TL;DR – Key Takeaways
- Gears of War E-Day is built from scratch in Unreal Engine 5 – nothing was ported from older games.
- The movement system is completely rebuilt – you can now slide, jump, vault, and climb.
- New control layout remaps cover, sprint, and jump to different buttons for the first time in years.
- Two brand new weapons: the Incinerator shotgun and the Gutpuncher grenade launcher.
- 4-player online co-op returns for the full campaign, plus 2-player split-screen.
- A new 12-player PvE mode called Horde Siege replaces the old Horde format.
- Cover is now destructible – it breaks down during fights, forcing you to adapt.
- This is The Coalition’s longest campaign ever, set 14 years before the original Gears of War.
What Is Gears of War E-Day?
Gears of War E-Day is a prequel set 14 years before the original Gears of War. It takes you back to Emergence Day – the day the Locust Horde first burst out of the ground and attacked the city of Kalona. You play as a younger Marcus Fenix and Dom Santiago, alongside two new squad members: Mags Carter and Lucas Reyes.
The game is developed by The Coalition and People Can Fly, and it is the first entry in the series to be built from the ground up in Unreal Engine 5. No assets, no animations, and no gameplay systems were carried over from Gears 5. Everything is new. That alone is a bigger deal than it sounds, because it gave the team the freedom to rethink a lot of things the series had locked in for years.
Want to know how the campaign is broken down? Check out our full guide on Gears of War E-Day All Chapters and Acts Explained for the complete chapter list and story breakdown.
The Biggest Change: A Completely Rebuilt Movement System
If you have been playing Gears since the early days, the first thing you will notice in E-Day is how differently Marcus moves. The old Gears games were famous for their heavy, deliberate movement. That is still here. But The Coalition has added a lot of new options on top of it.
Here is what is new:
- Sliding: You can now slide directly from a sprint. This lets you get lower cover quickly or push under obstacles. You can even shoot while sliding.
- Jumping: Yes, Gears now has jumping. It is not bunny-hopping chaos – it is limited to crossing gaps and climbing onto ledges or vehicles. It adds real verticality to every fight.
- Mantling and vaulting: For the first time, you can climb walls, ledges, and vehicles without entering cover first. This opens up new paths on every map.
- Cover Gaps: A new system lets you slide and duck to traverse gaps in cover while staying shielded. This makes moving between positions feel way more fluid.
- Sprint improvements: The sprint now gives you more camera control and awareness during longer runs, with a nod to the classic Roadie Run feel.
Reviewers called this the most agile Gears of War has ever felt. The levels are built around this – there is much more verticality in maps, and both you and the Locust use these new options during combat.
New Control Layout – The Buttons Have Changed
Along with the new movement, the control scheme has been remapped. This is the most significant control change to the series since Gears of War 3.
- Cover: Now on the A button (face button) instead of the right bumper.
- Sprint: Now on the left stick click.
- Vault and jump: Now on the Y button.
It takes a little getting used to if you are a longtime Gears player. But most reviewers said it clicks fast and ends up feeling more natural once the movement speed picks up. There is also a Boot Camp training mode in the game that lets you practice the new layout before jumping in.
Destructible Cover – A Game Changer for Combat
Cover destruction has always been teased in Gears but never fully delivered – until now. In E-Day, cover breaks down during fights. Half walls get chewed up by gunfire. Pillars erode. Waist-high cover shrinks as the battle drags on.
When cover gets destroyed, your character automatically shifts to a lower position and can even shoot from a prone-like stance. You can no longer just park behind a wall and wait things out. You have to move, adapt, and find new cover constantly.
This also works the other way. You can destroy the Locust’s cover too, which creates new tactical options during tough fights. Pair that with the new movement system and combat feels much more dynamic than in any previous Gears game.
New Weapons: Incinerator and Gutpuncher
E-Day introduces two brand new weapons alongside returning fan favourites like the Lancer and Gnasher.
- Incinerator: A shotgun powered by Imulsion fuel. It shoots a burning goo that melts enemies at close to mid range. It is especially good against grouped Locust enemies and in tight indoor chapters.
- Gutpuncher: A grenade launcher built for timed detonations. Great for sealing Emergence Holes and controlling tight corridors. It rewards good aim and timing.
Returning weapons have also been changed. The Gnasher shotgun now holds 6 shells instead of 8. A new round-by-round active reload system has been added to both the Gnasher and Breechshot, meaning you can now interrupt a reload mid-way to melee or react to enemies. The Hammerburst is inspired by the original Gears of War version with its accurate burst fire and bonus reload effect. The Snub pistol is also tuned closer to the early games in the series.
Injectors and Weapon Mods – New RPG Layer
E-Day carries over the light RPG elements first introduced in Gears 5 and expands them. Weapon mods can be found throughout the campaign to upgrade and alter how your guns perform. You can also find Armor mods that give you passive perks like extra defense at low health or healing after close-range kills.
New to E-Day are Injectors. These are tactical gear items with a cooldown timer that give you a unique active ability during combat. You find more Injectors as you progress through the campaign. Combined with weapon mods, this gives E-Day a deeper build system than any previous Gears campaign.
4-Player Campaign Co-Op Is Back
One of the biggest returns in E-Day is full 4-player online co-op for the entire campaign. The last Gears game to support four players through the main story was Gears of War 3. Gears 4 and Gears 5 dropped that down to two players.
