Gears of War: E-Day
Developer: The Coalition
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Platforms: Xbox Series X (Reviewed), PC
Release Date: Available Now
Price: $69.99 USD – Available Here
Overview
It is hard to imagine that the Gears of War franchise has been running for twenty years now. Especially thinking back long ago to an E3 showcase and holding a life-size replica Lancer Mk 2. Over the course of those twenty years we followed Marcus and Dom fighting alongside other Gears in the war against the Locusts, seeing their allies fall in battle and Dom suffering constant loss throughout his time at Marcus’ side. Then, after the original trilogy, we saw a bit of a prequel following two fan-favorite side characters with Baird and Cole Train before continuing the main narrative with 4 and 5.
Things went quiet though after the release of the fifth game in the franchise as the writers had sort of backed themselves into a corner, resulting in a six year silence outside of a remaster of the original game. Now The Coalition has returned with perhaps the most interesting time in the entire war against the Locust threat, Emergence Day. A time long talked about where humanity came face to face with the horrors within the planet that would lead to a long-lasting war, and now here it is in all its glory with Gears of War: E-Day.
Story
The Coalition of Ordered Government is holding a special event in Kalona to open up a war memorial to honor the service of the fallen that died during the 79-year Pendulum Wars that have finally come to an end. Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago are given special medals for their efforts in the final battle as they pay respects to a fallen brother-in-arms later in the day at a bar. While drinking away the pain and discussing their plans for the future, with Marcus wanting to re-enlist and Dom ready to return home to his wife Maria and help raise his two children, the pair hear a loud commotion outside and the bar is rocked with an earthquake. Within the same bar is a retired Gear named Mags Carter and the cadet Lucas Reyes who can’t ignore the screams outside and join Marcus and Dom in the street.
Here they witness the streets begin to fall apart and monsters unknown to anyone start pouring out of the holes, tearing apart any civilian they get a hold of. Any veteran player will know these are easily dispatched Wretches, but for Marcus and the crew these are monsters straight out of a nightmare but that doesn’t stop them from beating them down with metal pipes. After attempting to group up with the police and finding the police station wrecked, as well as an incredibly strong and intelligent enemy capable of planning and sending a “message” the four manage to meet up with other members of the Gears and regain some semblance of order after the initial outbreak, officially being designated as Bravo Squad and assigned under the command of Captain Akila Grey who will issue their orders led from the top down by Trench, who Mags is far from happy to work under again.
One of the greatest elements of Gears of War: E-Day is the fact that it treats the actual “Emergence” of the Locusts as a completely believable and dangerous threat, catching everyone off-guard and showing just how brutal an alien-like invasion can be, even if it comes from beneath the very feet of the people that are being attacked. Everything from the collectables scattered around the world that reveal new bits of tech or character notes reacting to what they’ve found in relation to what is happening at the time, their shock and awe at the fact that a new type of enemy is showing up or that the enemies continue to show increased intelligence such as being able to wield gnashers or specialized equipment, and even little side-missions that tend to involve trying to save and protect civilians that have managed to stay safe from the Locusts for now by hiding or barricading themselves.
One element where Gears of War: E-Day does fall a bit short is in its own overarching storyline. Outside of a very specific event we won’t spoil here, most of what happens as players advance through the game is quite predictable for anyone familiar with the series, especially what little is mentioned of Emergence Day. One thing that does help this though is the fact that both Mags and Lucas are given some actual room for character development and arcs. While it would have been easy to focus entirely on Marcus and Dom’s brotherly connection and the fate that everyone knows Dom will eventually learn, the fact that The Coalition took the opportunity to give the supporting cast of never before seen characters some time to shine is a real bonus, with even side-characters given a bit of spotlight here and there which is made all the more dramatic when the story kills someone off.
Gameplay
Playing through Gears of War: E-Day will feel as familiar to anyone that has touched a Gears of War game in the past as many elements have remained the same, only this time players are given far more movement variety as well as a wide-range of new foes to face off against and weaponry to deal with them. The movement is of course still the same such as the classic roadie-run for cover, ducking behind walls and popping out to take shots at enemies or blindfiring, but the real differences now come from the ability to jump and climb different locations to try and gain a height advantage and flank enemy positions or pick them off from behind cover. Similarly, cover height also can vary more now than before as rather than chest-high walls, players can even find themselves taking cover behind shorter benches or crates with their character practically lying on the floor to avoid taking damage, though this does leave them more exposed to potentially getting hit.
As far as the enemies go, players will still find themselves facing off against mostly familiar Locust types only with Bravo Team responding in new and shocked ways every time a new foe, at least to them, is unveiled. That being said, there are entirely new threats such as a frog-like enemy that shoots out literal balls of acid at the player and is best dispatched with a grenade down its gullet and a variety of new Heavy type foes including the Gorehook wielding ones that can easily down a player in one hit if they don’t keep their distance. It is interesting to note that if the player is playing alone, if they are downed they can be picked up by a CPU ally and every encounter only gives the player a certain number of “downs” they are allowed before dying instantly. That being said, it is also possible for an enemy Locust to execute the player while they are in their crawling phase, resulting in players having to reload from the latest checkpoint.
