Gears of War: E-Day Reviews
Gears of War: E-Day has become a clear embodiment of the modern problems of American game development and of Microsoft in particular. An inadequately large production budget forced the developers not to take risks, and as a result we got a rather boring story and gameplay that in certain aspects has even degraded. Sorry, but rewriting the origin story of the chainsaw gun for the third time doesn't amount to a breakthrough.
Review in Russian | Read full review
Gears of War E-Day feels like an unnecessary prequel, and a bit of a cop-out to avoid addressing Gears 5's cliffhanger ending. It's a competent but forgettable campaign that's too long for its own good that wastes its new gameplay and mechanics on uninspired level design. That said, I'm sure playing this with 3 other friends can still be a blast.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Gears of War: E-Day’s stellar story campaign is complemented by an excellent multiplayer suite, particularly its evolved Horde Siege PvE mode.
Though there's still plenty of waist-high cover, ebb-and-flow firefighting, and braindead machismo, Gears E-Day proves that looking back can, indeed, help you look forward, too.
Great cover-based shooting with terrific multiplayer. Shame the main campaign is an exhausting, endless firefight that outstays its welcome.
Gears of War: E-Day has an opportunity to step up and take the Xbox franchise crown from atop Master Chief's helmet. It's just about good enough to. Long live Marcus Fenix.
For better or worse, E-Day is distinctly Gears, and I had a good time with it, even if the story is disappointing and the open areas are fairly dull.
Returning to the fold with some good and some bad.
Gears of War: E-Day brings the series back to its literal roots, delivering all the blood-soaked action and characters that made it a hit. Filled with expansive maps, tons of thrilling enemy encounters, a slew of weapon modifications, and a truly gripping action-movie narrative, it's the must-own Xbox exclusive of 2026.
A prequel that looks and feels far too similar to the 20-year-old original and while it’s a vastly more entertaining experience in co-op, it still feels worryingly old-fashioned and overfamiliar.
Gears of War excels when it leans into humanity versus monsters, is painted with a brush drenched in blood, and offers vicious, savage gameplay that belies surprisingly rich stories and heartfelt characters.
Gears of War: E-Day is a reminder of just how bloody good this series can be. After twenty years, perhaps Gears didn't need another revolution, it just needed another Emergence Day.
Gears of War: E-Day features an action-packed co-op campaign, intense PvP multiplayer, and an endlessly replayable Horde Siege mode.
Gears of War: E-Day hits all the right notes for veteran Gears and newcomers alike. Witnessing the fall of Kalona is terrifying, but it's filled with the level of action you'd want from a Gears title.
Gears of War E-Day's campaign offers balls-to-the-wall action and rarely lets up, but that means the story takes more of a back seat than I'd like. It's good that time is given to the backstories of new protagonists Mags and Lucas, but given that the game is literally the playable Marcus and Dom backstory fans have been waiting decades to see, more time could have been spent on their relationship. In terms of pure gunplay, however, very little beats it this year.
E-Day boasts the best combat in 20 years of Gears games – but everything surrounding it is disappointing
The story does an excellent job of bridging a gap between the Gears world before the locust invasion and after.
Gears of War: E-Day is a good entry point.
The Coalition modernizes movement and cover mechanics without sacrificing the series' hallmarks-such as its sense of weight and brutality-delivering a spectacular campaign, a Versus mode that intelligently revives old-school multiplayer, and Horde Siege, an ambitious and compelling evolution of the classic Horde mode. Add a top-tier technical presentation to the mix, and the score speaks for itself.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Gears of War: E-Day has been promoted as the most ambitious game ever made by The Coalition, but to be honest, it feels like a step back from Gears 5 in several ways. The narrative is a lot less memorable, and the side content is forgettable. Its saving grace is that the third-person shooter gameplay is better than ever, thanks to improved movement and fluidity, making combat encounters generally a lot of fun. Still, it's not the kind of masterpiece that sells a console like the original did.