E-Day brings it back in full. All four members of Bravo Squad – Marcus, Dom, Mags, and Lucas – are playable from the start. If you are playing online co-op, the game spawns extra Locust to scale with the number of players, so the action gets bigger when your full squad is in.
For local play, 2-player split-screen is also available on consoles. This is a welcome feature that many older Gears fans have been asking for.
Horde Siege – The New 12-Player PvE Mode
Gears of War invented Horde mode back in Gears of War 2. E-Day reinvents it with Horde Siege, a completely new take on the format.
Horde Siege supports 12 players split into three squads of four. Each squad operates across different parts of the same map at the same time, completing their own objectives while working toward a shared goal. This is a massive change from the classic Horde mode where one group of five players defended a single area together.
There are four Siege Classes to choose from – Assault, Breacher, Marksman, and Medic – each with their own starting weapons and abilities. As you level up each class, you unlock new weapons and mods to customise your loadout. Completing missions earns Weapon Parts that you can use to upgrade your kit for future runs.
Secondary objectives also appear during missions with extra rewards for completing them. The mode looks built for serious replay value.
Versus Multiplayer Returns With New Maps
Classic 4v4 Versus mode returns in E-Day with new maps set across Kalona. There are six new Versus maps at launch: Outpost, Battleship, Park, Precinct, Market, and Skyward.
The new movement system applies fully in Versus too. Sliding, jumping, and the new vertical map design make E-Day multiplayer feel the freshest it has since Gears 3. The wall-bouncing meta from older games gets a new dimension when players can now slide and jump mid-fight.
Unreal Engine 5 – A Visual Leap Over Gears 5
E-Day is the first Gears game built on Unreal Engine 5, and the visual jump from Gears 5 on Unreal Engine 4 is significant. The Coalition says the environment and character detail is 100 times more dense than Gears 5.
The game uses Lumen, Nanite, hardware-accelerated ray tracing, and MegaLights – one of the first games to ship with this new UE5 lighting system. What this means in practice: lighting reacts in real time, reflections look correct, and the city of Kalona feels like a real place that is being destroyed, not a pre-built ruin.
A new gore system adds localized damage to enemies. Limbs react to where they are hit. Blood, dirt, and environmental damage build up on your character over the course of a fight. It is more visceral and more immersive than any previous entry in the series.
Back to Linear – No Open World
Gears 5 added open-world segments with skiff travel between mission areas. E-Day goes back to a more linear, chapter-by-chapter structure inspired by the original trilogy. This was a deliberate design choice to bring back the pacing and tension that made the first three games so memorable.
That said, E-Day does include semi-open sections within certain chapters. Parts of Kalona open up to let you explore, find collectibles, and complete optional side content. These are not full open worlds – they are contained areas with extra things to do. The main campaign stays focused and forward-moving.
A Darker, More Horror-Focused Tone
One of the clearest goals for E-Day was to bring back the horror atmosphere of the original Gears of War. The first game had a survival-horror edge – dark tunnels, terrifying Locust, and a feeling that humanity was completely overwhelmed. Later games in the series moved toward a bigger, more action-blockbuster tone.
E-Day sets the story at the very moment the invasion begins. Civilians are still alive. The city is still standing. Then everything falls apart within hours. Reviewers praised the opening act in particular for recapturing that original tension. The Locust here feel properly terrifying again – more aggressive, more dangerous, and harder to read.
Where to Play Gears of War E-Day
Gears of War E-Day is available now on Xbox Series X|S and PC. It is included day one with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass. You can also find it on the following platforms:
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the biggest change in Gears of War E-Day compared to previous games?
The biggest change is the completely rebuilt movement system. You can now slide, jump, vault, and climb in ways that were never possible in older Gears games. Combined with destructible cover and new weapon systems, combat feels fundamentally different.
Does Gears of War E-Day have 4-player co-op?
Yes. E-Day supports 4-player online co-op for the full campaign and 2-player split-screen on consoles. This is the first Gears game since Gears of War 3 to support four players through the main story.
What is Horde Siege in Gears of War E-Day?
Horde Siege is a new 12-player PvE mode where three squads of four players work across the same map simultaneously. It replaces the classic 5-player Horde mode and adds class progression, weapon mods, and multi-squad objectives.
What new weapons are in Gears of War E-Day?
E-Day introduces two new weapons: the Incinerator, an Imulsion-fueled shotgun that burns enemies, and the Gutpuncher, a timed grenade launcher. Returning weapons like the Gnasher and Hammerburst have also been rebalanced and updated.
Is Gears of War E-Day on Unreal Engine 5?
Yes. E-Day is the first Gears game built entirely in Unreal Engine 5. The Coalition says environment and character detail is 100 times more dense than Gears 5, which ran on Unreal Engine 4.
Does Gears of War E-Day have an open world?
No. E-Day returns to a linear campaign structure similar to the original trilogy. There are semi-open sections within certain chapters for exploration, but the game does not have a full open world like Gears 5.
What is different about the controls in Gears of War E-Day?
The controls have been remapped significantly. Cover is now on the A button, sprint is on the left stick click, and vault and jump are on the Y button. This is the biggest control change to the series since Gears of War 3.
