TORQUE BOW

Say what you will about the impossibly beefy character design - the art design in Gears of War is top-notch. The game world's mixture of futuristic military technology and decaying retro architecture is unforgettable. Shiny hoverbots laser their way through doors with peeling WWII-esque propaganda posters on them. A level with a rickety canal boat is followed by one with a sci-fi tank.

The weapon that best personifies this meeting of old and new is the torque bow. While it looks like a rusting medieval torture device, its explosive arrows - which bury themselves deep in their victim's flesh before sending that flesh in a thousand directions - are quite modern. Too bad it's so hard to use the damn thing...



Strategy: Charge then pop

Waiting for the torque bow's targeting line to slowly curve upwards until it is pointing directly at your foe is excruciating - and suicidal. Instead, take cover and begin charging the bow there. When it's ready - which you can tell by watching the animation of the weapon on your screen - jump up, aim the already straight line at your prey and release.

Then laugh as he realizes that he's got only two seconds before death, and there's absolutely nothing he can do about it. Who said the torque bow wasn't a torture device?