Also, I meant that the multiplayer is a bit messy because you have to wait so long to get into matches. I've only played 3 public matches, because I sit and wait for 20 minutes or longer.

About the GoW2 MP and why some people are having problems with it... it went from a game where it was all about fun while kicking ass to competitive play (meaning, Epic balanced it now you have to learn to cope). Same thing happened with the Halo franchise with the transition from Halo:CE to Halo 2. Lots of complaints about it, but eventually people caught on (there's still that small group of people that still cling to Halo:CE and say it's the only good Halo game).

But here's some tips...

The shotgun was one of the major weapons that got balanced, because it was the most over powered weapon in Gears 1. Here's what they did from my analysis of the gun, they changed the formation of the pellets that come out of the gun. In Gears 1, the pellets were much more concentrated. In Gears 2, it conists of 8 pellets. 4 outside pellets that form a rectangle, and 4 inside pellets that form a square. To get an instant kill, you must land all 8 pellets. Since the 4 outside pellets are in a rectangular pattern, to have the rectangle stay within your enemie's body width, you have to be about 3-5 ft away from them. But it also matters if you aim or fire from the hip. If you fire from the hip, those 4 outside pellets spread MUCH, MUCH further from the 4 inside pellets then if you were to fire by aiming. This is why you can't land those instant shotgun gun kills by firing from the hip anymore as easy as you did in Gears 1. So many hardcore Gears 1 fans that adapted to the shotgun, are now complaining about it in Gears 2. The reason is, in Gears 1, to be good with the shotgun you had to blind fire (and the pellet formation didn't change whether you aimed or hip fired). Now, if you blind fire, you're actually penalized because the bullets spread further. So the hardcore shotgun users from Gears 1, just need to adapt. So if some of you are in that group, just practice on aiming more and do less firing from the hip.

Once you begin to aim and fire, you'll realize that you can do some good damage to an enemy up to 25-30ft away with the shotgun. The reason is, the 4 inside pellets, remain a body width or less all the way up to that 25-30ft range, meaning you can land half your shot from that far away.

If you take this knowledge into a MP match and get about 5 ft away from somebody, if you aimed and they hip fired with the shotgun, odds are in your favor because at least one of their outside pellets are going to miss you. If you go into a MP map against a bright wall, stand a few feet away and blind fire. Then right next to those bullet holes, fire by aim and you'll see the results side by side. Then do the same thing 25 ft away. The results will by eye opening, it'll be exactly just how I told you guys.

Now I've also heard complaints about the chainsaws are now overpowered, which isn't the case, because the chainsaw hasn't been changed at all. People are just used to being able to win a shotgun v chainsaw in Gears 1, by firing from the hip. But remember what I said, firing from the hip spreads your bullets, so even though you may fire your shotgun and hit the chainsaw guy, yet he keeps running right through it. Well that's your fault for firing from the hip and not aiming. Because you see, the shotgun has stopping power. Which means, the enemy will lower their weapon and also slow down. But people will say, I hit the guy, but he kept on running right through it. That's because you didn't aim. Remember those 4 inside shotgun pellets? You have to land all 4 of those to make stopping power effective. If you fire from the hip, those 4 inside pellets spread just enough to where you may not land all 4 of them, therefore a chainsaw can keep progressing.

You'll notice players are using a very effective strategy now against chainsawers in MP, when they have the shotgun. If you have time, aim and shoot them, and they'll lower their weapon for a second. Then roll backwards, aim, continue to walk backwards while you shoot them. The chainsaw will lose every time. The chainsaw works exactly like it did in Gears 1, only good as a flanking weapon or against noobs who don't know how to use stopping power effectively. Just using a couple rounds from the Hammerburst or Lancer will stop a chainsawer in their tracks, or landing the 4 inside pellets from the shotgun will be just as effective.

Hopefully these tips help some of you guys out! See ya online, and if anybody has a clan on GB, hit me up, mine will play you!