even blind enemies, forcing them
from cover so you can pull off easy
headshots. Jack is an invaluable
tweak to the established Gears
formula, and one that gives you more
combat possibilities than ever before.
Pacing-wise, the campaign is
brilliant. From fighting robots to an
obnoxiously loud opera in a theatre,
shooting the ice to submerge Swarm
cronies during a frozen lake battle,
or watching as your foes brainlessly
stampede into the rotors of a plane
in the midst of a fight for an airfield,
every step of the story mode feels
unique and handcrafted. Certain
encounters do drag on a bit, but more
than any other game in the series,
Gears 5 knows when to give your
trigger finger a break. Said rest could
take the form of a slow stroll through
a fishing village, or a ten-minute,
combat-free journey on the skiff.
When it comes to the core
shooting, the action is weirdly both
super satisfying and sort of mushy.
As a general rule of thumb, long-
range guns hold up better than their
mid-range counterparts. The likes
of the devastating Boltok Pistol
and headshot dream machine MK1
Marksman Rifle are brilliant, but Gears’
iconic Lancer is beginning to feel
more than a little ineffective against
the bullet-sponging Swarm. The
returning Gnasher Shotgun is also
weirdly up and down. Though never
that satisfying to fire from over-the-
shoulder, blasting it from the hip
against rampaging Juvies provides an
instant, eviscerating pleasure.
As for the online component,
Gears 5 is a mostly decent package.
While the series will never be held
in the same esteem as Halo when
it comes to multiplayer carnage, its
latest offering of modes show Marcus
and co can still mix it up on Xbox Live.
Maps are tightly choreographed and
boxy, often encouraging extended
games of murderous Whack-A-Mole as
teams spring from behind cover to try
and land headshots.Horde silly
Horde and Escape are a little less
successful. The former, while still
enjoyable, feels ever so slightly old
hat. It also doesn’t help that it forces
you into preset roles, meaning no
duplicate characters on the same side- if you’re too slow to pick the COG you
want, you’ll likely get stuck with the
character (and their crummy perks)
no one else chose. When it comes
to the new addition, Escape, things
are merely inoffensive. A roughly
15-minute dash to evacuate away
from Swarm forces with limited ammo
and resources, there’s never quite
enough of a hook to keep you coming
back over multiple hours.
Gears 5 is definitely a success
story... it’s just not quite on the same
Xbox tier of insta-classic territory
as the original Gears Of War. Though
combat is satisfying, there’s the
nagging doubt it hasn’t evolved
enough over the past 13 years – a
point hammered home if you play
Remedy’s recent Control. Still, despite
some overly safe online modes, that
refreshed, never-bolder campaign
makes Kait’s story a tour of duty you
should definitely sign up for. Q
PRISTINE
PORT
Gears 5 is the latest
major title to support
Xbox Play Anywhere,
and The Coalition has
produced one of the
best PC ports of the
generation. With a
wealth of graphics
options to tweak, and
support for unlocked
framerates and 21:9
ultrawide aspect
ratios, Gears 5 proves
to be one of the most
flexible triple-As of- The PC version
can run up to 144fps
if you have the
graphics card to run
the shooter at such
an insane benchmark.
Played in full-fat 4K,
this port looks even
more glorious than
the Xbox One X
version, which is
really saying
something.
“Long-range
guns hold up
better than
their mid-range
counterparts”
OXM VERDICT
A terrific single-
player effort kinda
held back by overly
safe online. Still,
Kait done good.9
LEFT Cruising
around the
game’s new
open-ended
areas in the
skiff is a joy.
FAR LEFT A
couple of
big-boned
Brumaks drop in
over the course
of the campaign.Terminator’s Sarah Connor appears as a DLC COG, with Linda Hamilton reprising the role for the first time since 1991More Xbox news at gamesradar.com/oxm THE OFFICIAL XBOX MAGAZINE 071REVIEW