The Truth About the Lancer

[SoaNaDe]

Ok, the thread title is "The Truth About the Lancer" but, in all honesty "The Truth About Gears of War Gameplay" would probably fit this better.

**** WARNING ****

This thread is fairly long and will take a bit of time to read. If you don't want to put the time in to read it and post an intelligent reply, then I suggest you stop now!
__________________

Starting off; when GoW first released (back on Xbox 360) the first couple weeks of online multiplayer were full of Lancer fire. The Lancer was designed to be the primary weapon in Gears of War gameplay, but, upon the discovery of "wall-bouncing" the Lancer was, for the most part, put in the back of everyones minds as a last resort weapon. However, it was (in my opinion) suppose to be the other way around. The way I see it, Epic designed for the Lancer to be the primary weapon and the "Gnasher" (shotgun) to be only used when enemies closed in on your posistion and close quaters combat started. However, now that wall-bouncing has been popularized the Lancer is very hard to use before an enemy can get close enough to entirely dodge your bullets and finish you off with a barrage of shotgun shells.

Why was the Lancer given EVEN more power?

I believe Epic did this in a last ditch attempt to get people to use the Lancer more (which worked for awhile) so that the game (in my opinion) would be played the way it was designed to be played. But eventually, the wall-bouncing shotgun tactics were superior again.

**** THE FINAL WORLD ****

I made this thread to show people who constantly whine about other players being "Lancer noobs" and never using a "hard-to-use" weapon like the shotgun. FYI, the Lancer was designed to be the primary weapon so that players would actually USE the cover system instead of abusing it to jump around like idiots.

Thanks for letting me vent, now, what are your guys opinions on it?

[I eat Babies]

I like lancer.

[SoaNaDe]

I like lancer.

I do too, I find it interesting when everyone has a Lancer battle, it's really tactical.

[Taffer]

I'm pretty sure everyone is aware of what you are saying, but you have to understand that people like to complain; it's just what they do.

You could lay down the strongest argument in the world, but the second someone gets killed by a lancer they're going to scream about how unskillful it is.

[syrup1]

If there was no lag shotgun would not be nearly as popular as it is now in the multiplayer. Shotguns randomness gives players a good chance against host (that and if your better then host with shotgun) But if everyone used lancer host would have an even bigger advantage.

[< Profess >]

I don't think the OP is right about the Lancer being boosted to balance against the shotgun.

Wasn't the shotgun power boosted too?

[II Echo3z II]

I don't think the OP is right about the Lancer being boosted to balance against the shotgun.

Wasn't the shotgun power boosted too?

No the shotgun was not boosted at all. I think SoaNaDe was right. I think the lancer was boosted to encourage players to use it more. Why do you think Marcus holds a lancer on the front cover of the GoW box instead of a shotgun? And in every cutscene where he's holding a weapon, its the lancer? It is supposed to be the primary weapon of the game. Not the shotgun.

[< Profess >]

Well shotgun was boosted so you know, thats why the active is almost redundant on it.

I know Lancer was meant to be primary btw, gawd knows I've preached that enough.

[MASTER DAMAGE]

Unfortunately there's always going to be the little whining kids our there about using the lancer. I agree with the point you make the lancer was their baby for this game and I cant see them passing it up for second hand weapons.

[Teknix]

If you want the lancer to be the primary weapon of choice then make it worth using.What does the lancer do....it downs people and on host i downs them with a handful of bullets or less.Yes you can chainsaw them and risk being wide open for an easy kill but thats the limit of the weapon.

Now if epic was to make the lancer able to take off limbs or get headshots it would be "fun" to use.You can headshot with the pistol/boltok .I think they should patch it so the lancer is this devastating for gears 1 and let us have a final months with a nice twist.Because after november unless the sequel blows hardcore th first one will be obsolete.

[Sgt NiallR]

i popped a head with the lancer earlier.....
anywaay im sic of ppl saying that the chainsaw is unskillful, i mean come on! lets see you dodge endless amounts of shotgun fire!

N O O B S!

[SoaNaDe]

i popped a head with the lancer earlier.....
anywaay im sic of ppl saying that the chainsaw is unskillful, i mean come on! lets see you dodge endless amounts of shotgun fire!

N O O B S!

Unless you were kidding I should inform you it is impossible to get a headshot with the Lancer. As for dodging shotgun shells its pretty easy if you can wall-bounce. However, being able to dodge shots and send them back (with the Lancer) is a bit harder.

[< Profess >]

You can headshot downs with the lancer, when executing.

[SKULL1138]

The only kills i have never heard anyone complain over are Headshots with snipers and torque bows, because there is a community of people who believe this game is for those 2 weapons and only skilful players can use them.

They complain when you kill them with Shotgun (Bad connection/good connection), they complain when you lancer them (Lancer noob), they complain if you boom shot (Noob weapon), they complain if you frag or frag tag (That’s all you can do), they complain if you Melee them with a pistol (Handbagger).

Now is it true then that none of these weapons require skill, because I tend to think there are not many people who can actually use the Boom properly, you see people wasting both shots all the time, I most often get 2 kills when I get boom shot or at least 1, not always though as I have blown myself up a fair few times. The shotgun does take skill, but does I suppose depend on connection.

