESRB: Mature • MULTIPLAYER: 2–4 in co-op over Xbox Live, 2 in splitscreen co-op • ACHIEVEMENTS: Character-driven • COST: 1,200 Microsoft Points ($15)
+ Decent gameplay variety provides some new twists not found in the main game.
+ Throwback prequel storyline offers a good glimpse at past characters.
– At $15, it’s begging for some added modes; some graphics (like characters’ faces) seem dulled.
? How does Barrick’s cigar last until the end of the entire DLC? Magic!
