Epic's UT3 might sport 360/PC interplay, screenshots, more

What's crazy here is that Epic is considering allowing interplay between 360 and PC owners. Based on a quote from UT3's lead developer, Jeff Morris, it's not as hard as we think:

"If you’re into graphics, the Xbox can deliver just like the PC can, and
multiplayer is so ubiquitous now that you’re able to get that same experience.
If you’re about good games, there’s no contest between the two systems. They’re
all giving you the same experience. "

With phenomenal looking titles comeing like Bioshock, Mass Effect, Halo 3, the inevitable Gears of War 2, and now Unreal Tournament 3, I look to be perfectly encamped in the 360 camp for a long time to come. PS3 can kiss my plasma rifle. Look at these courtesy Team Xbox:

Note: the PC release date is "TBA 2007." I anticipate the 360 port, since that's where most of Epic's money will be made, will be soonafter.

Gayest Video Game Trash Talk

I would have to say I have heard some pretty gay trash talk from my years of playing video-games. Most of the dumb sayings I am about to list stem from my days of playing Halo 2. All-be-it these aren't the dumbest cutdowns I have heard, just the most frequently used.

-thats how I roll.
-no scope bitch
-noob or noobie
-of course the one I hate the worst, screaming F**k you at the top of their lungs then threatening to kick my ass. (Which I respond,"OK hardass, you gonna reach through the headset and strangle me?; this doesnt help the situation).

The one thing I love in Halo 2 is when their team barely wins and they talk uber shit, then when you meet the same team agian and win, everyone gets real quite.

Also hate when you beat someone in deathmatch and they challenge you to one on one to save face. I would accept not wanting to back down from a challenge, then when I joined there game they had some random gay weapon settings. Pretty frustrating.

Ubisoft hits us with five new maps and two new gamemodes in the upcoming Player's Pack Red Edition.

"Hey you, VIP. Come with us or die." That was IGN's caption for the above photo detailing the soon-to-be-released update to Rainbow Six: Las Vegas. The expansion includes two new game types and five new maps. The first new gametype, Assassination, features a scenario where a member of the defense team is randomly picked as the "VIP." As the above photo indicates, he is literally handed a gun and told to follow the escort team to the extraction point. Of course, the purpose of the Assault team is to attack and kill the VIP and defenders.

The second new game type is like some of our old favorites, "Battlefield", where team fight for control of a number of "radar stations" positioned around the map. Some of you may not like this game, but some of us do. These additions look like they're going to lengthen out the life of this game significantly. Some of you should consider getting the damn game.

Halo 3 User Interface features "A-Hole" Button

Here is an excerpt from the Bungie Weekly Update:

Multiplayer UI is coming along beautifully. We’re meeting today about some manual stuff, and honestly one of the big problems with making the manual this time around will be fitting everything in. There are so many options that explaining them all will be a tough thing to compress into a little manual. Luckily the UI itself is incredibly self-explanatory – like the new “A-Hole Button” as Colm Nelson jokingly describes it.

Anyone who’s played MP on Xbox Live knows the following is true: Teenagers, plus anonymity, plus microphone = idiot. Xbox Live already gives you powerful tools to mute, well, tools on a case by case basis. The “A-Hole Button” in Halo 3 lets you exact instant, silent vengeance. These kind of vocal buttmunches, as it turns out, are exactly as fun to play against as normal people, as long as you can’t hear them. So now, you simply press a button (back button, for the moment anyway) and up comes the score list with everyone’s tag on it. The right stick lets you highlight the miscreant and you can then instantly mute them for the rest of the game. These morons continue smacktalking anyway because they can’t help themselves, but if you don’t have to listen to it, you can simply enjoy killing them over and over again, knowing that as their Ritalin wears off and their frustration builds, it’s less and less fun for them. Aaaah. So satisfying.