So if you are in a room where peoples shotguns have a better connection than you i.e. the lag means your shots are missing sometimes on their screen and they hit you clean every time, then you need to use another method, so when the host runs at you with shotgun out, it doesn’t take any skill to strafe backwards and take them down with lancer fire, I think it does. Even chain sawing (Properly, not stealing kills mid fight) takes some sneaky skills, as does frag tagging and lobbing frags into fights.

I hate getting active spammed with the sniper, but it’s in the game so I have to put up with it. There are many people I have played with that reckon when they are winning its skill and as soon as you kill them with anything, its either the games fault or because you are doing something socially unacceptable, like shooting them with a machine gun, the horror of it, people need to lighten up, this game works in a way that even a bad player can get a good kill on a good player, you cant win every fight...accept it people

People have turned this into a sniper game, and that’s not what it is. Many rooms you join (Player) people take out all weapons other than torques and snipers, because the other "weapons are noob cannons", bull!

I was playing with 6 friends and 2 randoms last night, 2 of my friends are excellent with torque and Sniper and as such I never sue them as much, they got a random guy who was also excellent with these weapons and 1 with host shotgun, (Superb connection, real big advantage), they set it up with only torques and Snipers and then would not change teams at all, so we simply could not compete, I was with 1 guys who was terrible, one (Friend) who plays rarely and as such sometimes just tries to chainsaw everyone for a laugh and a guys I don’t know who was ok with Shotty, but could not use the long range weapons I had to force them to swap teams because they loved just killing us off one by one until it was just me left and then ganging up on me, no joking about it, seriously enjoying this, I said at the time if you had kept standard weapons it would have given us a chance, basically there was either 2 with snipe and 1 with bow or vice versa and then the host hiding to shotgun us if we managed to get through all that, a pointless game.

My point is, that they don’t want Booms or HOD on the maps because it annoys them when they get killed by them, isn’t that the challenge though, If I have a boomer and you have a sniper, you need to be good enough to take me down before I take you down, not way everything towards the long range game because that makes sure you will get more kills. This is a common thing to see in player rooms, you enter and every weapon is a sniper rifle, fair enough, but make it a private match then?

The moral of this tale - don’t moan when you get killed, you got killed, because the other person was better than you in that specific situation, simple. (Excluding things like your character freezing on the spot, getting stuck on a wall, blowing up for no apparent reason while next to no one, happened to me once).

Chill, its the same in every game, people will kill you no matter how good you are, that’s how games work, and they are...just games

[CAPTAIN KAOSS]

that aint a proper headshot...thats an execution.

a headshot is when you see the circle with target logo come up.

[Goosell]

I played gears on release until my 360 broke down and then i played halo 3 and COD 4. I recenlty came back and its hard to get used to the lancer power now. Its a big adjustment, i get killed by lancer fire constantly because im simply not used to its power. IMO it has a little too much power especially on host. I used to fear host shotgun but now i fear host lancer more.

[CAPTAIN KAOSS]

lancer cant do **** if your in cover, move when they reload.

[II Donell II]

I prefer the pistol to the lancer long range. Wish it had more ammo though, although I guess pistols wern't designed to be used much.

[Mstenger404]

No the shotgun was not boosted at all. I think SoaNaDe was right. I think the lancer was boosted to encourage players to use it more. Why do you think Marcus holds a lancer on the front cover of the GoW box instead of a shotgun? And in every cutscene where he's holding a weapon, its the lancer? It is supposed to be the primary weapon of the game. Not the shotgun.

i know why! theres a friggin chainsaw on the gun, duh!

[Sgt NiallR]

Unless you were kidding I should inform you it is impossible to get a headshot with the Lancer. As for dodging shotgun shells its pretty easy if you can wall-bounce. However, being able to dodge shots and send them back (with the Lancer) is a bit harder.

sorry i didnt make myself clear:
LETS SEE YOU DODGE ENDLESS AMOUNTS OF SHOTGUN FIRE WHILE REVVING THE CHAINSAW!
N O O B S!

and the headshot was active while he was downed....

[DaveT]

I really dont think the lancer needed an power upgrade because now when a host uses it, it makes them unstoppable. I get in games all the time where the host will get active and down me in less then 1/4th of a clip. its stupid. Other then that I think the lancer is a good weapon.

Oh yeah and I really wish you could cut arms and legs off a stuff.

[AvatarofKhorne]

The Lancer needed a buff, but they overdid it.

[Sulfuric]

Client-Side Hit-Detection would make the lancer used much more in Gears 2...

[< Profess >]

Despite its own problems CSHD is the only way the Lancer is going to become effective.

And I mean Lancer > Shotgun.

[II Coffey II]

I prefer lancer now and I never host. Use it properly and its a good weapon even against shotgun. But people try to get close to people with the shotgun and its easy to do. The best tactic which me and my mates do, and I've done with people I don't know is, 2 people run in with shotguns(or a pistol) and the other 2 rain down lancer fire, even if the other team is all in the shotgun battle I can guarantee the team who are split into 2 will win in that situation.