Gearheads of War

Ok guys & gals, this list is getting buried on the front page.  Papi & a few of you guys suggested that I re-post the diary to keep it bumped, so here it is.  I regularly update this everyday, so check the list often.
[editor's note, by Blankman]I have included some unconfirmed rumors floating around the Net which appear in bold.  Thanks go out to Abe & Robbins for pointing out the rumor link.
Update [2008-6-2 0:49:58 by Blankman]:I like how this guy hijacked our diary, didn't cite from it came from, and it made on the pages of n4g.com.  He paraphrased some parts, but you can tell that it's pretty much exactly the way I wrote it almost word for word.  I'm a firm believer in giving credit where credit is due.  Check it out:http://www.n4g.com/xbox360/News-152131.aspx

---CAMPAIGN---

•Framerate will not dip under 30 FPS promised Cliff.
•Carmine is back ("Anthony" Carmine died in the first game & Cliff acknowledged this, but wouldn't give any further description as to why or how he returned.  Just that Carmine was a weird fan favorite so they brought him back).  Hmmm, shades of Halo's Sgt. Johnson maybe or perhaps something like South Park's Kenny? ;)
•COG "redshirts" have a minor redesigned helmet & appear to have a beefier build.
•Campaign will also be longer than Gears 1.  More variety of locust, more weapons, and more vehicle sections.
•Story background information will be dispersed on COG tags, letters, pictures, & maps scattered throughout the levels.- GI May '08.
•"Thirty percent of the campaign is underground.  Cave games are cool, but this is not a spelunking game."
•Squad ordering (Assault/Cover fire/Regroup) has been dropped.- Gamerscoreblog.com interview

•New COG characters:
   •Chairman Prescott who is the leader of the COG.-GI May '08
   •Dizzy, a grizzled Stranded-turned-COG soldier (joins via Operation Lifeboat), who drives the Derrick.- GI May '08
   •Tai Kaliso, a spiritual, meditative, and honor-bound soldier who has a mohawk & adorned with tribal tattoos.- GI May '08
   •Maria Santiago, Dom's estranged wife, who is lost somewhere in the war-torn lands of Sera.- GI May '08

•New Locust enemy-types:
   •Kantus (priest/healer) uses sonic attacks.- GI May '08
   •Small Locust-type that plants roadside IEDs & throw grappling hooks for boarding Derricks.
   •Rockworms that provide moving cover.- GI May '08
   •New Locust model (Hockey mask) is seen being pummeled by the new fisticuffs execution.- Gametrailers.com
   •New Locust model 'Hammerhead' (helmet makes him look like a hammerhead shark).- EGM July '08
   •New Locust 'Grenadier' (Cyclops).   Appears to have more armor & beefier.- EGM July '08
   •Scorch Drone had a unique helmet & carries a flame backpack which fuels the Scorcher.  The backpack can be shot at & made to explode taking anyone nearby with it.-ign.com interview
   •Myrahh, The Locust Queen (series' female narrator) will be revealed in Gears 2 according to Cliff- videogaming247.com

•Weapon Specs/Modifications:
•"The chainsaw duel itself, moment for moment, takes about as long as the old chainsaw action does because what we do we actually make the actual act of chainsawing somebody at the end of the duel extremely quick," states Cliff.
•You will no longer be invincible/god mode when chainsawing.  Attacks can be interrupted in mid-duel.  Two people can chainsaw one guy at the same time.
•Your teammates can help give you an edge in the duel by shooting the opponent which will give you the upper hand on the "B" button mini-game.
•You're locked into the chainsaw duel-win or lose.  It can also wind up being a draw in which the both of you will push off of each other & re-engage in another duel.
•Only frontal chainsaw attacks can engage in duels.
•The Lancer has a longer barrel that extends a bit farther than the chainsaw attachment, blue targeting cross-hair on the iron sights, new muzzle flashes, and firing sound effects.  Also, new active-reload HUD display animation were seen for the Lancer and Hammerburst.
•Retooled Hammerburst sounds beefier and has the ability for semi-automatic.  It now has a barrel extension.  The faster you tap the right trigger, the faster it fires.  However, with the faster fire rate comes more recoil.  It is more accurate at longer range and does more damage than the Lancer.
•Longshot's recticule when zoomed-in will display your team's color & the dot in the middle remains white.- thisisgame.com
•Longshot's Active-reload (AR) will no longer instant-down an opponent according to Cliff- NeoGAF forums