Any muted player you have selected in your Xbox Live account overrides Halo 3’s new system, but that should actually enhance the choice of maroons you’re editing out of your gameplay. Best of all, it means fewer wasted or frustrating gameplay sessions. We’re doing our best to come up with lots of smart solutions for stuff like this, but honestly, we can’t be parents to some of these poltroons. We’re much more concerned with giving you guys the tools you need to silence them.

I for one applaud this new ability to mute the occasional idiot! Nothing more frustrating than having to stop in the middle of a match and fumble around to mute some random Jerk. This should help speed things up so that you can continue to pwn their pre-pubescent a$$.

Unbelievable Gears No Scope Video

I was on the Gears forums from xbox.com and this thread I found very interesting http://forums.xbox.com/10208747/ShowPost.aspx since Shade and BC are pwning us all on a regular basis with the Sniper rifle. I wanted to see how it is done. This guy posted his video montage of all his best no scopes supposedly all off host.... Let me tell you this guy is good. I have a new respect for the sniper now. I might even have to start racing some of you guys to go get it as I usually just go for something else. Oh how I enjoy this game.

I think Army is completely spot on with his concerns about Halo 3 and the beta. It better blow my mind or I will just be killing time playing H3 waiting for Gears 2. And I really can't believe I just said that as I am a huge fanboy of the Halo series.

end transmission

Why sumitting your articles to Digg & Del.icio.us is important

From now on , anytime you post an article on our blog it would be great if you would submit your article to Digg and Del.icio.us. I have saved everyone a step by adding the links to both sites at the end (bottom) of each article. All you have to do is sign up for a account to each of the websites which is non evasive and takes only a few minutes.

Digg is self explanatory when it comes to submitting articles but if everyone has an account that means we can vote for the article if the article has already been submitted. This feature is cool because if you get allot if Diggs (votes) your article has a chance to go viral and bring some serious traffic to our site. Here is an example of an article I submitted a few days ago: http://digg.com/gaming_news/WTF_New_Black_Xbox_360

As for Del.icio.us all you need to do to submit your article is write a brief description of the article by simple copying the first sentence or two of your post. Then you need to add tags or keywords so that users can find your article while searching. Please note when you add a keyword:

• Don't use commas to separate keywords...only use spaces.
• Don't use spaces within Keyword phrases

Here is an example:

• Wrong way - halo, halo 3, halo tips
• Correct Way: halo halo3 halotips
• Click here for a Del.icio.us example

I know it looks kind of weird but that is what they require. By doing this we will get more people visiting our site and acquire more people linking back to us which will help us achieve higher search engine rankings.

According to our Google Analytics (tracking software) account as of Monday Feb 5 - Sunday Feb 11, 2007 we've:

• 524 Visits
• 687 Pageviews
• 37.6% are from Digg
• 35.31% are from forums.xbox.com
• 13.3% are from Google
• 9.35% are from www2.blogger.com
• Rest are from us directly going to our blog

Hope this help. If you have any questions just add your comment to this post.

Editorial: Why the Halo3 Beta is a bad idea

I'm starting to get a bad vibe about the upcoming Beta for Halo 3. No, it's not because I'm jealous for not getting in, but rather because I'm looking at the pics and videos that have been release so far and I have to ask, "Is that it?" So far all the leaked gameplay looks no better than a polished up, 720p version of Halo 2.

Other than simply having a magic name that will drive fanboys nuts, Halo 3 despite the monster guerrilla ad campaign has yet to show me anything that makes me go "holy crap!" Case in point: The Monday Night Football commercial. We all watched it and we were pumped, only the next morning we were a little letdown when we found out the whole thing was CGI'd and acted out by Hollywood. The folks at Bungie went so far as to add that nothing in the commercial represented actual gameplay. Major letdown.

This leads me back to why the Beta could be a bad idea: If this thing does not represent a quantum leap over Halo 2 in terms of graphics and gameplay, those of us not participating in it will hear about it. With over 100,000 estimated participants in the Beta, all the glitches and faults are going to get aired out in forums and blogs worldwide. Regardless of Bungie's actions to fix everyone's complaints, this is going to take a lot of the shine off Microsoft's most prominant Xbox franchise. God forbid that word sneaks out from the hard core gamers that this thing sucks.

