It’s been three years since we’ve had a mainline Gears of War game, and it feels like forever since the once-iconic series has been relevant. It’s a shame, but trends in multiplayer and campaign design have changed dramatically over the past decade, which has left the grisly third-person shooter with a lot of loyal fans but not a very strong handhold in the market. That’s why Microsoft is banking on success with the follow-up, Gears 5, as it tries to revitalise a series that has run its course with its mascot Marcus Fenix, via a new protagonist and a graphical update. Here’s everything you need to know about Gears 5.
What is Gears 5?
Announced during E3 2018, Gears 5 is the latest game in the long-standing Gears of War series, helmed by The Coalition who took over development duties from Epic Games when the series was acquired by Microsoft, starting with Gears of War: Ultimate Edition in 2015.
What is the story behind Gears 5?
In Gears 5 you play as Kait Diaz, a former raider turned Gear whose grandmother turns out to be the Locust Queen Myrrah. Her mother was Reyna Diaz, who she euthanized at the end of Gears 4 to stop her from being mutated by the Swarm Hive. Family eh? In Gears 5 Kait, JD Fenix, Delmont Walker, and even Marcus Fenix join up to dive into Kait’s backstory and the origins of the evil Locust.
Gears 5 horde mode Gamescom preview – what does it play like?
I recently got the chance to take a look at Gears 5 behind closed doors. My session consisted of a quick introduction to the game’s horde mode, which has received a number of meaningful changes over its predecessors, including a hero system not dissimilar to Overwatch where you pick a specific character with a class attached and level them up, earning upgrade cards and developing their abilities. From Sarah Connor, Emile from Halo Reach and even the floating support robot Jack, there is a lot of palpable depth to this mode, and I get the impression we only scratched the surface during my demo. I was told that the game would be updated regularly with new characters and maps to keep Horde mode fresh, though the set that the game will launch with is already a fairly meaty chunk of content.
When does Gears 5 launch?
Gears 5 will launch on September 10th for Xbox One and Microsoft Windows. If you’re keen you can play the game four days early if you subscribe to Xbox Games Pass Ultimate.
Gears 5 PC Specifications
Minimum:
OS: Windows 10 May 2019 Update
Processor: AMD FX-6000 Series or Intel i3 Skylake
Memory: 6 GB RAM
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760/GTX 1050 or AMD Radeon R9 280/RX 560
Storage: 15 GB available
Recommended:
OS: Windows 10 May 2019 Update
Processor: AMD Ryzen 3 or Intel i5 Skylake
Memory: 8 GB RAM
Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 970/1660 Ti or AMD Radeon RX 570/RX 5700
Storage: 15 GB available space