•Specific weapons will cycle around the maps.  This is to prevent power-weapon whoring.- EGM July '08
•Stopping power.  If you're running towards an enemy and he is firing straight into your chest, you will slow down.  Every weapon will have a different degree of stopping power.- EGM July '08
•Tracer fire has now been added to give a better visual to where your shots are heading.
•The opportunity to spawn with either the Lancer or Hammerburst is available.- EGM July '08
•Grenades can be stuck anywhere; not just on enemies.  They can be planted on the ground, walls, doors, etc. to produce a proximity mine.- EGM July '08
•Downed with Grenade Equipped (Martyrdom)- Wait for an enemy to approach for a killing move.  Press the R- Trigger to detonate your frag and blow both of you to smithereens!- EGM July '08
•Downed without Grenade Equipped- Raises your hand and request assistance from your squad.  Doing so will flash your "man down" icon for friends to spot.- EGM July '08
•Smoke grenades now carry a concussive stun effect that ragdolls anyone within its blast radius and knocks any shields from their hands.- EGM July '08
•Gnasher shottie has not been nerfed.
•When using the left trigger aim feature, the perspective is tighter than in Gears 1.  Peripheral vision is now decreased much more than originally.
•Sidearms are now shown on COG thighs instead of magically appearing (Gorgon Burst pistol on Marcus' thigh).
•The smoke from the pistol barrel actually floats quickly towards the back of the Derrick, showing some impressive wind physics- Thanks Crunk!
•Active reloads have expanded.  Cliff gave a few examples: Boltok pistol will fire faster in AR, better accuracy & certain weapons will have better range when AR is pulled off.

•New weapons:
   •Poison gas grenade.  It produces a purplish, poisonous cloud that kills anyone that lingers into it (ala gas in the Garden map).  Grenades can be tagged onto enemies where they will slowly die.  Grenade tagged players can also injure teammates if they get too close to them.- EGM July '08
   •Scorcher (Flamethrower).  Will only appear once on a map (similar to the Boom Shot).  Short-range burst weapon; perfect active reload increases its range.  According to X360 magazine, "Most realistic fire in a game we've ever seen."- EGM July '08 & X360 July '08, respectively.
   •Gorgon Burst Pistol has four-six round burst shots in each clip.
   •Bullet shields.  Metal shield (adorned with Locust symbols) that blocks enemy fire.  You can only equip a pistol when carrying the shield.  Movement will be dramatically slower when using the shield.  They can be planted into the ground to create new cover by squatting behind it.  Enemies can kick it down if they get close enough.  Although the size of the shield looks to be about the size of a character's torso, the shield's side flanges flair out when planted into the ground creating a larger shielded area (similar to an addition sign "+").  Any exposed body part when shield-wielding is fair game.- EGM July '08
•Epic says plenty more weapons are on the way, including new additions to the super weapons class (alongside the Hammer of Dawn) which EGM speculates could include a mortar-type of weapon.

•New weapon-specific executions:
   •Chainsaw to the back-"Taint to the throat" dubbed “Chainsodomy” by Epic.
   •Meatshield option when your sidearm is out (press A-button).  The B-button ends the encounter with a neck-snap.
   •"Fun use of Torque Bow blades," according to Cliff.  Torque Bow specific-kill, the attacker will take the victim’s head and place it on a Torque Bow’s blade tip, then use his foot to pop it off.- EGM July '08
   •Gnasher will be used like a golf club.- EGM July '08  You'll toss the rifle into the air, catch it by the barrel, & tee off on your foe's head.  Happy Gilmore FTW!!!- EGM July '08
   •Longshot's rifle butt gets tossed in the air, caught by the barrel, & brought down like an axe on your victim's head.- EGM July '08
   •UFC beatdown on downed enemy (pressing Y-button) dubbed "GnP-Ground & Pound" by Major Silva & Degrees!  COG soldiers will punch an enemy to death & Locusts will rip off arms and beat an enemy with them (taken out because it was too over the top).- EGM July '08 & GameTrailers TV Episode 119, respecitively.
   •Pistol gets spun around by the trigger & holstered like the old Westerns.- thisisgame.com
   •Curb stomp returns.

