Gears of War 3

Me and my buddy actually co-oped our way through Gears 3's campaign in the first couple days after it came out, and it was a real blast. The Gears of War campaigns have always been great at scripted set-pieces and judicious use of super-powerful weapons, and the third is no exception -- I wouldn't say that this installment's more-fleshed-out story makes it a narrative masterpiece, but it does provide the impetus for a ton of really good, story-driven encounters.

Every combat scenario feels unique due to some excellent level design, and the difficulty pacing - which progressively ramps up both the amount and toughness of enemies - is nearly pitch-perfect. There are only two encounters which I would say stretched the limits of reasonable design (a mid-boss about halfway through the game, and the final boss, who both just had too much trouble dying). And the length of GoW 3's campaign is such that, without dragging on, I felt like it really sufficiently explored its gameplay potential.

I've read some people claim that the voice acting is lackluster, but that's simply not true. (Except for Ice-T, in that he sounds a lot like Ice-T.) Marcus puts the mission first, but his inner turmoil is clearly visible just below the surface; Dom's recovered from his emotional instability in the second game, but it's changed how he looks at the war; Anya, in the field and suited up, still lives to support the COGs with everything she's got. It may fall firmly into space-marine sci-fi stereotypes, with to-the-point lines and gruff deliveries, but almost everything in Gears 3 is presented exactly as you would expect if its world and characters were real.

Gears 3 doesn't push the genre, in the same way that the first Gears of War made snap-to-cover the Next Big Thing; but it refines the series' staples and mechanics to absolute perfection. As unlikely as it is that Microsoft would let such a popular franchise lay, this is going to be a tough act to follow.

Better than: Vanquish, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine
Not as good as: BioShock, Resident Evil 4
I'm not really into the multiplayer, myself: but it looks very impressive. I watched my buddy play a "Horde 2.0" round where you can purchase weapon upgrades and defenses with kill-points! Pretty neat.

Progress: Finished the campaign in Normal (co-op)