Rev your chainsaws and get ready to rejoin Delta Squad in battle. Welcome to "Gears of War 2," the sequel to the award-winning "Gears of War" (2006). The first game won 30 awards and the sequel has even more action.

Rev your chainsaws and get ready to rejoin Delta Squad in battle. Welcome to "Gears of War 2," the sequel to the award-winning "Gears of War" (2006). The first game won 30 awards and the sequel has even more action.

Now, remember, this game is rated "M" for violence and language. I myself can handle this, but make sure this game is alright with your parents like I did (my mom watched it and talked about it with me). It does have a gore toggle and a language toggle if you're worried. This game, as much as is it great, is very intense.

For those of you who did not play "Gears of War 1," here's the synopsis. Super-soldier Marcus Fenix is released from prison (he was jailed for leaving his post to help his dad) by his friend Dominic Santiago. You, as Fenix, and the rest of Delta Squad (Anthony Carmine and Minh Young Kim) set off to detonate a resonator in your enemy's HQ and blow it up on the planet Sera. You are fighting the Locust, humanoid monsters that come out of the ground.

Anthony and Minh are both killed, Minh by General RAAM (the Locust general). That's when you meet up with two Alpha Squad troops, Damon Baird and the funny Augustus "Cole Train" Cole. Long story short, the resonator fails, you go to Marcus's dad's place to get vital Locust information, defeat General RAAM and set off the bomb.

In the sequel, it's six months later. Two cities have just sunk into the ground so everyone knows the Locust (they tunnel everywhere) are back.

You are Fenix again, and you and Dom train rookie Benjamin Carmine (Anthony's brother). Then you take on the Locust again, and some surprising bosses.

I won't go any further so I don't spoil it for other "Gears" fans. But let's talk about the gamplay. Imagine "Gears of War" times two. It's great! The cover system is much improved and they've made additions to the arsenal. Your new weapons include the scorcher (guess what that does), the mortar (lives up to its name) and the mulcher (a heavy-duty turret). They are all awesome. The designers have also improved the hammerburst, the Locust equivalent to the lancer minus the speed and chainsaw.

Like "Gears of War," you can play a campaign by yourself or with a friend. You have a choice of three difficulty levels -- casual, normal and hard-core, but if you beat the game once, you unlock "insane" mode. My friend Dylan and I beat it on "hard-core" the first time.

Keep a lookout for collectibles as you run around Sera (and underground, too). You will want to collect magazines, cog tags, etc.. For multiplayer, you can play Annex mode (you try to hold a gun's position for a set period of time), Wingman (five teams of two duke it out) and a bunch of other modes. My favorite multiplayer mode is Horde, where you and up to four friends try to survive all 50 waves of Locust enemies. My friends and I like the "river" map best; it's the perfect place to set up a fort.

Like I said, this game is intense. There are sad parts. Be prepared.

I am going to give this game a 9.5 out of 10 because it is definitely one of the greatest I have ever played even if the final boss was disappointing (compared to RAAM, she's nothing!). Now we just have to wait for "Gears of War 3." If you didn't know, a "Gears of War" movie is coming. See ya!

Liam Gascoin, 13, one of the nation's youngest gaming critics, writes exclusively for The Times. Reach him at TheVidKids@aol.com.