•Meatshields will deteriorate under fire, as well as drip blood on the floor as you drag them around.  The meatshield can take a direct-hit from a Boomshot & you will not be killed.  "It's like a get out of jail free card."  They will leave blood trails behind.
•Once you are taken as a meatshield, you are automatically dead.  According to Cliff, you are now a lifeless husk & you'll either respawn or wait in the lobby to spectate depending on the gameplay mode that was chosen.
•Meatshields are confirmed in multiplayer.
•When people are down, but not out; they can tap the A-button and try to crawl away.  You will eventually die, unless someone comes to revive you.- EGM July '08
•When you're injured & moving along the wall, the blood will drip down the wall.
•Destructible cover.  "No more hiding behind that crate taking loads of fire," according to Tsunoda.  Solid cover will not be completely destructible in MP, but you can chip away inches in order to get a better angle on whose ever behind it.- EGM July '08
•The cover system has been refined, players' guns and bodies sit tighter to cover making it harder for your enemies to get an attacking angle.
•The A-button usage has now been expanded for the slide/slam into cover.  By pressing it again & depending on the orientation of the thumbstick, you can change the angle approach, back up, or stop mid-slide.
•"Eight billion tasks have been cycled on for improving the cover system.  You can interrupt the swat turn and go right into a roady run, so you're not stuck swat turning.  The angle of cover entry for roadie run has been tweaked so you don't necessarily get sucked into cover as often when you roadie run.  Mantling's a little more crisp.  Just evading into cover is more crisp.  Every single last action has been tweaked.  The angle at which you cover slip when you move forward has been tweaked.  Every single bit of the cover system has been massaged this time.  I went back and played Gears 1 and I still think it's a great cover system, but what I missed was tremendous and I'm so happy with a lot of the results that have come out of the tweaking for Gears 2.- Gamepro.com
•"We also offer an alternate control scheme, which is pretty similar to Uncharted, where we decouple the cover and the evade button so players can have those on separate buttons if they want," states Cliff- Gamepro.com
•According to Cliff,"The hundreds of Locusts pouring out of the emergence holes can be killed if you want."  However, on the gameplay reveal, the reticule doesn't turn red which might indicate that the multitude of enemies are window dressing.  Also, several Boomers are interspersed among Drones.- multiplayerblog.mtv.com

•New COG vehicles: Derrick and Centaur.
   •Derricks towing Grind Lifts need to be positioned at specific locations in order to drill & insert the two-man grinder pods.
   •The Centaur is a combination of a tank/monster truck (seen shooting two rounds into the face of a Brumak on the gameplay reveal).  It is a two-personnel manned vehicle & there will be a level dedicated to driving one.  The Centaur will have an active reload!- Gamerscoreblog.com interview
•More vehicular sections were promised.  At least two more vehicles will be revealed.- GameTrailers TV Episode 119

