Gears of War: Judgment throws you back into the boots of COG soldiers fighting the Locust on the Xbox 360. You'll be navigating the gritty battlegrounds of Halvo Bay, mastering every firefight, and honing your skills with advanced combat techniques. This entry focuses on the Kilo Squad trials and the campaign, pushing you to survive the Locust onslaught through intense combat scenarios.
This guide is your key to mastering every aspect of Judgment. We'll cover all campaign chapters, from Old Town to the Museum of Military Glory, and break down combat essentials and weapon strategies. Struggling with specific challenges? We've got you covered with detailed walkthroughs and tips to help you achieve Gold Medals and conquer the Kilo Squad trials.
Weapons and Weapon Tactics
Explore COG and Locust weapons in Gears of War: Judgment, including new additions like the Markza and Booshka, and learn their best tactical uses.
Walkthrough
- 1Familiarize yourself with the COG (Human) faction weapons.
- 2Understand the Locust faction weapons.
- 3Experiment with new additions like the Markza, Booshka, and Tripwire Crossbow.
Tips
- Snub Pistol: Useful for its quick discharge and zoom for accuracy. Can inflict headshots (multiple hits required) and can be used while holding a meat shield or Boom shield.
- Gnasher Shotgun: Devastating at close range (1-2 shots). Useless at mid-long range. Excellent in narrow interiors or caves.
- Sawed-Off Shotgun: Higher damage than the Gnasher but with a much smaller effective range. Requires getting very close to enemies.
- Lancer: Accurate assault rifle with little recoil, good for short-medium range. Can be fired in bursts or automatically. Features a chainsaw bayonet for instant kills and can cut through environmental obstacles.
- Retro Lancer: Similar to the Lancer but deals more damage per shot. Has significant firing recoil, requiring short bursts. Features an instant-kill bayonet impale melee attack.
- Markza: A new scoped rifle with a 10-bullet clip. Faster rate of fire and more ammo than the Longshot, though less powerful. Effective for headshots (three required) at mid-long range.
- Longshot: COG sniper rifle with two zoom layers for accuracy. Deals high damage at range and can achieve headshot (a shot that lands on the enemy's head, usually an instant kill) kills (two shots for helmeted enemies). Fires two shots before reload.
- Tripwire Crossbow: Fires explosive bolts that stick to surfaces. Creates tripwires that detonate when touched, useful for trapping cover (press the cover button to crouch behind walls or objects) or narrow passages.
- Booshka: A grenade launcher that can lob up to three grenades at once. Grenades explode on impact or after bouncing. Most effective at close to medium range.
- Vulcan: A mini-gun with a very fast rate of fire and high damage output. Requires one person to fire and another to load. Can clear large groups quickly.
- Mortar: Heavy weapon requiring setup on a tripod, making it stationary. Fires explosive shells in a high arc for massive damage. Difficult to control accurately.
Enemies and Enemy Tactics Guide
Learn about all enemy types in Gears of War: Judgment, including Tickers, Wretches, Drones, and new threats like Ragers.
Enemies:
- Ticker: Small, fast, explode on contact. Difficult to shoot due to size and cover (press the cover button to crouch behind walls or objects). Listen for their clicking noise. Can be kicked away just before detonation.
- Wretch: Small, fast, attack in groups using melee and leaps. Sturdier than Tickers. Use shotguns or melee (except Lancer/Retro Lancer) when they get behind cover.
- Drone: Standard Locust soldier. Weak, susceptible to headshot (a shot that lands on the enemy's head, usually an instant kill) kills if not wearing a helmet. Wields Hammerburst, Mortars, One-Shots.
- Rager: New enemy. Starts like a Drone but can enrage, glow red, gain armor, and charge with fists like a Berserker.
- Theron Guard: Elite Drones in swankier armor. Act like Drones but have more armor. Often equipped with the Torque Bow, capable of one-shot kills.
- Kantus: Unique Locust that can heal or revive fallen enemies. As armored as a Drone, stays back to support. Screeches and raises arms to revive. Prioritize killing them first.
- Armoured Kantus: Revives enemies, dual wields Gorgon Pistols, wears heavy spiked armor making them bullet sponges. Can curl into a ball and roll at high speed.
- Bloodmount: Dangerous bipedal creature with a Drone rider. Moves quickly, attacks with claws and teeth. Keep distance, kill both rider and mount.
- Cleaver: Drone with Theron Guard armor and a Locust Cleaver weapon. Fast, attempts to swing a giant machete for high damage. Can sneak around cover.
- Mauler: Melee-focused heavy Locust with a Boomshield and mace. Approaches with shield raised, uses mace for heavy melee damage. Flank them, shoot exposed parts, or attack when they strike.
- Heavy Locust (Boomer/Digger/Grinder): Bigger, more durable than Drones. Bullet sponges that don't use cover. Boomers use Boomshots, Diggers use Locust Diggers, Grinders use Mulchers with accurate hip fire. Explosions and headshots are effective but require many hits.
- Serapede: Large, heavily armored metallic centipede. Generates electrical charge with mouth pincers. Weakness is the tip of its tail; destroying it causes it to shed a body segment.
Hints and Tips
Master Gears of War: Judgment with essential tips on cover, active reload, grenade usage, and more. Learn combat strategies for easier progression.
Tips
- Always use cover (the system for taking temporary protection from enemy fire). You never know when a rocket, torque bow arrow, or sniper shot will come and knock your face off.
- Learn how to active reload (a mechanic to reload your weapon faster and with a damage bonus). This will get you reloaded and back in the fight almost instantly and give you a small increase in damage to boot.
- Only melee (a close-quarters attack) as a last resort, excluding Wretches.
- Try sticking grenades to walls near Emergence Holes (where enemies appear), or where Emergence Holes will appear. When enemies come out they will trigger explosions and reward you with a multi-kill.
- Always press the D-pad Up button to view points of interest. It will save you from getting lost and give you an idea of what you need to do next.
- If you are knocked down, crawl to your nearest team mate instead of staying put. This reduces the risk of enemy combatants running over to execute you whilst you are down, whilst also reducing the gap between your allies and yourself.
- If you ever get lost in a level, wait a couple of seconds, and then follow your squad – they will never get lost!
- When you take damage in cover, use the red circle on the screen that indicates damage to line up enemies whilst regenerating health. The center of the red circle will be where your aiming reticle (the crosshair on your HUD (heads-up display — the on-screen icons showing health, ammo and the minimap)) will be if you pull it up.
- When using the Torque Bow, charge it BEFORE leaning out to shoot. That way, you can just aim and fire, instead of waiting to charge up a good shot while exposing yourself to enemy fire.
- Practice blind firing! While it greatly reduces accuracy, you're virtually untouchable while doing so. It's not great against Locust in cover, but it can be very effective against Heavies such as Boomers or Grinders.
- Balance out your weapon selection. This means that you should make sure that, no matter what situation you find yourself in, you have a weapon that will suit. Keep a versatile weapon like the Lancer at all times and pick a specialty weapon (e.g. Boomshot, Longshot etc.) for contextual situations.
Walkthrough
Get the fastest route through Gears of War: Judgment missions, find COG TAGS, and complete Declassified Missions for 3-star rankings.
Walkthrough
- 1Follow the fastest route through each chapter from beginning to end.
- 2Collect all hidden COG TAGS.
- 3Activate Declassified Missions to earn up to three stars per mission; 90% of the time, activating them is required for three stars.
Tips
- Enemy variations can occur within missions; if you reload a chapter, expect different enemy types. The walkthrough will note these variations and what to expect.
- Activating Declassified Missions is crucial for achieving a three-star ranking on most missions.
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