G
earsofWarhasmadeitsnameasa serieswhere
bigdumbmenshootbigdumbgunsintobigdumb
enemies,resultinginanexperiencethat’sas
satisfyingasit is stupid.Gears5 is biggerandbloodierthan
anyofitspredecessors,butina shockingtwist,it’snolonger
brainless.It managestobethemostinterestingand
complexentryyet,withoutsacrificingthestraightforward
joysofitsgrislycombat.
Gears5 placesyouintheroleofKait,theseries’first
femaleprotagonistwhooriginallyappearedasa sidekickin
Gears4.Thestoryrevolvesaroundherpersonalquestto
discover why she’s started having visions of the Locust
Swarm – the Gears’ perennial adversaries – while she and
her companions search for a way to reactivate a powerful
orbital weapon known as the Hammer of Dawn.
It’s a straightforward plot, but it’s bolstered by a sharp
and often genuinely funny script that also explores deeper
thematic concerns about the nature of war. Once an
underdog army, Gear of War’s COG faction is now the de
facto government of Gears’ world. Without a big enemy to
fight, it has instead turned to settling and colonising the
game’spost-apocalypticworld.Indoingso,however,it’s
oftenforcedtocontendwithexistingsettlementswho
don’twanttobecolonised,towhichtheCOGrespondsin
increasinglyoppressiveways.
It’sa levelofintrospectionyouwouldn’texpectfroma
gameprimarilyconcernedwithchainsawingenemiesinhalf,
andit impressivelyexplorestheseideassubtlyandbalanced
withhumour.Also,alongsideitsfamiliar(andstillexcellent)
combat,Gears5 introducesmoreopen-ended
environments.They’retraversedusinga sailingskiffand
includeoptionalside-queststhatelaborateuponthegame’s
world building. It’s limited compared with most other open-
world games, but it makes for a pleasing bit of downtime
between the gunfights.
Speaking of which, although largely unchanged, Gears 5’s
combat has seen a few additions. There are new weapons,
such as a grenade-launching Lancer rifle and the powerful
Breaker Mace, but by far the more significant new feature
is Jack’s upgradable abilities. Jack is your robot drone
companion, and in Gears 5 he can deploy a range of tactical
powers to provide an edge in combat. These include a
cloaking device, a blinding flash, a powerful
armour boost and the ability to take control
of certain enemies. These abilities are
particularly fun to use in co-op play, where
one player assumes control of Jack and
dispenses powers as they see fit.
Add a robust multiplayer component,
including Horde mode, Versus mode and
a new mode called Escape – which sees
players fighting through ranks of enemies
as they’re chased by an oncoming toxic
wave – and you get the best Gears of War
game in years.
RICK LANE/VERDICT
Bigger and
smarter than ever,
Gears 5 marks
a triumphant
return for the
long-running
covershooter.OVERALL SCORE
85
GEARS OF WAR
+^ Great action
+^ Surprisingly
strong story
+^ Expansive
multiplayerFEARS OF BORE-^ Open-world
elements feel
rather outdated
Gears 5 /£47.99 inc VAT
DEVELOPER The Coalition / PUBLISHER Microsoft Studios
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