Raam's Shadow was released on the 13th of December 2011 and puts you in Llima City, before the events of Gears of War 1, shortly after E-Day as the Locust Horde sweeps aside all human resistance.
What's in Raam's Shadow?
Raam's Shadow contains both the COG and the Locust perspective, on events within Llima city and the events that unfold there.
- The COG - Reuniting you with some old (younger looking) friends in the form of Tai Kaliso and Lt. Minh Young Kim, and introducing Michael Barrick from the Gears of War comics and a new lady-gear Alicia Velera to complete Zeta squad. You're currently tasked with evacuating civilians out of Llima City, before the Kryll (yay Kryll!) eat everything!
- The Locust - You are General Raam, and this DLC really puts you firmly in his wall smashing, car hurling boots. You have a swarm of Kryll at your disposal and (in our opinion) the most brutal Execution, we've yet done, and in the violent universe of Gears of War that's a decent Exectuion. As Raam, you lead a covert team (read: big stompy Maulers) under simple instructions from the Locust Queen Myrrah, Summon seeders, and fill the sky with black ink and Nemacyst and block out the sun, to allow the Kryll to attack with impunity, and ravage the city of Llima.
How does it play?
Raam's Shadow feels like all the good bits of Gears of War 1, but with all the tweaks and crisp visuals that Gears of War 3 gave us, along with the four player co-op and the new weaponry such as retro lancers and one shots (watch out Raam).Much of the gameplay is like GoW1, surrounded on all sides, in a urban environment leaving you fighting for your life and the next check point it's a refreshingly enjoyable experience. But then it mixes it up with really interesting Wretch and Ticker levels that will offer a challenge to anyone.
Raam's Shadow is around 3 hours in length and also offers an extremely atmospheric experience, that is only heightened by the inevitability of the outcome, we know that the city will die, right from the very beginning and watching Zelta squad battle their way through Llima, knowing how events will unfold in the later games add a real sense of tragedy to the proceedings.
Summary
3 hours of campaign play, additional multiplayer character & weapon skins as well as access to General Raam, the biggest baddest boy in Sera! A great atmospheric, story-based experience and one that no Gears fan should miss! Out now for 1200 Microsoft points, pick up your points, grab your DLC and enjoy totally new Gears of War 3 experience.
