Gears of War: E-Day Fights Hard, But Its Story Stays Put

The best prequels change how you see what came before. Red Dead Redemption 2 gives John Marston's final hunt a human face on the other side, and Yakuza 0 makes the first game's ending hurt more. Gears of War: E-Day tries a version of that trick by jumping back 14 years to the surface invasion that started the war. According to the latest verdict, though, the game uses that setup to tell a story that changes nothing. Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago fight through a familiar invasion, and they end up exactly where the series always leaves them.

The writing leans on beats fans have already seen. Marcus is as gruff and rule-bending as ever, and Dom keeps circling his worry about his wife, Maria. The bond between the two men barely deepens beyond their shared grief. Even the creation of the Mark 2 Lancer, one of the franchise's signature weapons, happens off-screen. Some lore lands like a primer for newcomers, such as a character explaining that a grenade will seal an Emergence Hole, while veteran enemies like Boomers, Tickers, and Reavers arrive with big, showy entrances. It feels aimed at people who have never met them.

Mags Carter and Lucas Reyes, the two new squad members, are a bright spot, though the game takes a while to get to their backstories. Oddly, neither is ever in real danger, because peril is reserved for characters the series has already confirmed will survive. The story closes with more questions than answers and leaves the Gears 5 cliffhanger unaddressed.

The shooting is where the game shines. Locust still come apart in satisfying chunks, and the Gnasher and Longshot are as good as ever. A new weapon mod system lets players add scopes, laser sights, and bayonets, and it can change how perfect reloads work, granting incendiary ammo or faster fire. Marcus and his squad are also more mobile, with slides, quick mantles, and ledge climbs. Moment-to-moment combat is still a cover shooter at heart, though, and it plays much like it did in 2006.

Kalona, the city at the center of the campaign, is visually striking, mixing European-style architecture with industrial factories. Its open sections are less impressive. Many shops and apartments share the same layout, and the side missions mostly ask you to survive waves of enemies. Versus multiplayer keeps the gore and the 4v4 format, but at launch it feels thin, with only six maps, no skill-based matchmaking, and no server browser. The new Horde Siege mode is the stronger addition, with squads fighting over a shared city and a class-based progression system.

E-Day is a solid, entertaining shooter that plays it safe. It still feels unmistakably like Gears, but for a series that has long struggled to move past its own history, that may not be enough.