---MULTIPLAYER---

•Multiplayer is 5 vs 5.
•A.I. bots for multiplayer is confirmed.- GameTrailers TV Episode 119
•Online functionality will also be very competitive to other titles.
•Party system has been confirmed.
•As soom as you kill an opponent, you will be able to see the points earned on the bottom left of your HUD.- GameTrailers TV Episode 119
•The game will no longer boot players to the menu when the host changes options. Players can also vote on the map they want to play next.- EGM July '08
•No dedicated servers are planned.
•No weapons or character customizations.  "We're not really that kind of game.  We're not going to allow you to bling out your gun.  The Lancer's a Lancer, Gus is Gus, and Marcus is Marcus.  Those are the identities we're sticking with," states Cliff- Gamepro.com
•Kotaku's Crecente got Kudo Tsunoda to use the terms: "co-op", "tactical", & ""squad" when asking him about the number of players in co-op play.  Possible four player co-op.
•They are shipping with more multiplayer maps out of the box than Gears 1 and many more multiplayer modes.
•"As far as the multiplayer goes, we're shipping with at least ... well, I don't know what the embargo is ... but we're shipping with a lot more f#cking multiplayer maps this time around. A lot more multiplayer modes.  So when you look at the matrix of maps to modes, it's literally hundreds of hours of gameplay.  And there's also some fun stuff that we haven't announced yet in regards to co-op."  Ah, leave it to Cliff to amp up the multiplayer love!
•"It's looking like over 10 new maps at least," according to Cliff.  With the two old ones (Gridlock & Subway), this makes twelve maps ready for the retail version!
•GameDaily's 10 Questions for Cliff garnered this response:
   Q." "Is there any way to remove the HOST ADVANTAGE in Gears of War?"
   A.: "We have many, many optimizations planned for Gears 2 that will 'drastically' reduce these issues as well as another few tricks up our sleeves that I'm not able to reveal quite yet.  Trust me that it's really high on our list of things to make right."- GameDaily.com
•When asked about the multiplayer feedback from the community, Cliff had this to say,"People loved it, but they didn't like the host advantage.  They got tired of the shotgun inconsistencies.  We're fixing all of that.  They didn't like the randomness of the chainsaw, so we put the chainsaw duel in- may the best man win!"- GamePro.com
•Cliff mentioned "off-loading the voice server" to increase the bandwidth for optimum MP.  "At least 30 percent" improved performance.- EGM July '08
•On games with no respawn, you can fly around the map as a "ghost cam" when you are dead.  You can even take screenshots that will be uploaded to the community and vote on submitted images (similar to Forza 2 & Halo 3)!- EGM July '08
•The photo-mode scores you in-game based on the action around you (i.e. Dead Rising).- EGM July '08
•No saved video feature.- GameTrailers TV Episode 119
•Epic is considering implementing a live onscreen ticker that displays how much damage you are dealing and how many points you earn per match.- EGM July '08
•Achievement whores will be mitigated.  "If you're going for headshots," he gave as an example, "you get one headshot that counts and any other headshots won't count towards your Achievement, so players don't just play to get headshots the entire round just to get Achievements."- computerandvideogames.com
•Achievement progress has now been simplified & will be tracked in real-time which is viewable thru a menu.- GI May '08
•Cliff talks about how each player can play on a different difficulty setting in co-op.  "It's just a number of tweaks, number-wise, behind the scenes as far as player health and player weapon damage.  We know which pawn is which, and we know what all the variables behind the scenes, so we can control all that.  We have the splits, where one player goes one way and one goes another way.  Those co-op splits, that's where it really kicks into high gear as far as players being able to be in their own difficulty.  We found in Gears 1 that a lot of players had a tough time, dying during those splits. We're making casual difficulty truly casual."
•Weapons will rotate by their appropriate class after each round on a map.- I Claim Shenanigans Podcast #6 (www.gearheadsofwar.com)
•The GoW2 Collector's Edition may include a weathered looking Polaroid of Dom's wife, the same one seen at the beginning of the game, if Cliff gets his way.- EGM July '08
•Development on Gears 2 is roughly at 65% complete.- X360 July '08
"Buckets and Buckets of blood," according to Cliff.  Hell, bring a mop as well!  LOL

•New/modified Gametypes:
   •Assasination (renamed Guardian) has been altered.  Everyone respawns until their leader is killed.  When the leader is killed off, they stop respawning and the game ends when everyone is eventually dead on one team.- EGM July '08
   •"Wingman" has 10 players split into teams of two.  You and a buddy team up, sharing a single character model in this five teams of two game mode (e.g. Marcus and Marcus vs Dom and Dom, etc).  You can only communicate with your tag team partner & can revive him for a maximum of six times- EGM July '08 & 1UP.com MP Gameplay interview
   •Sunmission (formerly "Meatflag"- variation of CTF-Epic style).  The flag will instead be an AI-character (one of three trashtalking Stranded characters) wandering around the center of the map. That character has his own weapons and even a place on the leaderboard.  To capture him; you will need to down him first, then pick him up as a meatshield, and take him back to your base.  If you shoot the 'meatflag' enough times while he's being dragged back to the enemies' base, his captor will lose him and he'll go berserk on everyone around him.  Respawning and stats for the amount of kills the AI-controlled 'meatflag' will appear on the intermission leaderboard.  Respawning occurs in this mode, but the more that you die; the longer you'll have to wait until you get back into the action.  The scoring in this gametype will move around to different random locations after awhile.- EGM July '08

•New Maps:
   •"River": Each team has a thin strip of land with a cottage and sniping tower is a river separated by a bridge crossing it.  Underneath the bridge is a power weapon.- EGM July '08
   •"Security": long thin map.  To the left and right are stairs leading to verandas that run the entire length of the map.  You are barred access by red lasers, which will kill you if you attempt to pass through.  A power weapon is barred on the other side of the map while the other end is defended by sentry guns.  There is a button in the middle of the map that turns off the lasers and sentries for 20 seconds.- X360 July '08
   •Day 1: Downtown map with Art Deco buildings and arcade with coin-op arcade cabinets.  A Seeder will emerge from a large emergence hole in the middle of the map to cause an earthquake and damage to anyone in close proximity to it.- GameTrailers TV Episode 119
•Gridlock returns, but looks overgrown with vegetation (shown in Game Informer Gears 2 issue).- GI May '08
•Subway & Gridlock are the only known Gears 1 maps returning.- EGM July '08

