Three Minor Suggestions

[Stagger Lee]

1) Fading HUD in multiplayer. Why don't we have this already? Seems like an oversight. It would also be nice to be able to turn off the gun silhouette permanently, leaving only the ammo meter/reload bar when reloading. Maybe also an option for changing the color of the HUD items/reticle.

2) Change all grenade alerts to general ones (as opposed to "FRAG!" or "SMOKE!"); remove the alert from the throwing character, allowing the player to communicate this alert through his headset if necessary. I think it's unlikely that an opponent would identify a grenade type (frag v. smoke) in flight, and I think that it's unlikely that an aggressor would alert his target of what he's throwing.

3) Independent sensitivity settings for zoomed mode and "external" mode. This may not be feasible, but it'd be nice to be able to slow down sniper aiming while still being able to turn tight corners while moving.

[Skynyrd Fan]

I like some of the ideas about the small changes that could be made, since i see a lot of threads listing ways to tweak the game, but id rather they first sort everything out (glitches, added multiplayer). Then i think they should go back and do some of these small changes.

[Zankou 666]

All those idea's are great, I like (2) the best. The element of surprise is fun, but it's just not there when someone yells "FRAG OUT!"

[CharacterM]

Only the second one is good.

The first one makes it less realistic, I like it how it is now. All the other games already have spinning weapons and such, just how it is now is good.

The last one is a bad idea. Because that would be unfair for the skilled snipers, now almost everybody can shoot then, also when for aiming you do faster it is easier then. No also not a good idea.

[Stagger Lee]

Only the second one is good.

The first one makes it less realistic, I like it how it is now. All the other games already have spinning weapons and such, just how it is now is good.

The last one is a bad idea. Because that would be unfair for the skilled snipers, now almost everybody can shoot then, also when for aiming you do faster it is easier then. No also not a good idea.

Fading HUD makes it less realistic? I don't see what you mean.

[CharacterM]

Oooh, sorry I misunderstand that. I thought he meant changing the colours of the weapons on the ground. No actually that HUD idea is ok.

[Stagger Lee]

Yeah!! bump

[TheLord Phoenix]

The fading hud is already an option... duh

[merciless tengo]

personally don't like any of those ideas, yeah if you want you can have a blank HUD but good luck when you try to chainsaw someone only to see you melee them with the shotgun.
the grenade calling makes no difference, in the heat of a firefight (crappy pun not intended) differentiatting the grenades and even telling where they are is next to impossible, and there is hardly a surprise when throwing grenades anyway, you hear the clink and you run.
as for the sniper idea WTF!!
but hey they might be brilliant ideas, there just not to my taste, I like it as it is now.

[Stagger Lee]

The fading hud is already an option... duh

Which doesn't work in multiplayer.

yeah if you want you can have a blank HUD but good luck when you try to chainsaw someone only to see you melee them with the shotgun.

I pay attention to what gun I have equipped.

the grenade calling makes no difference, in the heat of a firefight (crappy pun not intended) differentiatting the grenades and even telling where they are is next to impossible, and there is hardly a surprise when throwing grenades anyway, you hear the clink and you run.

No, it would make a difference. I'm not talking about firefights.

[Jumzie]

(2) is good.

A minor change i would like is...
Y'know how the camera view is the right of the character? Like the camera is on their right and the character is bottom left... i think we should be able to change that (camera on left, character bottom right) because i usually dont take cover when I'm hiding, enemies can still see me, I usually just stand normally, however sometimes i need to see to my left so it would be better if we could change camera view (like maybe clicking left stick)

[merciless tengo]

anyways, thats why grenades come in pairs, you now have a "box range" which is hard to escape from, unless you figure the right distance and time needed to get there, oh and you have, about 5 seconds, if they don't get blown up atleast they are shocked and then it's pumpshotty ownage
(now the execs. and admins of F.E.A.R will eat me for using their achievement name without consent noo!!!)

[SK Revel]

It would also be nice to be able to turn off the gun silhouette permanently, leaving only the ammo meter/reload bar when reloading. Maybe also an option for changing the color of the HUD items/reticle.

