Preview of the Gears 5 campaign: the evolution you've been waiting for

I am a big fan of the Gears of War franchise. From the first game, my family and siblings used to cooperate with Gears, as with every new version. But like this sense of tradition, Gears of War, as a franchise, has certain expectations.

I loved Gears of War 4, which introduced us to a new generation that is trying to carve out a place in a world recovering from a devastating war. The subterranean underground monster has almost succeeded in annihilating humanity, is not it for Marcus Fenix, Dom Santiago and the rest of the Delta Squad, Gears of War 1 to 3. Gears 4 has taken a slightly different approach, presenting us with a new threat – the swarm – born from the ashes of the grasshopper. But beyond that, he played extremely safe with the "Gears" format. Cover walls of chest height, cinematic decors and linearity without surprises.

Give up on your expectations – Gears 5 changes everything.

Microsoft invited us into the Coalition's studios to check Gears 5 before the game's launch. It's not "Just another Gears."

For our preview, the coalition has propelled us on a few chapters, near the set of this mysterious original trailer. I do not want to give too much to those looking to avoid the mess, but the claws of the more than 20-hour campaign that we explored allowed for a better understanding of the dynamics between Kait, Del and JD and the state current relationship of the trio. .

The three were before outsiders, living outside the jurisdiction of the COG government. Now they are all enlisted, as are almost all Outsider villages, as the skirmishes between Swarm and the remaining humans intensify. The first time we played, we ventured into one of Outsider's last outposts to try to get them involved voluntarily.

I've already had a feeling of building the world that looked like an advance of Gears of War 4. Exploring the village has produced tons of collectibles filled with tradition, which provided a context for the tension between the Outsiders and the COG. Children ran playing "Kill the Fascists!", In reference to the dictatorial iron fist that the COG maintains over the other nations of the world.

Finally, you will meet the village chief – a familiar face. But there was little time for a meeting. A whole new cavalcade of evil Swarm enemies suddenly knocks out the outpost, killing civilian NPCs as you lead the counter-attack.

The coalition announces loud and clear that it is ready to develop this franchise

Like many Gears 5 systems, the Swarm has begun to evolve beyond its locust roots. The new leech – like parasites that swarm in the air, similar to Kryll, can also reverse COG technology. One of the new enemies is a grotesque half-biomutant of the DR-1 DeeBee robot, a swarm, which functions as a living turret known as Strain. These enemies have heaps of health and can fix themselves dynamically on walls or ceilings, while nibbling their health. They also tend to use heavy weapons, which makes them even more difficult to handle. Corrupted DeeBees are also much more fun to fight than their more metallic cousins ​​and should be a little more popular than they were before.

During the attack, Kait loses control, subverted by Swarm spirit. During this sequence, you have the ability to control different units of Swarm, while heartbreaking whispers swirl in Kait's head. It is in this case that Kait realizes that something is wrong at all and that her connections with the Swarm could be deeper than she had previously thought.

Throughout the acts that we played, Kait had headaches from Swarm Hivemind, as well as paranoid visions filled with dark whispers, full of bad intentions. This gives an idea of ​​what it looks like to be hooked up to the Locust / Swarm genre, adding a layer of horror to the mix. The Hivemind tries to push Kait to beware of his allies, showing him his vision of them conspiring against her. It's hard to tell who to trust, which makes the campaign all the more mysterious – nothing seems safe, and it is this pervasive sense of vulnerability that could help make this story the most compelling of Gears to date.

As Kait travels through Sera to discover the truth about her origins, you will travel through vast open world hubs that represent some of the largest areas of Gears of War to date. A skiff driven by the sail (which behaves very well) is your main means of transport, with the ability to store heavy weapons for later use. We have experienced two biomes for Gears 5, one in the sand scrap surrounding Mount Kadar and New Hope and the other in the red sands of the former UIR territory.

These areas may be closer in size than those found in games like Metro Exodus – a world not really open – but designed to encourage exploration and reward players who enjoy the crossing. To fit the format, Gears 5 is the first in the series with a real card feature, giving you access to "?" places that may contain resources, history items or collectibles.

The two areas we explored were very compact and dense. Kait and Del have also spoken often about landscape, random jokes and every place they encounter, helping Gears retain its characteristic cinematic feel. It's not an open world, but the Coalition has worked very hard for Gears to keep the feeling that fans are waiting while creating a web to truly evolve the franchise.