On the other hand, if it rules, then it could build a wave of hype that would probably crush all the competition through the summer and into the fall. I really hope they blow my mind, I really do, but I'm afraid that the end product is not going to be so revolutionary and that in the end, we'll all be eagerly anticipating a 2008 Gears of War 2.

That is all.

WTF...New Black Xbox 360?

Could this be the Xbox Coolbreeze has been holding out for? This source is not confirmed but you gotta admit the new black color looks sweet. And just like we've talked about before it is rumored to have a 120 gig hard drive, black controllers and HDMI connections and cost around $580.

OK guys I say we all pitch in and buy a strink-wrap machine so we can take back our pale outdated 360's...who's in?

Crackdown Halo 3 Beta Images Leaked

Thanks to a little reasearch online we now know what to expect from the Halo 3 Beta invite that comes with your purchase of Crackdown this month. Crackdown will release on Feb 20 and if you buy a specialy marked "Halo 3" game, you’ll receive an entry into the beta his Spring.

Here are some pictures that leaked:






I bet everyone is crossing their fingers hoping Crachdown doesn't suck. I bet this game sells out fast...at least the ones with Halo 3 beta invite!

Wanna know why I bought a PS3?

Ok...Ok...it's been awhile since I lasted posted anything. Well allots happened since then; vacation...business...new PS3. Yep that's right I got a PS3 and I wanted to share my first hand experience with everyone.

The main reason I got the PS3 was for the blue-ray player @ $599 and considering most blue-ray players average around $1,000 I figured I got a steal. The blue-ray player is awesome; it loads fast, looks great, hdmi connections, and I can watch Disney & Sony titles that HD DVD doesn't have.

I bought Sony's answer to Gears of War, Resistance: Fall of Man. I heard from many highly respected game magazines that it was rated a 9.5 and in most cases tied with GOW. Well they were way off! Don't get me wrong it's a great game that plays well and it reminds of me of Call of Duty 3 + Prey + Far Cry all mixed together. It looks pretty damn good for a first gen title but the controls play like a newbie FPS arcade; they may as well have put an auto aim on the damn game! In my opinion it's really fun like GOW and compells you to want to play through the levels but I give it an 8.5 because the graphics and online gameplay/arena don't even come close...at all.

On a positive side I downloaded the racing game, MotoStorm and it looks sweet! The graphics are bad ass, the sound track is killer, the physics and crashes are amazing! This game will definitely be a 9 - 9.5.

PS3 will never catch up because their online service sucks and their browser is way too cumbersome and takes way too long to want to even try surfing the net while sitting on your couch. So why am I keeping it?

• Because their first gen games look really bad ass and there are more to come; Lair, MotoStorm, Devil May Cry 4, Ninja Gaiden, Heavenly Sword, God of War, Tekken 6, Metal Gear Solid, Killzone and more


• Top notch Blue Ray player for half the price


• Backwards Compatibility with PS & PS2 games


• Free Online Play


• It's black piano gloss is damn sexy!

Xbox Live is light years ahead of Sony and it's going to take some real muscle and crazy tactics to come back from such a large deficit but I'm sure they would be comfortable with 2nd place when they catch up with the Wii.

CliffyB of EPIC talks on Gears

Click the link to read a pretty decent article on IGN featuring CliffyB of Gears of War fame. I thought it was a pretty interesting article. But be forewarned it is 8 pages so it will take some time to get thru it.

I think we will have some cool new stuff to look forward to in Downloadable Content from the Marketplace in the months to come.

Possible new gametypes. I would guess something like Territories would be good on Gears. In the article he also says that Capture the Flag would not be likely, as Gears is all about cover and obstacles so running from 1 side of the map to the other in a fast manner is very difficult to do.

Anyways I hope you find the article interesting.

Study Says Video Games Are Good For The Eyes!