As far as the weaponry is concerned players may start by wielding pipes but will soon find themselves getting properly armed and eventually having an entire arsenal to choose from including classic favorites and some new powerful weapons. There’s the classic Gnashaer, both versions of the Lancer, be it the chainsaw that slices through Locust’s, even larger ones, like bloody butter, or the bayonet charge, the longshot to snipe foes with deadly accuracy, and a slew of grenade types. However there are now also a number of other weapons that have either spent far too long out of the spotlight, such as the Breechshot that works like a marksman’s rifle including the signature ping when needing to be reloaded, the Incinerator that blasts of deadly Imulsion, the gnarly GutPunch which is a controllable grenade launcher, and much more. All weapons have the same active-reload system as well where players will gain a bonus if they nail the reload at the proper spot but jam their gun momentarily if they miss it.
One thing that is new with Gears of War: E-Day is the fact that players will obtain various “mods” for their firearms. While exploring the city of Kalona and other limited open areas players will find various Hard Cases spread throughout the world that have a mod for a weapon or two, or unlock a mod slot. Similarly completing secondary objectives, the side-missions mentioned earlier, will also often reward players with various mods that add things such as extended clips, scopes, accuracy or damage enhancers, and more. Besides the weapon mods players will also find that they will be able to obtain Tactical Gear as well as Armor mods that can also add various benefits. This includes squad-affecting abilities that make use of a cooldown any time the player triggers them, such as a healing boost to the player and anyone else nearby, as well as armor improvements that provide extra protection while in cover or various other benefits. All of these mods can be swapped around, including the player’s weaponry, at supply caches generously scattered throughout most locations.
Outside of the game’s campaign, which can be played either solo or with others through online co-op, players will be spending most of their time with the game’s multiplayer matches, either through Horde Siege or through the classic Versus mode. Horde Siege gives players plenty of unique and enjoyable ways to customize the type of challenge they want to face, be it limited time missions, short Blitz campaigns, old-school Horde, and classic Siege runs. The real fun part is that while every team of four players is fighting in their own slice of Kalona, there are also other teams fighting in their own sections that tend to be visible in some way. This means it is possible to see how well, or bad, another team is doing all while fighting against your own group before running out and taking the Raven to escape.
As for the standard Versus mode, any longtime fan of the franchise knows that it will likely be filled with a certain kind of player that is obsessed with wall-bouncing and using the Gnasher to try and exploit the gib range. Either that or dodge-rolling around like crazy for no good reason other than to make things less than fun for players who want to actually try something different. It is possible to take friends into bot only matches that can have adjustable difficulty but it lacks that certain uniqueness. The various cosmetics players can use come in a variety of flavors and can be unlocked either through completing various objectives to earn in-game money or purchased using premium currency, though it is worth noting that some of the fanciest cosmetics are only available with premium currency.
Audio & Visuals
Gears of War: E-Day is a gorgeous looking game with Marcus and his allies as well as the terrible Locusts never looking as impressively detailed as they do here. There is also some great cover destruction during most firefights that see players able to whittle away at an enemy’s hiding place to nail part of them that is now sticking out. It also helps that the city itself is also practically a character itself as players will witness it continue to degrade throughout the campaign, turning from a thriving city to a demolished warzone with enemies and firefights at every intersection. The game also remains as gory as ever with chainsaw kills and various executions being as bloodily brutal as possible. As mentioned before, the various cosmetics players can use online vary heavily in quality but there is a decent amount of choices available for those who don’t feel like spending a dime as long as they are willing to put in the work.
It is great to note that the voice actors for Marcus and Dom have both returned to reprise their roles here and they still sound as gruff as every fan will remember. Newer characters are also handled with fitting respect and sound as natural as one would expect given the game’s setting, though it must be said that the title gives a lot of attention to the way the Locusts sound as they encounter the players, especially new enemies for the first time and a certain foe we won’t spoil. The background music for the game is incredibly fitting and it is nice to note that the game even features the signature deep bell chime when every enemy in the area is eliminated, a method that has been long used throughout the franchise.
Overall
Longtime fans of Gears have always wondered just how Emergence Day looked and Gears of War: E-Day manages to deliver that in spades, showcasing the terrifying fall of Kalona all while providing players plenty of new foes to face off against and weaponry to take them on with. The multiplayer might be a bit on the light side at the moment outside of Horde mode but hopefully tht will change in the future as this prequel to the long-running beloved cover shooter shows just how much strength the Gears of War franchise still has left in it.
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