Publisher Xbox Game Studios and developer The Coalition released a lengthy gameplay video for Gears of War: E-Day and announced that it will launch on October 6 for Xbox Series and PC via Steam and Microsoft Store. It will also be available on Game Pass. Players who pre-order the game will receive early access to the game’s open beta on August 6, as well as the Exfil Dom Character Skin and the Exfil Weapon Skin Set at launch.
A PlayStation 5 version was notably recently rated by PEGI but those plans have now changed as CEO Asha Sharma announced that it will launch as an “Xbox console exclusive.” Additionally, Giant Bomb’s Jeff Grubb recently claimed that this was a sudden decision, and added on Bluesky that “there’s a basically finished version of Gears for PlayStation sitting on a drive.”
The game’s details:
Experience Emergence Day—the brutal origin story of one of gaming’s most acclaimed third-person shooter franchises.
Emergence Begins
Experience the horror and brutality of Emergence Day. Fourteen years before the original Gears of War, join Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago in a gripping origin-story campaign as the Locust Horde first erupt from below, igniting a desperate fight for survival. Rally your squad and fight on in multiplayer with a reimagination of Gears‘ iconic player-versus-environment mode, Horde Siege, or go head-to-head with a refined Versus player-versus-player. Built from the ground up in Unreal Engine 5, Gears of War: E-Day delivers the most immersive Gears yet.
The Story of E-Day
Fight through the chaos of Emergence Day in a gripping origin story campaign.
Horde Siege Player-Versus-Environment: Back and Bigger Than Ever
Survive a city under siege in an evolved take on Gears’ iconic cooperative wave survival mode built for larger maps, more players, and bigger battles.
Choose your class—Assault, Marksman, Medic, or Breacher—then drop in as a four-player squad to fight back the Locust.
Team up with multiple squads to conquer shared objectives and take down world bosses. Survive to earn rewards, unlock customization and improve your loadout for the next match.
Versus Returns: Refined and Focused Player-Versus-Player
Battle across all-new maps and refined fan-favorite four-versus-four modes.
Choose your level of competition. Lock in and climb the ranks in Ranked or jump into Social playlists for a more relaxed match.
Modernized controls and movement make combat feel more fluid while retaining Gears’ signature cover-based feel. Jump, vault, slide, and flank with intent.
A Terrifying Threat from Below
A darker, grittier tone and reimagined enemies restore fear and dread to the series.
Atmosphere and detail are pushed further than ever. The world feels more grounded, believable, and dangerous.
Familiar enemies are more threatening, joined by all-new creatures and villains that reestablish a true sense of horror.
Feels Like Gears. Plays Like New.
Iconic cover‑based combat returns, enhanced with modernized movement and traversal that add freedom and verticality.
Fan‑favorite weapons return and are reimagined, alongside all‑new weapons built for brutal, close‑quarters combat.
Rebuilt in Unreal Engine 5
A new technical foundation for Gears. Built for modern performance with 4K resolution and up to 60FPS across Campaign and Multiplayer.*
Optimized to Customize
Enjoy a great experience on any setup with smooth performance across a wide range of hardware, with borderless/exclusive/windowed display modes, uncapped frame rates on capable hardware, ultrawide support (21:9 and 32:9) for gameplay and menus, and KBM/controller remapping.*
Advanced Performance and Graphics
Play in crisp 4K Ultra HD with HDR10 and hardware ray-traced lighting, reflections, and shadows.
Handheld-Ready and Cross-Platform Play
Fully optimized for handheld play on Steam Deck, Xbox Ally X, and Xbox Ally devices.
Optional account linking lets you carry progress with roaming saves, connect with friends, and send cross-platform invites—then squad up in two-to-four-player online cooperative or jump into competitive multiplayer for up to 8 players across supported platforms.