Interesting information on the benefits or pwning your friends online!!

SINGAPORE, Feb 7 (Reuters Life!) -

Video game addicts, rejoice: U.S. researchers have found that playing is actually good for your eyes, and despite all those dire warnings from your parents, it won't make you blind.
A study by the University of Rochester showed that people who played action video games for a few hours a day over the course of a month improved their vision by about 20 percent.

"Action video game play changes the way our brains process visual information," Daphne Bavelier, professor of brain and cognitive sciences, said in the study published on the university's Web site, www.rochester.edu, on Tuesday.

"These games push the human visual system to the limits and the brain adapts to it. That learning carries over into other activities and possibly everyday life."

Bavelier and a graduate student tested college students who had played very few, if any, video games in the last year. Test subjects were given an eye test similar to the one used at regular eye clinics and then divided into two groups -- one played shoot-em-up action games for an hour a day while the control group played a less visually complex game. Their vision was tested after the study, with those who played the action game scoring better in the eye test.

The researchers said their findings could help patients with several types of visual defects.

I knew it had to have some benefits. Granted it can test the strength of your marriage at times, but at least I can see the frying pan coming at my head now!! Hahahaha.

Sony CEO: PlayStation 3 better than Xbox 360 in many ways

In an upcoming EGM article, Jack Tretton, CEO and President of Sony Computer Entertainment America says:

"I think we've got a better machine PlayStation 3, I think we've got a better
business model, and I think we're going to win in the long term."

Personally this sounds to me like a PR release from a company that beginning to realize its been pwned. Let me pull out my checklist:

1. "I think we've got a better machine..." Check, errrr, maybe, definitely highly debatable.
2. "...we've got a better business model..." Really? Did you meet your Xmas sales forecast or did you get pwned by a year old box that breaks all the time. Did you know you were selling at a $200 per unit loss? OK dude, whatever.
3. "...we're going to win in the long term." BWAHAHAHAHA. ROFLMAO. Seriously, you just got publicly tattooed by the Wii. Your box is in stock everywhere and yet everyone is still asking for a Wii. You can't sell a PS3 on eBay that isn't discounted below retail.

Oh, did I mention the source of this article was a PS3 News Site???? Really. No wait, here's the best quote from the interview:

"But while early indicators are not completely irrelevant, you can't completely
ignore them, and I'd be a little concerned if I were them. On the other hand,
what concerns me is if the Xbox 360 is being rejected, are the consumers on
board with [next-generation] technology and is there enough [demand]
there."

He must have missed a few headlines from the Wall Street crowd regarding the 360's holiday sales figures and monstrous revenues generated for Microsoft by Xbox Live. When did the 360 get rejected by consumers? I find in comical that EGM is even running with this article in spite of its tone of desperate OpEd spin.

Gears of War Weapons Analysis Part 1

I've been testing out the damage from different weapons. The following results are for COG shooting at Locust at a short range. For obvious reasons, I didn't use the torque bow, boom shot, hammer of dawn, or grenades.

Pistol -
6 shots to head = death; w/ perfect reload 5 shots
7 shots to chest = down; w/ perfect reload 6 shots
7 shots to legs = down; w/ perfect reload 6 shots
Note: These numbers might go down by a shot by shooting faster. I will try it out later.

Hammerburst -
2 bursts to head = death; w/ perfect reload 2 bursts
2 bursts to chest = down; w/ perfect reload 2 bursts
2 bursts to legs = down; w/ perfect reload 2 bursts

Boltok pistol -
2 shots to head = death; w/ perfect reload 2 shots
3 shots to chest = down; w/ perfect reload 2 shots
3 shots to legs = down; w/ perfect reload 2 shots

Chainsaw gun -
~15 rounds to head = death; w/ perfect reload ~10 rounds
~25 rounds to chest = down; w/ perfect reload ~15 to 20 rounds
~25 rounds to chest = down; w/ perfect reload ~15 to 20 rounds

