
August 2nd, 2010 by CodeMonkey
People that know me know that I play a lot of video games. My wife would say I play too many. She’s probably more right than I give her credit for on that issue. Of all the video games that I have played and enjoyed over the years, the Gears of War series ranks up in my top 5 all time. Coming out next year is the final game of the Gears of War trilogy. In each of the games so far, you play as an elite soldier on Delta Squad of the COG (Coalition of Ordered Governments) army. In the first game, one of the Delta Squad members, Anthony Carmine, suffered a tragic end fairly early on in the game.
Epic Games decided to keep it in the family in Gears of War 2 by having Delta Squad reinforcements include Anthony’s brother, Benjamin Carmine. When I saw that in my initial play through of Gears of War 2 I thought Ben Carmine would be just the typical worthless soldier like his brother was and die fairly quickly. Fortunately I was mistaken on that count and Ben Carmine turned out to be one damn fine soldier. He was always rushing into battle, taking out more than his fair share of the Locust horde enemies. It took a building sized worm eating him and digesting him alive to take down Ben Carmine.
Sticking with tradition, Gears of War 3 will feature the 3rd Carmine brother, Clayton. And, following the trend as well, Clayton Carmine will be and even more bad-ass soldier than either Anthony or Benjamin was.

From Epic Games:
Fans to Decide the Fate of Carmine in Gears of War 3
Place your vote for the fate of the newest Carmine brother through the purchase of avatar gear on Xbox LIVE Marketplace, with benefits going to charity
The fate of Carmine lies in your hands! For the first time in franchise history, Epic Games and Microsoft are giving fans the chance to decide the fate of a character in Gears of War 3. By purchasing avatar gear on Xbox LIVE Marketplace, fans and gaming communities around the globe will decide the destiny of the newest Carmine brother set to appear in Gears of War 3, with all the proceeds going to the Child’s Play Charity.
Keeping with the series’ tradition, Clayton Carmine will be introduced in the trilogy’s final chapter, and like Anthony and Ben, the newest rookie brother runs the high risk of meeting an early death. However, unlike in the previous games, the Xbox community will choose whether Carmine lives or dies by purchasing special Gears of War 3 avatar gear on Xbox LIVE Marketplace. Starting July 29, two new avatar t-shirts will be available on the Avatar Marketplace on Xbox LIVE—one shirt reads “Save Carmine,” and the other reads “Carmine Must Die.” By purchasing the “Save Carmine” shirt, you’re casting your vote to let Carmine live in Gears of War 3. Conversely, purchasing the “Carmine Must Die” shirt means you want to see Clayton follow the fate of his brothers.
Child’s Play is a community-based games industry charity dedicated to improving the lives of children around the world. Through their network of more than 60 hospitals and through the generosity of their community of donors, Child’s Play raises millions of dollars each year to donate games, consoles, and toys to sick children. The proceeds from the sales of the “Save Carmine” and “Carmine Must Die” avatar gear and limited edition NECA t-shirts will go to Child’s Play, so cast your vote, donate to charity, and get cool Gears of War gear! Fans can get up-to-date information about the fate of Clayton Carmine by visiting www.gearsofwar.com.
Published by Microsoft Game Studios and developed by Epic Games, the Gears of War franchise has won over 30 “Game of the Year” awards, sold more than 12 million copies worldwide, and redefined the third-person shooter genre for this console generation. The Gears of War series is exclusive to Xbox 360, and its riveting multiplayer action makes it one of the most popular titles on Xbox LIVE. The trilogy finale, Gears of War 3, will release on April 5, 2011, only on Xbox 360.




Click on each image to go to Xbox Live Marketplace and make your decision!