A triumphant return to form.
What They Say:
From one of gaming’s most acclaimed sagas, Gears is bigger than ever, with five thrilling modes and the deepest campaign yet.
Content:
For months now, I haven’t known a lot about what Gears of War 5 was, in terms of its campaign. The marketing thus far (at least to me) has been pretty vague at best but this wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. In fact, you’re better off going into Gears of War’s 5 campaign with no knowledge of it beforehand.
As a long-time Gears player who put thousands of hours into Gears of War 2 and hundreds into the last two games, Gears 5 is without a doubt one of, if not the, strongest games in the series. Though the campaign is not one where newcomers could jump in without prior knowledge of the game, there are some brilliant recaps that will get any fan ready for Kait, Del, and Jack’s story.
The story itself is the strongest and most well-written plot in the series yet. Previous games like Gears 2 and 3, in particular, were great games with good stories but Gears of War 5 triumphs over those two with a complex, surprisingly relevant story that is made for the current state of the industry.
One of the most surprising parts of the story is how it doesn’t shy away from being political and relevant to the current issues that we deal with in society today. There is prejudice, comments on fascism, and more that are dealt with throughout the lengthy campaign.
In addition, Kait comes more into her own in this game and really takes the center stage as a meaningful protagonist who is able to carry it all on her own with help from the equally complex supporting cast. Like the trailers have teased, this game is about her story and you’re better off not knowing anything going into it.
There are plenty of surprises that await in Gears of War 5, some of which are predictable but there are enough that weren’t predictable and changed my perspective on the series from now on. The campaign (also available in co-op locally and online for three players) follows the standard four-act format from previous games with various chapters breaking up the plot points.
Well, that is except for the open world sections. That’s right, there are actual open world areas that you will experience during the story of Gears of War 5. These change up the gameplay entirely and in the most flexible way ever.
For some players, you might not want that at all and prefer the linear nature of the campaigns from past games. If that’s the case, that’s totally fine as you can just use the skiff vehicle to zoom straight to the next objective of the game and ignore the side content. Better yet, doing this doesn’t diminish the experience either as it is still around the same length as you’d expect.
However, if you are looking for the most bang for your buck, you can do that as well. The open world sections of Gears of War 5 contain larger than ever levels, complete with a map to fill out and explore. The environments themselves aren’t too varied throughout these sections but they do have a lot of interesting content for you to complete.
As you go throughout these sections, you will find side missions that you can complete like finding a group of miners and so on. These additional missions offer fun side stories complete with some extra rewards. There are also plenty of collectibles to find in the environment, including the new components for Jack that actually change up the gameplay.
Overall, the gameplay of Gears of War 5 doubles down on the fast-paced third-person cover shooting mechanics for the most fluid and swiftest game to date. Doing mechanics like wall jumping and other movements are smoother than ever before while the shooting feels the best it ever has.
While most of the gameplay is a stronger version of what it was before, there is something new in the form of Jack. Jack the robot is able to do various abilities in combat now like stun enemies so they can’t hide in cover, turn your team invisible for a bit, and more.
Collecting the components for Jack that are found all over levels and the maps allow you to upgrade the abilities. When it comes down to it, there is a lot of time that you can spend in the story campaign collecting items and completing all of the content there is to offer.
Of course, for many, though, the core part of Gears of War 5 will be the online multiplayer. When it comes to Gears 5 multiplayer, it is a return to form that feels the most like what I fell in love with in Gears of War 2. We waited for launch to experience how the online servers would handle and, though some have reportedly experienced problems with connections, I found that the experience was the best in the series for myself personally thus far.
The traditional versus multiplayer has all of the standard modes like Team Deathmatch, Arms Race, and more that you would expect. There are a plethora of modes, maps, and more that you can spend hours finding what you like the most. There is also a more modern progression system that allows you to unlock various items like cosmetics and more while you play.
The multiplayer maps are solid, having some instant classics like District and Exhibit. Even when you aren’t feeling like taking on other players, you have a couple of options including Horde 4.0. The latest version of Horde is fairly similar to the previous incarnation but with some much-needed tweaks like more emphasis on the class system and the addition of bots.
The final mode that is totally brand new to this fifth entry in the series is Escape. This is a strange but brief mode that allows you to really go in for some quick bursts of gameplay that can be as hard or as easy as you want it to be. It is a three-player mode where you work together to outrun a bomb, defeat enemies, and make your way to the escape via a helicopter in a suicide mission. It is an intense mode that, while it won’t replace Horde as the premier PvE online experience, is a worthy and challenging one.
In Summary:
Gears of War 5 is one of, if not the, strongest games in the series thus far. Every inch of the game has been refined and, in the process, triumphantly returned to the highs of Gears of War 2 and 3. The story campaign offers something for everyone from the tight, well-written story you’d expect about Kait to open world levels with a ton to do.
The traditional multiplayer and Horde feature a modern progression system that matches the swift and smooth movement and shooting. These are all boosted by the addition of the new Escape mode that is a challenging survival mission that, while it doesn’t replace Horde as the de facto PvE experience, is worth checking out. Without a doubt, Gears of War 5 shows that this series still has a lot left in it.
Grade: B+
Developer: The Coalition
Publisher: Microsoft
Age Rating: Mature
Release Date: September 10, 2019
MSRP: $59.99
Platform: Xbox One (reviewed on Xbox One), PC
This review was done with a review copy provided by the publisher. We are grateful for their continued support.
