Gears of War: E-Day - Campaign Preview - In The Beginning...
Rev up that Lancer, folks, it is almost time to jump back into the Gears universe and chainsaw some Locust scumm. That’s right, Gears E-day is almost here, and it promises to show Marcus, Dom and probably a Carmine or two in a way they have never been shown before, on Emergence Day. It is a period in the Gears lore that has yet to be explored, but curious fans are about to find out just how it all happened, how the humans were caught by surprise and just how Marcus ended up in jail. Thanks to Xbox, I got the chance to tackle two missions from the game before its release and I have to say, my excitment levels have jumped as a result.
My initial reaction towards E-Day wasn’t the best; I was more than a little annoyed when they announced it as the next in the series. I loved Gears 5, and that cliffhanger ending has been eating at me ever since it was released. So going into this preview, E-Day had some work ahead of it to convince me it was the right move. I can’t say for sure after this small taste, but it does seem to be a significant evolution on the Gears formula that should bring the franchise into the modern day without alienating fans. The two missions I got to explore really gave me a good feel for how things will proceed, and as much as it is absolutely a Gears game, right down to the bloody executions, it is the new additions that are the most exciting for me.
The first mission saw me take control of Marcus and lead his team (including Dom) through what felt at first glance like a traditional Gears mission. I had to secure a route to the central command and clear out a host of locust along the way. While this may seem pretty standard for the series, what this level did better than any other Gears game that has come before it is make you feel like you are a part of a grand conflict, not a small isolated battle. Along the way, I needed to support and be supported by another group of four Gears, working our way on parallel paths towards a goal. This is an expansion on an idea that Gears has always toyed with, but the larger number of units, along with the background environment, really adds to the immersion of this war. Instead of the main star of the world, I felt like a very small cog (sorry) in a massive machine. It may not seem like a big difference on the surface, but it really made this feel unique when compared to the other titles in the franchise.
The second mission is where things really took a wild turn. How would you react if I said Gears went open world? Well, that’s kind of what is happening. But not so much a world, but a district. I was given a mission objective on one side of a city district and had to make my way there. Along the way, I encountered a couple of optional missions that saw me supporting other teams of Gears or rescuing civilians. The preview build didn’t allow me to fully explore this area, but I have to say it really felt great to take the Gears gameplay in this direction. I know they dabbled with this sort of thing in Gears 5, but here it feels much more integral and immediate as opposed to the big open “glide towards the marker” maps from 5. There were no indications as to where the secondary objectives would show up; the only way to discover them was to explore, something that, much to my surprise, fit with Gears wonderfully.
A couple of other new additions stuck with me during my two-hour game time. The first is the run button. In previous Gears games, the classic “Duck Run” was performed by simply holding onto the cover button, but now it is achieved by clicking the left thumbstick. It is a small change, but one that took me a little while to get a handle on. That said, Gears E-Day feels notably faster and more mobile than previous titles, so I can see why they made this change. Speaking of mobile, Marcus is now able to climb cars, ledges and balconies with ease, making finding the perfect firing position much easier and adding some verticality to the gameplay. Climbing onto a ute tray was the perfect way to get a better firing angle at the locust hiding further down the road.
The other big addition I discovered was customisable weapons. Players can now swap out parts on all of the weapons available, altering stats and effects to better suit their personal playstyle. These extra parts seem to be rewards for completing secondary missions, encouraging players to engage with them as opposed to simply running towards the main goal. To further support this system, Supply Caches have been placed around the map, which allow players to swap and alter their weapon loadout to suit the situation. It adds a layer of expression that hasn’t been in previous Gears games, and I feel it will be welcomed by players old and new.
Finally, it has to be said that this is a bloody good-looking game. Bloody, of course, being the keyword here. The executions are deliciously gory, with blood splattering across the screen like something out of a Tarantino movie. The backgrounds, levels and character designs are also stunning, and it really shows that Coalition are absolutely the masters of Unreal Engine. It seems to me that Gears will, once again, be leading the Xbox pack when it comes to graphics. That said, I can’t wait to load it up on my 5080 gaming rig and really see its full potential. I think PC players will be in for a real treat.
Overall, my time with E-Day was too brief, but what I did see was immensely promising. I was more than a little sceptical about going down the prologue route, but if the rest of the game is as enjoyable as the two missions I got to tackle, I needn’t have worried. This is shaping up to be exactly what Gears fans want, and a whole lot more to boot.
Gears of War: E-Day arrives on Xbox Series and PC on the 7th of October. Stay tuned for a full review on P2 as soon as possible.