Team Fortress 2

I used to love playing Team Fortress Classic. The Control Point matches were hillarious, with engineers' sentry guns just mowing down tons of people at the choke points, along with all kinds of grenades killing everything in the tunnels (the game had extra ammo you could pick up, sometimes giving you more nades).
This definitely needs to be on our group's to-buy list when it comes out, bundled with Half-Life 2: Episodes. There used to be a guy on the server I played on called Dr. Death. Of course, he usually played a medic, and went around infecting the other team....
One of the funniest moments was playing a capture the flag game, and waiting in our base for the other team to come capture it. We wondered what was taking them so long...until an entire team of heavy weapons guys showed up, with their gatling guns mowing down everything....

The Accessory we've been waiting for?

4 USB ports, Component Video, standar A/V, VGA, S-Video, Fiber Optic and what appears to be an A/V plug-powered cooling system for about 35 bucks??? Oh, hell yeah. For you A/V geeks, this means you'll be able to plug up some of your pre-existing audio/videophile-grade expensive cable you have laying around. No more need to compromise the integrity of your system. Need a long VGA run to go one way and the fiber optic cable the other? No problem! Run the cable any which way to your heart's content without having to mess around with male/femal connection. You'll probably see this on the back of my box sooner rather than later.

Wikipedia, Gears of War

I did some searching the other day to figure out what the new Gears update was about. Turns out there's a Wikipedia page out there for Gears! Anyway, on the References links at the bottom of the page, it had a link to a forum post from an Epic guy. The Epic rep pretty much confirmed it wasn't an update that would affect us, it was more of a compatibility upgrade for others.

Halo 3 Beta Announcement

I got this notice from Xbox today:

Greetings Halo® Nation and thanks for your interest in participating in the Halo 3 multiplayer public beta.

Phase one registration is now closed. If you have been selected to participate, you will receive an email notification within the next two days.

For those of you that didn't make it in - fret not as this phase one was just the first of three ways to secure entry into the Halo 3 multiplayer public beta. The next two paths of entry are:

Qualifying over Xbox Live® via the "Rule of Three" program in early February
Purchasing marked packages of the upcoming game CrackdownTM, which hits store shelves in North America on Feb. 20
To find out more about these opportunities visit halo3.com for detailed information.

We hope this provides additional clarity on this phase of entry into the Halo 3 multiplayer public beta. See you online!

Has anyone had confirmation of acceptance into the Beta test Yet?

Also since we changed the name of our blog it seems like we have lost a few people, can yall send out some emails and make sure everybody knows the new URL.

Favorite Kills on Gears

Have a favorite kill on Gears? Here's one of my favs, on the train map: I picked up the Hammer, and we were looking for the last guy on the other team. I thought, why not, and lit up the staircase in the center of the map with the Hammer. Funny enough, the guy had been hiding in the staircase and got vaporized!

Here's another fav I saw. Friendly fire was enabled. On the Clocktower map: 2 guys on the other team, 1 guy left on our team. They were all upstairs by the sniper rifle. Their sniper was hiding behind a pillar on one end, their 2nd guy was by the sniper spawn pillar. Our guy was behind the last pillar. So they're all ducking in and out of the pillars taking pot shots at each other, when what happens.... Our guy peeks out, the sniper guys peeks out and zeroes him, then the sniper's buddy peeks out...just in time to take the headshot and even the odds!

Gears of War Secrets and Achievments

Just incase you haven't picked up all the Cog tags throughout the game, here is a list of their locations as well as some of the achievment pionts you recieve in the ranked matches. Also I heard if you beat the game on insane, you get some sort of secret player pic, can anyone confirm?

The following achievements are unlockable in Gears of War on the Xbox 360.


