Gears of War is hardly a game that’s going to be compared to riveting literature in terms of story, but is its writing really that bad? According to Dead Space story producer Chuck Beaver, yes, it’s the worst ever. Literally.
“Story can only ruin a game for those people who care about story, so it's a conditional answer," Beaver explained in an interview with Eurogamer when asked whether story can ruin a good game or not.
“For instance, Gears of War. It contains atrocious, offensive violations of story basics. Yet it doesn't seem to ruin it for many, many people. It's literally the worst writing in games, but seems to have no ill effects.”
Beaver wasn’t just laying the smackdown, however, using Portal 2 as an example of a game with good writing. Beaver’s reasoning is that Portal 2 "succeeds at least as much on its writing as its masterful platformer level design.”
What do you think? Is Beaver right, or are there worse offenders out there?
Update: EA and Chuck Beaver have gotten in touch with us personally with a statement regarding his comments on Gears of War. You can read it here.