The original Gears of War marks a very specific time in Xbox Live history. It was the go-to shooter in 2006 prior to Halo 3 coming out and managed to carve out its own community in the process of reinventing third-person cover shooting. Like Halo before it, Gears felt like it took full advantage of the controller and dual analog input, and unlike many FPS games put an emphasis on skillful movement in addition to the ability to aim and shoot. Nobody could predict how much this new art of movement would separate Gears from other shooters until Gears of War 2 introduced the ability to cancel your movements midway through, giving rise to new strategies such as "wall bouncing."
The arrival of Gears of War 4 ushers in a new beginning for the series, now in the hands of developer The Coalition. I don't envy the task of having to update an already near-perfect formula without alienating the existing fan base. However, The Coalition has succeeded admirably in refining the existing mechanics of Gears without damaging the core gameplay loop.
The same excellent movement-based gameplay, ridiculous weapons, gory executions, crunchy headshot sounds, and everything you expect from a Gears game has returned. Small mechanical changes like the ability to grab an enemy from the other side of cover or instantly mantle over obstacles (and counter said moves if you're on the receiving end) make the already deep close quarters metagame and "gnasher dances" even more like a fighting game.
The versus multiplayer is as brutally unforgiving as always, but rewards those who dedicate time to improve. New game modes like Dodgeball (where you can respawn your fallen teammates by killing someone on the enemy team), Arms Race (reverse gun game), and Escalation (an esports-focused reinterpretation of king of the hill where the losing team of each round decides which weapon is placed on the map) add just enough of a twist on the staple modes you'd expect. Bot matches are there for beginners or if you don't want to face human opponents, while Horde has enough depth to be its own standalone game.
Whether it's playing co-op with a buddy, surviving waves of enemies in horde, or duking it out online against other players, Gears of War 4 is the best iteration yet in the series and still the reigning king of third-person shooters.