Just downloaded the HD version on XBLM, and man, the ones on the websites do not do it justice. The lighting on the character models is greatly improved, and as you can see, we are getting alot more variety in the environments this time. There is also tons more going on-screen now very fluidly. But most of all, with so much action going on, this looks like it will be more fun to play. I am hoping it lasts longer that Gears 1 though.

Looks pretty frikkin awesome.

How do you even know that? Resistance 2 by some default can't look better?

it definitely looks great, don't know if i'm a fan of the gameplay though (which isn't surprising as i didn't really enjoy playing the first game)

Like a quote one of our members has for a sig:

Would your rationale also apply to MGS4 as well, since both titles have been hinted since E3 '05?

That bit in the end when the derrick knocks over the brumak is kick ass.

Everything looks great so far, and a lot of people are already comparing it to killzone 2 and resistance 2 graphically as we've already seen some impressive footage from KZ2.

We knew the graphics were going to be great and the game play will be great which was what got Gears 1 the praise last time round.

But this time round, the main thing Epic needs to do is get the story right.
People were very critical of the first one for having a loose story... it didn't matter though because the gameplay was good enough, we only needed to know that these are some big dudes trying to rid their planet of the Locust Horde.

If Gears 2 is going to have the same effect as the first game, i think it's going to boil down to how well they tell the story and how it complements the gameplay.

I cant wait to see Fenix' wife (or was it ex-wife) and how thats going to be in the story. Also, I remember hearing in a podcast that the bosses in Gears 2 are going to make the bosses in Gears 1 look small. Woah.

 I think CliffyB said something like they got stuff in Gears 2 which makes the Brumaks look like cuddly toys.

But yeah, the story is paramount and they are pumping atlot of resources into getting it right.

I think you mean Dom's wife. 

From Kotaku write-up on Ortega (writer for Gears 2) speaking in Comic Con:

So while Ortega might have his work cut out for him in Gears 2, this time around, the Epic team says it plans to address some fan questions on the Gears backstory — and the stuff that doesn't make it into the game will be fleshed out in the comic books. Expect Gears 2 to present a much more in-your-face portrayal of war, too. Capps says he told the designers, "I want D-Day," and less the spying and infiltration feel he felt the previous installment had.

For Ortega, this presents an interesting opportunity to look at the smaller dramas that often go on during the larger conflict of humans at war. Dom's wife Maria will apparently play a significant role; while Capps joked that this was because the Gears franchise didn't have enough hot chicks, Ortega pointed out the added significance that human emotional relationships can take on in wartime.

Even the Locust horde may see a somewhat more complex treatment this time, possibly even a sympathetic one. The original Gears of War ended with a surprisingly erudite female voice — the Locust Queen, promising her forces would fight on. Why, an audience member asked, give her that elegant British accent? "Because British accents mean you're smart," Capps teased. But more sincerely, the team confirmed that adding a shade of complexity, some facets of humanity to the series' villains, as Halo 3 did with the Covenant, was part of their strategy to give Gears 2's story more depth. "A bad guy can't just be 'roooar, destroy world, evil,'" said Capps.