Prison Breakout - 10 points.
Completed tutorial level on any skill level

Completed Act 1 on Casual - 10 points.
Complete Act 1 on Casual Difficulty

Completed Act 2 on Casual- 10 points.
Complete Act 2 on Casual Difficulty

Completed Act 3 on Casual - 10 points.
Complete Act 3 on Casual Difficulty

Completed Act 4 on Casual - 10 points.
Complete Act 4 on Casual Difficulty

Completed Act 5 on Casual - 10 points.
Complete Act 5 on Casual Difficulty

Mercenary - 10 points.
Complete all acts on Casual Difficulty

Completed Act 1 on Hardcore - 20 points.
Complete Act 1 on Hardcore Difficulty

Completed Act 2 on Hardcore - 20 points.
Complete Act 2 on Hardcore Difficulty

Completed Act 3 on Hardcore - 20 points.
Complete Act 3 on Hardcore Difficulty

Completed Act 4 on Hardcore - 20 points.
Complete Act 4 on Hardcore Difficulty

Completed Act 5 on Hardcore - 20 points.
Complete Act 5 on Hardcore Difficulty

Soldier - 20 points.
Complete all acts on Hardcore Difficulty

Completed Act 1 on Insane - 30 points.
Complete Act 1 on Insane Difficulty

Completed Act 2 on Insane - 30 points.
Complete Act 2 on Insane Difficulty

Completed Act 3 on Insane - 30 points.
Complete Act 3 on Insane Difficulty

Completed Act 4 on Insane - 30 points.
Complete Act 4 on Insane Difficulty

Completed Act 5 on Insane - 30 points.
Complete Act 5 on Insane Difficulty

Commando - 30 points.
Complete all acts on Insane Difficulty

Time to Remember- 10 points.
Recover one-third of the COG tags (on any difficulty)

Honor-Bound- 20 points.
Recover two-thirds of the COG tags (on any difficulty)

For the Fallen - 30 points.
Recover all of the COG tags (on any difficulty)

My Love for You Is Like a Truck - 30 points.
Defeat a Berserker on Hardcore Difficulty

Broken Fingers - 30 points.
Defeat a Corpser on Hardcore Difficulty

A Dish Best Served Cold - 30 points.
Defeat General RAAM on Hardcore Difficulty

Zen and the Art of Reloading - 10 points.
Perform 25 perfect active reloads (on any difficulty)

Zen and the Art Part 2 - 20 points.
Perform 5 perfect active reloads in a row (on any difficulty)

Clusterluck - 20 points.
Kill 3 enemies at once 10 different times (on any difficulty)

A Series of Tubes - 20 points.
Host and complete 50 ranked matches

Dom-curious - 10 points.
Complete 1 co-op chapter as Dominic Santiago on any difficulty

Domination - 20 points.
Complete 10 different co-op chapters as Dominic Santiago on any difficulty

I Can't Quit You Dom - 30 points.
Complete all acts in co-op as Dominic Santiago on any difficulty

Don't You Die On Me - 10 points.
Revive 100 teammates in ranked matches

Fall Down Go Boom - 20 points.
Kill 100 enemies in ranked matches with the Boomshot

Pistolero - 20 points.
Kill 100 enemies in ranked matches with a pistol

The Nuge - 20 points.
Kill 100 enemies in ranked matches with the Torque Bow

I Spy with My Little Eye - 20 points.
Kill 100 enemies in ranked matches with the Longshot

Don't Hurt 'Em - 20 points.
Kill 100 enemies in ranked matches with the Hammer of Dawn

It's a Massacre - 10 points.
Kill 100 enemies in ranked matches with the Chainsaw

Curb Appeal - 20 points.
Kill 100 enemies in ranked matches with the curb stomp

Capital Punishment- 20 points.
Kill 100 enemies in ranked matches with an execution

Is It a Spider - 30 points.
Kill 100 enemies in ranked matches with grenade tag

The Money Shot - 20 points.
Kill 100 enemies in ranked matches with a headshot

Always Remember Your First - 10 points.
Finish playing a versus ranked match

Don't Hate the Player - 10 points.
Finish with the highest points in a ranked match

Mix It Up - 20 points.
Win a ranked match in every versus game type

Around the World - 30 points.
Win a ranked match on every versus map

Can't Touch Me - 20 points.
Win 10 ranked matches without losing a round

Seriously ... - 50 points.
Kill 10,000 people in versus ranked match total

ACT 1 - ASHES - GOW COG Tags
Jacinto Maximum Security Prison


COG Tag 1
When you begin the game you choose a path, left or right (combat or training). Regardless of the path chosen, you'll see a Gears logo straight ahead, just under it is the first COG tag. Look towards the rear of the courtyard across from the cell area if you have trouble finding this right away.

