Almost 20 years after it first launched, Gears of War is back for the second time. With Gears of War: E-Day’s release window nowhere in sight, this Reloaded remaster also represents an opportunity to remind veterans and rookies alike of the series’ important place in the history of the third-person shooter genre. But is this second refresh worth paying attention to beyond its historical and nostalgic value?
The following review is in-progress and will be updated once we’ve been able to check out the online multiplayer component of the game.
The timing is perfect for the Xbox division and Microsoft as a whole as the giant faces heavy criticism for its mishandling of several top-notch studios and massive layoffs and project cancellations pile up. Even worse, the BDS movement has set its sights on its AI business and how it’s used by Israel to accelerate the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza. Even if we put aside such crucial matters, IPs as once mighty as Halo are struggling to remain relevant as long-promised games fail to coalesce or reach the finish line. When you look at the larger picture, it’s easy to see why there’s so much riding on Gears of War as the company navigates several PR crises.
Exactly a decade ago, The Coalition gave the original Gears of War a new coat of paint as it prepared to usher in a new era for the franchise with Gears of War 4 (2016). While undoubtedly nicer-looking and more modern overall, that Ultimate Edition presented a number of issues, and more egregiously, didn’t give PC players the polished experience they deserved. With this Reloaded iteration, Xbox Game Studios, The Coalition, Sumo Digital, and Disbelief (the last two are co-developers) haven’t aimed too high regarding new functionalities, gameplay adjustments, or cutting-edge graphics, but this feels like the best way to experience the modern classic regardless.
There’s something satisfying but hard to properly describe about seventh-generation video games. The PS3/360 era represented the start of many of today’s problems with AAA development, yet most projects from huge publishers unwittingly hit the sweet spot between big-budget spectacle and sustainable development cycles with restrained (yet ambitious) scopes. In the case of Gears of War, it marked a turning-point for Xbox Live alongside Halo 3 and Call of Duty 4, and it’s easy to see why and how even today.
Getting through Gears of War: Reloaded’s campaign (playable in solo or co-op, just like you remember it) didn’t take me longer than 8 hours despite not having touched the first Gears since its original iteration hit PC and the fifth act having all the extra levels which came with the post-360 re-releases. Simply put, it’s a nearly perfect example of a ‘lean and mean’ video game, especially when you take into account its biggest ambition was to rework how third-person shooters played and to introduce proper cover mechanics.
The worldbuilding is as light as it can be and gets straight to the point while also teasing there’s more to the story; the roster of characters isn’t larger than it needs to be; and the plot is extremely focused. Long story short: On the Earth-like planet of Sera, the Locust Horde emerges to destroy the human civilization after the 79-year-long Pendulum Wars have left both sides of the conflict devastated. 14 years later, humanity is on the verge of extinction and COG commando Marcus Fenix is reinstated into the army to help deliver a killing blow to the Locust with a lightmass bomb.
More is revealed as the plot advances, but Gears of War is one of those action games that don’t stop moving and throwing exciting set pieces at the player, telling all they have to tell (very little) through deeds instead of exposition most of the time. To me, it always felt like the original Predator movie: There’s a small group of macho men deep into enemy territory and “ugly motherfuckers” are hunting them down (or trying to). If you add the whole ‘let’s nuke ‘em’ plot point and the fact it’s a literal horde going after them, maybe we could add Aliens to the mix of inspirations too. It just works.
19 years later, Gears of War undoubtedly feels ‘dated’ by today’s AAA standards, but it’s got a better rhythm than most action games from big studios coming out nowadays, and controls remarkably well. No open-world sections (Gears 5’s biggest flaw), no meta progression of any kind. Just cruise through the missions blasting Locust and picking up vicious guns as you go. Before you even realize it, the credits are rolling.
Hacking through Locust soldiers with the Lancer assault rifle’s chainsaw still brings me immense puerile joy, I must report. The Gnasher shotgun is gaming’s scariest. Dropping nades right on top of emergence holes is as satisfying as in the old days. Gears of War is a blast which takes me back to simpler times, but also holds up when compared to most games that have tried to honor or replicate its formula, which explains why everyone’s ready for its return with a new installment (hopefully) in 2026.
That said, I can’t help but feel slightly disappointed by the thin work on the uplift done here. Whereas the framerate, resolution, lighting, and model improvements (especially for modern consoles) are instantly noticeable when compared to the previous remaster, no ray tracing of any kind (at least at launch and as far as I can tell) is a gigantic missed opportunity to seriously enhance its presentation for years to come.
With the Ultimate Edition already taking care of making Epic Game’s original vision shinier and sharper, Reloaded ends up feeling like yet another basic boost rather than a substantial upgrade. The upside is that, as a direct result, performance should be strong even when maxed out in most modern PC builds. In fact, it’s also releasing as ‘Steam Deck verified’ and I can confirm Valve’s little big machine can stay in the 50-60 FPS range at the pretty decent Medium graphical preset.
Perhaps more important is how Gears of War: Reloaded brings, for the first time ever, the series to PlayStation. If we take into account the PS5-exclusive control features like haptic feedback and adaptive triggers, that might be the most attractive version of Gears 1 moving forward. Don’t worry about being left out of the online action either, as cross-play and cross-progression are working across all consoles and PC (Steam & Xbox). It follows the recent trend of Xbox going all-out with its ports, and we’d like to see more pushes in that direction in the future.
While the online servers have been live for the entirety of the review period, finding matches has been impossible for obvious reasons, so stay tuned for our full thoughts once we’ve put some hours into its fast-paced and gory multiplayer matches. At this stage, however, I can say the lack of a Horde Mode in the vein of the sequels’ that’s adjusted to Gears of War’s maps and signature simplicity is a letdown. That addition could’ve breathed even more life into this old body.
Gears of War: Reloaded is now available on PC (Steam & Xbox), PS5, and Xbox Series X/S for $39,99. It’s also launched into Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass, plus it’s playable via Xbox Cloud Gaming.