You can simply skip all related quests and content if you wish. We have been told that the Coalition expects a player jumping off side quests and exploration to roam the campaign in about 12 hours, while those who test would see more than 20. A completionist could find even more to discover. In addition to collectibles such as text logs and data files, there are also unique "Relic" weapons to discover that have unique properties. A Relic weapon we found was a Boltok pistol designed for gunslinger style hip shooting. To obtain it, we had to fight through two Swarms and waves of enemies to obtain it, who had swarmed in a crashed COG plane.

To improve more open areas, the Coalition also had to multiply the reasons to explore. One of these reasons comes in the form of the Robot Jack, which represents the first foray of Gears 5 into lightweight role-playing progression systems. Jack is much more powerful and powerful than he was in previous games, mainly used to open doors. He can now zap his enemies with stunning electric shocks, create shields on his allies and generate stealthy fields for the entire group.

Gears 5 creates an impression of scale that previous games just could not reach.

These systems and features can be upgraded with the help of technology found around the cards and game locations, as well as unlocked as part of the story. The enemies have also been adjusted in response to Jack's presence, which requires some of his abilities and tactics to progress effectively. For example, levels are not washed with ammo as in previous games, but you can send Jack recover ammo from enemies shot on the ground. You can not to depend on Jack, however, because many of his skills are associated with relatively long cooldowns, especially when he plays in "Experienced" mode or above.

Connecting these more open areas is more traditional than Gears. We plunged into the frozen ruins of the New Hope facility, with its well-known labyrinthine corridors. We explored the UIR rocket silos in the burnt desert, with its own cultural interpretation, evoking a larger world. Gears is renowned for its epic cinematic backgrounds, while the open world zones that connect them allow Gears 5 to feel more modern, while creating an impression of scale that previous games just could not reach. .

Although the RPG layer on Jack and the open world systems are relatively rudimentary, they testify to the care and attention that the Coalition takes as they develop openness. Clearly, it's about exploring the limits of what Gears of War can really be, without sacrificing everything that has made the franchise. The fact that the studio kept the package tight and tight represents a desire to maintain this level of cinematic rhythm that is often completely lost when other games make the leap into the "open world". Do not expect to spend 30 hours picking herbs or doing recurring recovery quests, for example. Each place came with something interesting to find, with unique dialogues and scenes.

The fact that Gears 5 realizes the 4K 60 on the Xbox One X in all its modes, without apparently sacrificing the slightest visual quality of Gears of War 4 is nothing short of magic. The game was as fluid as they came, with a smooth and satisfying rifle game and a neat vehicle outfit on the Skiff. Part of the lighting and distances to travel simply defies belief. Although the game uses a dynamic scaling of the resolution to maintain this cadence, it is difficult to perceive at the naked eye.

I found myself bewitched by the snow and sand effects of the game, which glitter in the light and dissipate naturally under the weight of your boots. The dynamic cover that appears with Razorhail's spikes striking the ground or rising from the ground as lightning instantly strikes and shimmers the sand is impressive and creates an ever-changing battlefield. Even in the slower-paced sections, where you can initiate a fight from the stealthy mechanics of the game, you've felt polite, albeit rudimentary, great for exploring in upcoming episodes. The game even features some lightweight puzzle elements, since Kait guides radio sensors to uncover locations on the open world map of the game.

Gears 5 is everything the franchise needs

Even if I'm waiting for Gears 5 to appear after this gameplay demo, what I'm passionate about more than anything is the fact that The Coalition is loud and clear that it's ready to develop this franchise.

Gears 5 is the evolution that the franchise desperately needed.

They will not milk complacently the basic format of Gears of War again and again for years. The fact that the studio explores ways to introduce exploration, vehicle traversal and RPG progression mechanics, without sacrificing the dense cinematic action that makes Gears famous, convinces me that The Coalition is the ideal steward of this legendary franchise.

By 2019, there were no universes in which Gears of War could continue to progress with the linear shooter format. Like the ever-changing enemies of the game, Gears of War must evolve to meet the expectations of modern players. It seems that Gears 5 represents the evolution that the franchise desperately needed.

Related: Interview with the Gears of War Coalition on the Future

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