You want to be able to customize the weapon HUD? I suppose you'd like to be able to change the color of your Lancer when picking it up to? Or pick what kind of shoes your player has before starting a match?

All these ideas (serious or otherwise) have one thing in common, they're too minor and are not important enough to add. Fading HUD is fine, singleplayer has it so multi should have it too.

I pay attention to what gun I have equipped.

Everyone else doesn't always do. Epic doesn't have Stagger Lee as top priority on their lists, however no doubt you're not the only one who wants/likes your idea, but all those other players combined don't even make up a quarter of all GoW players. The majority shouldn't deal with change just because you think they should be paying closer attention.

No, it would make a difference. I'm not talking about firefights.

It would make people dive out of the way when it's a harmless smoke nade, or stand still and explode thinking it was a smoke nade, and even make players have to pay close attention to the shape of the nade whilst it flies in the air towards them so they can distinguish what type of nade it is. This doesn't promote being more tactical or even more careful, what it promotes is a major inconvenience in the long run and also raises the question why can't all the players be completely silent if they don't say warn about grenades? Maybe they should also shut up when they get a successful active reload, or seemingly stop breathing while they roadie run.

[Stagger Lee]

You want to be able to customize the weapon HUD? I suppose you'd like to be able to change the color of your Lancer when picking it up to? Or pick what kind of shoes your player has before starting a match?

No, I want to be able to turn the thing off. I realize you're just trying to be clever, but those things are really not analogous at all.

All these ideas (serious or otherwise) have one thing in common, they're too minor and are not important enough to add. Fading HUD is fine, singleplayer has it so multi should have it too.

Fixing a feature that does not work may be minor, but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be done. I don't think Epic needs your help prioritizing their work.

Everyone else doesn't always do.

They should, and the game should not be designed to accomodate those players who can't even remember what gun they're carrying. At least not to the exclusion of those of us bright enough to keep track without a giant blazing white icon on our screen at all times, and would prefer not to have it.

Epic doesn't have Stagger Lee as top priority on their lists, however no doubt you're not the only one who wants/likes your idea, but all those other players combined don't even make up a quarter of all GoW players.

Please cite the survey you've been able to analyze. I'd be interested in the figures.

The majority shouldn't deal with change just because you think they should be paying closer attention.

This fictional majority can keep their HUD on if they have trouble without it. Having the option available does not force anyone to "deal with change."

It would make people dive out of the way when it's a harmless smoke nade, or stand still and explode thinking it was a smoke nade, and even make players have to pay close attention to the shape of the nade whilst it flies in the air towards them so they can distinguish what type of nade it is.

Exactly. You'd have to really be on the ball. If Epic was really smooth, they'd add in objects like bottles and cans that players could throw to fake out the other team. Or allow players to yell "FRAG OUT" whenever they feel like it.

This doesn't promote being more tactical or even more careful, what it promotes is a major inconvenience in the long run and also raises the question why can't all the players be completely silent if they don't say warn about grenades? Maybe they should also shut up when they get a successful active reload, or seemingly stop breathing while they roadie run.

Haha, a "major inconvenience?" I agree, it's pretty "inconvenient" when you get blown up because you weren't paying attention.

[JackThaRip]

Mannnn i like their voice sound effects. Especially when the locust says,
"smoke...." it sounds really evil.
Plus I just think that throwing a smoke to make it seem like it's a frag would be kind of... unneccesary? I dont really know how to say it I guess i just wouldnt bother doing that

[SK Revel]

No, I want to be able to turn the thing off. I realize you're just trying to be clever, but those things are really not analogous at all.

They sure are. Agree to disagree. Not that important.

Fixing a feature that does not work may be minor, but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be done. I don't think Epic needs your help prioritizing their work.

Who's prioritizing? You're suggesting things to be added in GoW and I'm arguing against it. For Epic to make minor fixes isn't impossible or unlikely, I wouldn't be surprised if they added the fading HUD. But customize the HUD? That's a pipe dream, no matter how easy it would be for them to do that.

They should, and the game should not be designed to accomodate those players who can't even remember what gun they're carrying. At least not to the exclusion of those of us bright enough to keep track without a giant blazing white icon on our screen at all times, and would prefer not to have it.