COG Tag 2
This tag is located in the first room where the door is cut open by the enemy locusts. It is in the rear of the room, under the stairway that you came down if you took the training route. You'll see a Gears logo on the wall, the COG Tag is on the floor a bit to the left of the logo.

COG Tag 3
This particular tag's presence is not highlighted particularly well by a Gears logo, but it is still easy to find. As soon as you enter into the courtyard area you'll see some stairs to your left, go up them and turn left at the top and you should see the COG tags. The gears logo is in the southwest corner of the yard, so it's still there, just not exactly where the tags are. if you got sucked into the battle, be sure to grab the tags before heading to the chopper.

Trial By Fire


COG Tag 4
You don't really need help finding this COG Tag, as one of your comrades will point it out to you. In case you didn't hear him, it is in the first small courtyard of the level, near a short wall in the yards center and to the right of the Gears logo.

COG Tag 5
In this area you'll encounter two emergence holes within a building (just after crossing the bridge). The COG Tags are near the second emergence hole, slightly hidden by some weeds. be sure to grab it before you head towards the streets.

Fish In A Barrel


COG Tag 6
After fighting in the streets against troika gunners, and dealing with four emergence holes, you'll find this COG tag in the far left corner, located near some ammunition on the ground. It's right by the fourth emergence hole.

Knock Knock


COG Tag 7
Before you begin battle in this area take notice to the white van with the Gears logo on it. You'd suspect the COG Tags be right there, but they're a bit off. To the left of the van follow the large hole in the ground, the COG Tag is all the way down in the corner.

Hammer


COG Tag 8
This COG tag is located in the hallway where Jack is called upon to open the door. You remember, the annoying hallways with a couple dozen Wretches! Anyhow, I suggest waiting until the Wretches have been defeated to collect the tag. The tag is to the far left of the door Jack is opening (if you're watching him open it). It's on the floor just next to a coffin looking figure made from cement.

COG Tag 9
This COG tag is located in the same room where you and the team discover that Rojas has been killed. As soon as you enter the room (by descending the stairs) the tag is hidden partially behind a pillar and in much of the shadows. While you're listening to the cut-scene head towards that pillar and grab the COG Tag.

China Shop


COG Tag 10
After you witness the brutal slaying of a fellow comrade by a hungry, and somewhat annoyed Berserker, you can go grab his COG Tag. Just head to where he was killed, the COG tag is on the ground of the dead end area near some flames.

COG Tag 11
As you are trying to lure the Berserker outside, the Berserker will smash open three doors for you. As the third door is opened, you'll notice before you exit the enclosed area that to the left of that door, in an alcove is another set of COG Tags.

COG Tag 12
Once you have lured the Berserker outside, look for the Gears logo on the wall. If you head left right after you exit the building and go along the curved section of the wall you will find the COG Tag on the ground by the main wall, just after the Gears logo.

ACT 2 - NIGHTFALL - GOW COG Tags
Tick Tick Boom


COG Tag 13
This is in the area right after you have regrouped. You'll enter a small room with two sets of stairways and a couch. Open fire on the couch to destroy it and reveal the COG Tag hidden beneath it.

Grist


COG Tag 14
Once you exit the room with the square shaped catwalk, descend the stairs and go to the back of the alley the stairs are in. The COG tags are located at the end of the alley behind some rocks.

COG Tag 15
As you near the Stranded Settlement, just up the stairs where the Boomer was, you'll see this set of COG Tags near a couple of newspaper vending machines.

