Gear Patrol | Spirit of Adventure, Passion for Gear

Gears of War 2

Locust Meets Lancer. Love at first sight.

GoW2 takes the successful gameplay formula of the first GoW title and turns everything up a notch. Or ten. For the record, more of Marcus Fenix and the Gears is a very good thing. Several multiplayer map expansions have offered wide range of locales to take the fight online.

Cost: $37

Left 4 Dead

More Zombie Slaying Pun Fun

Valve’s zombie shooter is fast, no-frills mayhem of the best kind. Left 4 Dead offers one of the best cooperative experiences ever seen on a game console, whether you are in the same room with your partners or over Xbox Live. Just treat your fellow survivors with goodwill; share the pills.

Cost: $30

The Orange Box

Valve Coughs Up an Incredible Value

Basically offering 4 games for the price of one, The Orange Box might be the best deal EVAR in a video game. Featuring the blockbuster title Half-Life 2, its first expansion pack, the great multiplayer shooter that is Team Fortress 2, and the beyond innovative experience of Portal, this single disc should definitely make your desert-island list. That is, if your desert island comes equipped with electric.

Cost: $19

Grand Theft Auto 4 (IV, if you prefer)

Coming to America, Cousin Niko Style

Not that we put much stock into game ratings, but GTA4 is well deserving of the many 10s it received. Take all the great things we’ve come to know and love from Rockstar’s edgy sandbox series, make them bigger and then give them an Eastern Euro accent, and you’ve got one of the top titles of this generation. It’s worth your time just cruise around and listen to the in-game radio stations. Of course, you’ll likely get into plenty of trouble along the way.

Cost: $30

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

War Steps Out of the Past and Into the Terrifying Present

This title just edged its younger bro, CoD5 in our list-making. We love both titles, but the crew at Infinity Ward that developed Modern Warfare, really know how to do it right. An engaging, present-day storyline and the introduction to current CoD multiplayer earned this game top honors. Just ask our own Patrick “Prestige” Tuttle. November’s release of Modern Warfare 2 is beyond highly anticipated. Nightvision googles, please.

Cost: $37

Honorable Mention/Xbox Live Arcade Pick: Shadow Complex

If They Mated: Metroid and Castlevania Edition

There are some real gems available for purchase through Microsoft’s vast Xbox Live Arcade collection. Titles like Geometry Wars, Hexic, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, and Catan come to mind. Others (who will remain nameless) espouse a religious devotion to Worms 2. Here, we’re endorsing one of the newest games to become available, the adventure-platformer Shadow Complex. Presented in a 2.5D perspective, the game is ridiculously deep and engaging for such an initial price. You won’t be disappointed.

Cost: $15

There you have it. Our picks for the 10 Best Xbox 360 games. Is it exhaustive? No, but then again it’s darn tough to narrow down our favorites to just ten. One thing is for sure: if you haven’t played one or more of the games on this list, you need to. Call in sick, drop a class, do whatever it takes. That, and use the comments below to tell us why we’re wrong or to add onto the list.

Also, be sure to look for your Gear Patrol editors on Xbox Live. We like to play the odd game or two as a break from strenuous gear testing. If you want a piece of this author, you’ll find me on Live as Doost. Now bring it!

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