The game should not be designed to accommodate those who think being able to remember what gun they're carrying makes them bright (even when the gun they're carrying is right there, visible on their character,) either. It should be designed for EVERYONE. And that's impossible to tend to absolutely everyone's needs, so the majority is the target. 'Giant blazzing white icon'? You're supposed to focus your vision at the center of the screen, not 5% of it at the upper right corner. Geez if you think that's big I'm sure you run around blind when you press on the d pad to change weapons.

Please cite the survey you've been able to analyze. I'd be interested in the figures.

As if you could prove me wrong or right. It's an educated guess, and it's based on my opinion of the average gamer. Think I'm wrong? Good for you, there's nothing you can do to prove it. Let me save you some keystrokes: I can't prove it either, I never said I have or could. It's an opinion.

This fictional majority can keep their HUD on if they have trouble without it. Having the option available does not force anyone to "deal with change."

You know I was talking about the absence of the weapon icon right? Not the HUD itself. Regardless it would be a stupid idea for it to be an option to take off the weapon icon or leave it. Ask yourself, would you be significantly better at GoW if the weapon icon was gone? Of course not, therefore there's no good reason for adding that option.

Exactly. You'd have to really be on the ball. If Epic was really smooth, they'd add in objects like bottles and cans that players could throw to fake out the other team. Or allow players to yell "FRAG OUT" whenever they feel like it.

Throw cans and bottles? That's ridiculous. As if Epic were that desperate to make the game more 'tactical' or whatever you think that would make the game more. If it isn't broken don't fix it.

Haha, a "major inconvenience?" I agree, it's pretty "inconvenient" when you get blown up because you weren't paying attention.

Yes major inconvenience. Doesn't look like you know what 'in the long run' means, though. People blow up because they don't pay attention in the game already, and that's not inconvenient, it's their fault. But being blown up because you weren't paying attention to what kind of nade it is because of a stupid feature in an update? That's inconvenient. The other small scenarios I listed also make it inconvenient, don't forget those. Again, if it isn't broken don't fix it. Oh and nice job completely ignoring the other valid point I made.

[Fox_Starwing]

I can tell if it was a smoke ar a frag tossed without the call on either side. If you see the grenade in flight, the smoke ones leave a big trail of gray smoke, I don't think that the frags do. Now, If I don't see the grenade and I hear "frag out!" from an enemy, I'll usually dive away from where I was standing. This has gotten me in trouble though. Once I dove where I thought was away from the grenade and rolled right on top of it. So it can be a double edged sword. Personally I love swinging one around and tossing it then hearing a locust yell "Grenaaade!" It's just one of those little things that add to the game.

[Stagger Lee]

The game should not be designed to accommodate those who think being able to remember what gun they're carrying makes them bright (even when the gun they're carrying is right there, visible on their character,) either.

I don't consider myself bright for being able to keep track of what weapon I'm carrying, but I do consider myself brighter than the dumbass who would forget if it weren't permanently branded on his screen.

It should be designed for EVERYONE. And that's impossible to tend to absolutely everyone's needs, so the majority is the target.

Once again, you imagine that you speak for a majority. Please reveal your survey data for us all to see.

'Giant blazzing white icon'?

That's not what I said. I spelled "blazing" correctly.

Ask yourself, would you be significantly better at GoW if the weapon icon was gone? Of course not, therefore there's no good reason for adding that option.

I'm no better at GoW when I have the gore on than when I have it off. Does that make the option stupid? The ability to remove the static images on the screen would benefit those of us whose displays are more sensitive to static images and susceptible to image retention. If I argued like you do, I'd claim that this group of people is actually a majority of Gears players.

blah blah blah...Oh and nice job completely ignoring the other valid point I made.

You haven't made a single valid point, actually. You pretend to represent a majority, while I propose what I term "minor suggestions": only one of us is being honest about our argument. You seem to believe that since they're minor they should be ignored: in effect, you pretend to prioritize Epic's to-do list. You imagine a correlation between my suggestions and frivolous adjustments that you've concocted to mock my points. Well, we can both do that: why don't characters yell out when they're launching rockets? It's inconvenient when I get blown up, and it's inconsistent that I get a warning when people throw frags at me and not when they launch rockets! Why don't characters yell "TRYING TO SNIPE" when they're getting a bead on me? It's inconvenient when I don't know that I should move! ...and so on.