This is to the left of the settlement gate.
Lethal Dusk


COG Tag 16
As you make your way to checkpoint 2 the road curves off to the right. Before heading in that direction look to the left for a propane tank and a shed. Shoot the propane tank and with this new lighting you'll be able to enter the shed, where you'll find COG Tag 16.

COG Tag 17
This COG Tag is located in the area where you guide Dom with the spotlight. As you enter the area, the Gears logo is on the wall behind and to your right, but the COG Tag is to the left, in a darkened area near some rubble. To get this one, guide Dom down the street with the spotlight, then move the spotlight into position to illuminate that far left area were the tag is at. When you exit the building, grab the tag before you meet back up with Dom.

Dark Labyrinth


COG Tag 18
This COG Tag is located in the area where you shoot the propane tank out in the abandoned car and run down the road using the car as a torch. As soon as you enter the area (where you'll see the car in front of you) look on the ground to your right to locate the tag. You may need the extra light from the propane tank in the car to get to it safely. So, shoot the propane tank, quickly pick up the tag and run down the street with the flaming car.

ACT 3 - BELLY OF THE BEAST - GOW COG Tags
Downpour


COG Tag 19
This is in the rainy area outside. There are two buildings, one with a generator in it and another with an elevator inside. You'll come up on the one with the elevator first, they're on the right. Behind that building, towards the sea, is a long plank, follow the plank to the end to discover the COG Tag.

Evolution


COG Tag 20
This COG Tag is located in the room that has the rotting wooden floor boards that you will fall through. It's in the far right corner of the room. If you fall through before you find it, just head to the ladder in the corner and repeat until you get the COG Tag.

COG Tag 21
This COG Tag is located in the cart control room. Head down the stairs, near the cars, and turn around. The COG Tags are to the left of the stairs you just came down.

Darkest Before Dawn


COG Tag 22
After you ride the drilling platforms down, stick to the right. You'll see a Gears logo, near is a grenade pickup and some COG tags.

COG Tag 23
On the path along the right side you'd see a building with a Gears logo. After some battle, you can head near the logo and pick up the COG tags to the right of the stairs and platform.

COG Tag 24
Shortly after getting COG Tag 23, you will choose a path, battle, and then reunite. You'll then fight your way through a narrow area. This area has allot of cover, before you leave the area look to the right, on the narrow ledge overlooking the pool of liquid you'll find this set of COG Tags. Grab them before heading to eliminate the Corpser.

ACT 4 - THE LONG ROAD HOME - GOW COG Tags
Campus Grinder


COG Tag 25
As soon as you enter the Campus Grinder area look to your right. You'll find this set of COG Tags near the second staircase on your right side.

Bad To Worst


COG Tag 26
You'll see a rusted car in this area. The COG Tags are behind that car on the sidewalk.

Imaginary Place


COG Tag 27
When you are in the Fenix Estate enter the room that is oval shaped on the one side. In this room you'll find a desk, destroy it to reveal the COG tags. In fact, destroy other things while in this building, sometimes it leads to ammo or grenades.

ACT 5 - DESPERATION - GOW COG Tags
Train Wreck


COG Tag 28
This COG tag is located on the fifth passenger car, as soon as you enter, to the left. This is just after Jack rips open the door.

COG Tag 29
Before you climb the ladder to exit to the third passenger car's roof, you'll see the COG Tags on the ground, be sure to pick them up.

Troika Central


COG Tag 30
This COG Tag is located on the fifth passenger car, in the cabin area. Once you release the cylinders, go forward and enter the interior to grab the tags and some ammo.

Congrats
You have all the COG Tags in Gears of Warand you have unlocked the following achievements:

Time to Remember - 10 points.
Recover one-third of the COG tags (on any difficulty)
Honor-Bound - 20 points.
Recover two-thirds of the COG tags (on any difficulty)
For the Fallen - 30 points.
Recover all of the COG tags (on any difficulty)

From Jason Rybka