One of Xbox’s most celebrated series returns with real confidence in Gears of War: E-Day, yet the game lands during a period of dramatic upheaval at the company, which makes for an unfortunate pairing.
Emergence Day and the Locust Horde
Set 14 years before the original Gears of War, E-Day tells the story of “emergence day.” That is the moment when an alien collective known as the Locust Horde revealed itself with a surprise attack designed to wipe out the entire human race. You play as Marcus Fenix, a younger but still gruff and experienced soldier, as he and his squad fight back against the subterranean extraterrestrials.
The elite group Marcus belongs to is called “gears,” a collection of superhumanly strong men and women who are sent into battle when the situation grows dire. The horde devastates the planet Sera, emerging from openings in the ground to launch its assaults. Its forces have dug a vast network of underground passages beneath the surface, giving it access to strike from almost any point across the world.
A Brutal, Tense Cover Shooter
The cover shooter action remains visceral. Everything has a weight to it, from Marcus’ slow movements to the chunky feel of reloading a shotgun. The game nails the sense of being pinned down in the middle of a war, surrounded on all sides, terrified you’ll run out of bullets before the enemy does.
The game keeps things fresh by avoiding a constant reliance on hiding behind chunks of concrete or burned-out cars. Instead, E-Day features massive scenes where the world falls apart around you as gigantic aliens tear apart the city, alternating with quiet stretches spent wandering through dark tunnels or foggy cemeteries, unsure of what terrors might appear next. The world mostly follows a straight path, moving players from one sequence to the next without pause, keeping the pace steady throughout.
Ridiculous One-Liners and Joyful Dialogue
The narrative stays focused and direct. The cutscenes supply sufficient context to make the characters matter during the big moments without obstructing the gameplay. A great deal of the dialogue seems deliberately absurd, underscoring that this is fundamentally a silly action title from start to finish.
A small number of the cries Marcus and his allies let loose while cutting down alien foes are listed below.
- “Too ugly to live.”
- “Where are you going? I thought you wanted some of this.”
- “Rest in pieces.”
- “It ain’t your day, asshole.”
- “Looks dead to me.”
- “Lights out, fuckface.”
- “How do you like that, you stupid-ass spider bitch?”
Launching at a Messy Time
Xbox is in the midst of “reset,” in which new CEO Asha Sharma is gutting the division, slashing around 3,200 jobs, and dramatically shaping how its current studios operate. The goal is to focus entirely on Xbox’s biggest franchises to reach a billion players, a target that may be unattainable.
E-Day looks like a major, noisy return to Xbox console exclusives after the platform spent years launching big franchises like Forza and Halo on the PlayStation 5. The move marks a notable shift back toward its own hardware.
The Verdict
Gears of War: E-Day is a 2006 version of Gears rendered with the technology of 2026, which I mean as a total compliment. It is a pure action game that isn’t saddled by modern trends.
Firing big guns and cutting aliens in half with a chainsaw are supposed to be fun, even when the story is grim and the violence is harsh. The campaign keeps you engaged by moving through a variety of feelings, including moments that approach horror, with pitch-black tunnels full of bloodthirsty creatures, all the while holding onto its action core.
The game is great. The timing is terrible.
Source material: “Gears of War: E-Day is a great game launching at a terrible time,” The Verge.
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