MP Character Models:
COGs:
   •The usual suspects: Marcus, Dominic, Cole, & Baird
   •Colonel Hoffman- EGM July '08
   •"???" Carmine/COG redshirt- EGM July '08
   •Dizzy- EGM July '08
   •Tai Kaliso- EGM July '08
Locust Horde:
   •Locust Drone- EGM July '08
   •Locust Sniper- EGM July '08
   •Kantus- EGM July '08
   •Locust Grenadier (Cyclops)- EGM July '08
   •Locust (original shirtless)- UT3 Gears 2 Bonus trailer
   •Locust (Hammerhead)- EGM July '08
   •Locust Chieftain (Helmeted)- X360 July '08
   •Locust 'unspecified' (Hockey mask)- Gametrailers.com
   •Red Theron- EGM July '08
   •General Raam/Black Theron (seen in a screenshot shooting at Tai, who is holding the Scorcher weapon)- EGM July '08.
Stranded (AI-controlled):
   •Three Stranded citizens (African-American/Caucasian/Latino)- teamxbox.com
•Dizzy's character model (resembles Chuck Norris) will be available in multiplayer.  You can even shoot off his cowboy hat!- X360 July '08
•Tai's character model has tribal tattoos all over his body.- X360 July '08
•Early adopter tax (buy now, free after a set amount of time) & sponsored DLC multiplayer maps are bring explored.  Remember the Discovery Channel's Future Weapons' sponsorship for Old Bones & Raven Down? :D- EGM July '08

***Rumors/Uncomfirmed Info***

•The game will be divided into four Acts, with six chapters in each Act.  Each chapter should take about thirty minutes to complete.  Estimated 12-hour gameplay.- neocrisis.com
•The King Raven helicopter will be playable!  Well, from what I saw it was Marcus, Dom, Carmine, with Dizzy piloting the helo.  Everyone was shooting these new bird-like creatures.- neocrisis.com
•Cole and Baird won't be re-introduced until the second act.  The story will then shift into two separate ones- Marcus and Dom, respectively.  Marcus’ squad will be comprised of Dizzy, Carmine, and Colonel Hoffman.  They will infiltrate the Locust base (Silent Night chapter).  Dom’s squad will be comprised of himself, Cole, Baird, and Tai with them looking for his wife, Maria.- neocrisis.com
•A main character will die that was in Gears 1.- neocrisis.com
•Myrahh will make an appearance, but not as a boss.- neocrisis.com
•Hammer of Dawn will have only 3 charges until it “burns out.”  A 4th charge is possible, but it will cause the weapon to explode, thereby, killing the character and hopefully enemies close by.- gamerumor.net
•Scorcher has a “fuel meter” instead of ammo clips and will jam if continually fired for an extended amount of time.- gamerumor.net
•COG and Locust will each have 12 character models, respectively (There were 7 for each species in Gears 1).- gamerumor.net
•Annex has been removed and replaced with "King of the Hill."  The host will have the option to turn "Player Presence" on/off, so the Annex gametype essentially still exists.- neocrisis.com
•“Dusk” puts players in a smaller, Raven Down-style map with Locust/COG battles in the distant scenery.- gamerumor.net
•“Wanted” pits 9 Locusts against 1 COG or vice versa.  This modified version of Halo's Juggernaut has a ticker for each player counting down how long each player is the “wanted” individual.  The “wanted” character can only be killed with execution-style rules.- gamerumor.net
•The underground trains in Subway will no longer remain stationary.  They will now move & stop for 30 seconds.  The map will shake when the trains are in motion.  If a player boards it, the train will head into a tunnel where you will have to fight in total darkness by the muzzle flashes of your weapons!  Subway’s train movement can be turned on/off with a switch. - neocrisis.com & gamerumor.net •Team Deathmatch (think Warzone, but with respawns).  There is a set amount of lives.

Update [2008-7-12 5:52:57 by Blankman]: Remember that the details in bold are not confirmed yet.