Marcel Hatam

Review: Gears of War: E-Day (Campaign) I've finally finished my playthrough of Gears E-Day and all I can do is shower praise on the team at @CoalitionGears for a delivering an incredible experience. Everything from visuals to gameplay, music, character performances, level design and much more were knocked out of the park. I had just a few small complaints, but this is one of the best shooters I've played in a while 👏 🎮 Played on: Xbox Series X 🕒 Time Played: 18 hours PROS 🟩 Nailed the atmosphere of an apocalyptic invasion and brutal war 🟩 The best that Gears has ever felt from a gameplay standpoint 🟩 Phenomenal visual direction, both technically and artistically - among the best I've seen this generation 🟩 Grimdark tone of the original game returns, Locust invoked the sense of being overwhelmed by an unknown, all-powerful enemy 🟩 Great level design that pushes the player to utilize cover, flank, and use a variety of tools at their disposal 🟩 Open-ended chapters and side-missions felt fresh and added some variety 🟩 Firefights felt like a fight to the death, especially on harder difficulties 🟩 Getting to see the origins of the Lancer Mk.2 and seeing everyone's reactions to encountering the Locust for the first time were a highlight 🟩 Marcus and Dom were unsurprisingly the highlight, and was nostalgic to see them together again as a longtime Gears fan 🟩 Overall great cast of characters that brought something different to the table 🟩 Excellent performances from the main, especially Marcus and Dom 🟩 Fun new weapons, the Incinerator and Gorehook are especially fun 🟩 Good design changes to some enemies, like making Boomers more powerful and formidable 🟩 While shooting is the main form of interaction, missions didn't feel repetitive, with a variety of goals and objectives keeping me engaged 🟩 Exploration felt rewarding with collectibles that added interesting lore and context to events and the history of Sera 🟩 Excellent boss fights that brought spectacle and freshened the pace CONSIDERATIONS 🟨 Locust respawning in a hallway or alley right after I cleared them detracted from the immersion in open city areas a bit 🟨 Would have liked a bit more time focused specifically on Marcus and Dom, maybe in a special mission or two 🟨 Lack of Berserkers felt like a big missed opportunity CONS 🟥 Squadmate AI could use refinement (sometimes wouldn't revive me, little engagement with the enemy) 🟥 Some enemies felt far too spongey (Matrons, Reavers) 🟥 Some frustrating battles Score: 9/10 #GearsofWarEDay #XboxSeriesX