With the old world essentially completely totalled, human and Locust alike now forage for survival in its blasted remains. This means that new killing tech mingles with outdated weaponry and make-shift bodge jobs as part of a very interesting, very'make-do-and-mend' arsenal. Here's the stuff you haven't seen before.
Multi-turret - This Savage Locust invention is one of the afore-mentioned bodge-jobs.To replacethe long-lost Troikas of old, the Locust have improvised by strapping multiple guns to a single turret. Any suitable weapon can be used, so expect to see variants using several Lancers, shotguns and Boomshots at a time. Personally, we want a Hammer of Dawn version.
Sawn-off shotgun - Two barrels, big damage. They'll tear a hole in a mountain at close range and have a really wide spread, making them great for when you're over-run in close quarters. But their slow reload time makes them a risk, and hopefully means they've been balanced well for multiplayer.
Digger Launcher - This is one of the Locust's new biomechanical devices, using a subterranean creature as part of its design, much like the way in which the Tickers were creatures turned into running landmines. It's a small burrowing grub attached to an explosive, fired out of a Boomer pistol. It eats its way through the ground, pops up under your feet, and blows you sky high. And it's hinted that it can be fired straight at an enemy as well. We'reexpecting a chewed-out chest followed immediately by a blown-out rib cage.
One-shot - This new, heavy weapon class COG sniper rifle will turn any enemy into a crimson cloud with a single round. We expect its power to be balanced out by weight and reload speed, and we're already in love with its bulbous, steampunk design.
Incendiary grenade - This is essentially a molotov cocktail attached to a flail handle. Light it up, send it wheeling through the air, watch it grill.
Pendulum Wars Lancer - The old model Lancer you saw in the Gears 3 trailer. Its bladed bayonet is weak compared to a chainsaw, its recoil is killer, but apparently it's stopping power is insane. Old or new. It's a tricky choice.
Siege Beast - Imagine a living trebuget. The Siege Beast is a massive subterranean creature strapped up with guns and wheels to make a tank, but its huge back legs have been turned into a catapult for launching incendiaries over long distances. We already know it's going to be trouble. But awesome if you get one of your own.
Silverback - A COG mech. Well in truth it's more like a cross between a mech and power-armour, being just bigger than man-sized. Still it comes equipped with twin chainguns, provides heavy protection, and can, it, seems, be used to smash through enemy defenses with savage melee attacks. Also, the guns are described as detachable, so we're hoping we can tear them off and carry them round, Lost Planet-style. Also also, it should be incredible for curb-stomping in.
Next up: Characters, story, and weirdness we've noticed