I can tell if it was a smoke ar a frag tossed without the call on either side. If you see the grenade in flight, the smoke ones leave a big trail of gray smoke, I don't think that the frags do. Now, If I don't see the grenade and I hear "frag out!" from an enemy, I'll usually dive away from where I was standing. This has gotten me in trouble though. Once I dove where I thought was away from the grenade and rolled right on top of it. So it can be a double edged sword. Personally I love swinging one around and tossing it then hearing a locust yell "Grenaaade!" It's just one of those little things that add to the game.

THESE are decent counter-arguments. I still feel that the exclamations defy realism, and that "flavor" is really the only justification for the sound clips anyway. They don't yell out "FRAG" for their opponent's sake (to save him the "inconvenience" of having to wonder what kind of object is being hurled at him), no matter what that guy thinks.

[SK Revel]

I don't consider myself bright for being able to keep track of what weapon I'm carrying, but I do consider myself brighter than the dumbass who would forget if it weren't permanently branded on his screen.

Once again, you imagine that you speak for a majority. Please reveal your survey data for us all to see.

That's not what I said. I spelled "blazing" correctly.

Typical, highlight certain parts of what I say and ignore the parts where I explain myself.

"He misspelled blazing! There's my chance to avoid acknowledging everything else he said about that particular argument!"

I'm no better at GoW when I have the gore on than when I have it off. Does that make the option stupid? The ability to remove the static images on the screen would benefit those of us whose displays are more sensitive to static images and susceptible to image retention. If I argued like you do, I'd claim that this group of people is actually a majority of Gears players.

The gore option came with the game, plus, it has a good reason for being there in the first place. Unless your saying you want these suggestions of yours to be added in GoW2, in which case you should have mentioned in the original post, it's stupid to add something so small and unnecessary to Gears of War in an update.

You seem to believe that since they're minor they should be ignored: in effect, you pretend to prioritize Epic's to-do list. You imagine a correlation between my suggestions and frivolous adjustments that you've concocted to mock my points. Well, we can both do that: why don't characters yell out when they're launching rockets? It's inconvenient when I get blown up, and it's inconsistent that I get a warning when people throw frags at me and not when they launch rockets! Why don't characters yell "TRYING TO SNIPE" when they're getting a bead on me? It's inconvenient when I don't know that I should move! ...and so on.

I believe they're unimportant and shouldn't be considered. Why don't they? Because you get a warning when it shows you when the weapon is picked up. It's part of the game and that's how it was made. Look up prioritize. Then consider that you think your suggestions should be on the list, where as I think they shouldn't be. Am I saying so and so is more important than your ideas and therefore should be on top of Epic's list? No, I'm not.

Besides, what difference does it make if your character doesn't yell what kind of grenade they're throwing if you just hear the enemy yell 'Incoming frag!'

[Jumzie]

I think the tossing bottles and cans sounds pretty stupid, as well as randomly calling "FRAG OUT" coz then ur teammates will think so too (well it wouldn't matter so much in No-FF but yeah in FF)

[merciless tengo]

Please, GoW is not, never has been and I pray to god, never will be a tactical shooter, so throwing bottles would be out of place.
with your Ideas coupled together certain firefights would become next to impossible, for instance, you run to pick up some Bolo grenades, you don't pick them up due to lag or someone else picking them up a split second before you, you don't have time to look at the grenades in your hand due to a party of enemies advancing towards you, or you are already under fire, the entire situation is nethertheless confusing, you throw your grenade only to find your enemies are basking in smoke and you get shot, chances are you didn't run away because you expected them to die/get shocked by the grenades at which point you would blast them with the shotgun, you had no "Frag out!" confirmation. this example may seem far-fetched to many of you but it is still possible.
The icon is not all that big, and who can really tell when a grenade is behind them and get away before being blown up or atleast shocked, when all you have is "Frag out!" for a warning.
once again none of these solutions are major enough to be included and they are infact a Hinderance.
and per your regards on the majoritys on this Debate, I am pretty sure the majority lies in the "these Ideas Aren't all that" side from what I have seen, the majority of bashers have only Appeared after someone (namely me I think) had come out and said "I don't think those Ideas are very good" so perhaps people were being polite beforehand as to not hurt your feelings, but now it has been said then can give their opinion, or is may just be a complete coincidence And I am A conspirical nut.
In short, your Ideas are nice, but they don't really work, would would be the point of a fading HUD it make no hinderance.
And In NO way have I meant to insult you in this post, If I have, I appologise

