Gears 5

Gears 5's campaign is the best the series has seen, and Escape mode is a brilliant new addition. It's fun to play, beautiful to look at, and full of some of the best characters the series has ever seen.

“Gears 5 is one of the best games on Xbox One, with a satisfying campaign and tremendous multiplayer.”

Gears 5 is one of Microsoft’s best games this console generation. It’s a package that’s brimming with content, and has top-notch stuff on offer for you no matter what you’re looking for. With its campaign, it successfully revitalizes a franchise may had feared was becoming stale, while with its online component, it continues to be on the top of its game, the way the series always been since the day it was born.

Back at E3 2019, The Coalition’s studio head, Rod Fergusson, told fans that Gears 5 would be “less safe” than Gears 4. It wouldn’t stick faithfully close to the tried and true formula that Epic Games laid down all those years ago, but build and develop on it further. After playing about 20 hours of Gears 5 over the last few days, I can wholly confirm that Fergusson wasn’t lying, and the changes make Gears 5 feel like a true next step for the series.

We like it when creators are able to recognize their mistakes. Gears 5 lets go of the expedition company of rookie boy scouts, and serves a hard-boiled action shooter instead. Just like the old days.

Gears 5 is an odd thing; it's neither a grand leap forwards, nor a complete rehash of what came before, and therefore sits somewhere in the middle of the two. On the whole, the improvements do outweigh the negatives (the non-linear approach to campaign levels and the small changes to horde mode being some of the most notable), and while The Coalition still has some work to do to really make the series its own, this is a far bolder and more varied approach the relatively safe Gears 4. If you love shooters and you want a good place to jump back into the series, this is perfect place to work the ...

Gears 5 once again feels like a safe bet by The Coalition.  You can start to see the developer thinking about new ideas and potential directions that the series can go, but Gears 5 feels largely familiar.  The additions of some new features and a new mode added to the fan-favorites that return make for a robust package though.

Those who had already made up their mind were never going to be convinced anyway, allowing the latest entry to do everything possible to cater to a loyal fan base without insulting them by just re-releasing Gears 4. With that said, it also opens the door far enough to let fresh light shine in. It’s like welcoming home an old friend only to find they have a new haircut that looks better the more you see of it.

The Coalition has slightly fiddled with the formula, and whilst some adjustments need to be refined for future entries, Gears 5 is ultimately the gorgeous third-person shooter you want it to be.

A new voice amidst time-honoured mechanics.

With new additions, Gears 5 makes its cover-shooter core more adaptive to different playstyles.

Gears 5 feels like a desperate attempt by The Coalition at trying to carve out a new identity for the series, but the execution feels half-hearted. The pseudo open-world skiff exploration is enjoyable early on, but the uninspired objectives end up making it feel dull after a while.