now that's Intelligent. So I don't want any "your trying to be smart but you're not, you cretin" style comments as a reply to this post, as I have tried to make my post intelligent to avoid such things (and to please you stagger lee), perhaps next time, I will speak normally or Dumb-down my post.

[Stagger Lee]

My suggestions are minor ones, as I noted in my topic heading. The only thing I'm really attached to is some kind of working fading HUD; the other two are just ideas. The miscellaneous hurlable objects and random "FRAG OUT" ideas were not serious suggestions. I think the alerts that the other team can hear are a little silly, but they don't hurt the game as they are.

If there is any kind of majority to be consulted on this, it's going to be comprised solely of players who 1) frequent the forums and 2) care about a specific topic enough to weigh in. Whether this group represents a majority of Gears players is impossible to prove and a dishonest claim. It doesn't matter much for my minor ideas, but keep that in mind when you fling around the putative opinion of a vague (if not totally fictitious) majority.

[JackThaRip]

I think that it's interesting how in depth we can go on the noise characters make when a frag is thrown.

hey i like the bottles idea

[KLNTIME]

One rather simple change I would like to see also is for the longshot. (No Im not ripping on the longshot). I would like to see that if a sniper is engaged or being hit (say by lancer or shotgun hits even if minor as long as he is taking damage) he is unable to us the "zoom or scope" for a head shot. He can still aim but if damage is being taken, it would force him back to the regular aim function to revaluate or get in a good cover position. Just think it adds a little more aspect of what I believe the game was intended as not your normal run and gun shooter. Otherwise I think the Longshot is fine the way it is power wise etc. Just another opinion that I would think wouldnt take too much to incorporate into a patch and help the game be a little more team oriented, add a little more balance without crippling the longshot, and furthur define the game as the developers intended it to be.

[TheLa]

All those idea's are great, I like (2) the best. The element of surprise is fun, but it's just not there when someone yells "FRAG OUT!"

I think the "Frag Out" sound should be heard from your headset and only allies could hear it.

[Budmaster11]

Maby you should conduct a poll thread on whether people want/like fading huds, or like them the way the are. Personally I like them un-fading.

Throwing bottles? What is this splinter cell? Don't try to make this game something it isn't.

I don't understand the problem with the weapon icon. Far Cry has it, Halo 1 and 2 have it, Battlefield has it, battle front has it. Pretty much any game with weapons has that indicator I think it is fine it hasn't or never has bugged me. And if you think that little indictator blocks your view then have you ever rodie ran? It blocks the entire left side of your screen (Although I do like this because it adds more to the tactical, you can kill a rodie runner without him seeing you.)

I like the things the people yell out with grenades. Should they also get rid of the clank they make? Because it is too obviouse if it a smoke grenade (They tend to make a lot of smoke, and the frags beep) It really won't change much of anything.

All of your ideas are things that would just waste space on my Hard drive.

[UndeRz]

I think sensitivity is a good idea...maybe a number though...like...from 1...going to 10...so you could choose like 1.5 or something...Similar to counter-strike.I play it online...I find the sensitivity on Gears of War annoying sometimes...Like zooming in with the longshot and you just follow the enemy when he is running and it cant catch up with him.Like maybe a zoom_sensitivity_ratio or something?

[Stagger Lee]

I don't think the weapon icon blocks my view. It creates, for some reason, the only issue I have with image retention on my TV. Nothing else lingers like that stupid blob.

That's really beside the point, though, because 1) a fading HUD is already in the game, it just doesn't work in multiplayer, and 2) even if Epic were to implement my whole paragraph of HUD ideas, they would all be optional.

[Black Asgard]

Id personally like the fading HUD, and even a customizable HUD. And I want faster scope movements. I think its too slow. Maybe flicking the stick quickly could make it move faster or something.

[Full_Monty]

What the O.P is trying to say is that solid white objects, displayed on Plasma - and yes CRT screens for long periods of time cause aging of those pixels in relation to those pixels around them.....If this is occuring for hours on end on a daily basis, can lead go from image retention (curable by watching other content - static noise overnight , DVD screen wipe etc, To irreversable screen burn.

This is called Burn in, and is fairly rare with the latest generations of plasmas. But still exists. For those of us who own Plasma tv's and use them for watching movies, playing games etc...(i.e Living rooms) this is a real concern and unnaceptable from the game developers to have overlooked this.

As a multimedia interface designer, I avoid designing static elements as solid white, and often use some opacity in large white static objects. This is common knowlegde also amonst our video editing staff, as it has been an issue for decades even with CRT sets...

The case of image retention and burnin caused by the NON FADING HUD in Gears Multiplayer is compounded by the fact that most enviornments are dark, so the background areas surrounding the HUD arent being lit in comparison to the hud...making burn more noticable...not to mention the black areas around the HUD weapon Icon.

• There is a simple fix EPIC...allow HUD opacity to be set via the user...allow it to be set to partially see through - 50% opacity or whatever the user would like.....Color changes arent really required, just allow the HUD opacity to be lowered as an "option" IE for all those who dont have a plasma tv leave it as solid white.


Gamers who use plasma TV sets ARE NOT a minority, im sure Microsofts target audience is the average home living room environment....how many Living rooms across the world have Plasma TV sets, and own a game console? millions....

I too own an LCD computer monitor the Beq 24" 1080p...but i'd much rather play in the comfort of my living room sofa, with surround sound and a large format screen...

This is how Gears is meant to be played, after all its a console game and not a PC game...If i wanted to sit at a desk inches from a monitor id play a P.C game...

fear of damaging my Plasma has prevented me from playing it on many occasions whilst I wait for the image retention to dissapear...



My TV is professionally calibrated, I use Low contrast, brightness etc...this is a real world concern for many people, and its an easy fix...

Epic I ask you to address this issue in your next update so that I can play gears as much as Id like to.

My solution for now is to view in zoom mode on the plasma, which vertically streches the image slightly, My pioneer 436 plasma allows me to also move the image up / down / left / right...I move the image up so that only the reload bar is visible for a short time to allow active reloads...I dont howver get to see my ammo count...

[crackalac87]

You want to be able to customize the weapon HUD? I suppose you'd like to be able to change the color of your Lancer when picking it up to? Or pick what kind of shoes your player has before starting a match?

All these ideas (serious or otherwise) have one thing in common, they're too minor and are not important enough to add. Fading HUD is fine, singleplayer has it so multi should have it too.


Everyone else doesn't always do. Epic doesn't have Stagger Lee as top priority on their lists, however no doubt you're not the only one who wants/likes your idea, but all those other players combined don't even make up a quarter of all GoW players. The majority shouldn't deal with change just because you think they should be paying closer attention.

It would make people dive out of the way when it's a harmless smoke nade, or stand still and explode thinking it was a smoke nade, and even make players have to pay close attention to the shape of the nade whilst it flies in the air towards them so they can distinguish what type of nade it is. This doesn't promote being more tactical or even more careful, what it promotes is a major inconvenience in the long run and also raises the question why can't all the players be completely silent if they don't say warn about grenades? Maybe they should also shut up when they get a successful active reload, or seemingly stop breathing while they roadie run.

are u serious?


yes it would be a lot better if i couldnt tell when my oponent jammed his gun/got an active reload/threw a frag. why would i announce to the guy im about to throw a frag to...hey here comes a grenade dude!

[Verdant Abyss]

I agree with removing the "Frag out!" whenever someone throws a grenade; it completely destroys the idea of stealth. If I was in a battlefield with a grenade I wouldn't scream "FRAG!!!" when I threw my grenade.