Summary
Back at the start of June, Xbox held its annual Summer Showcase, and this year’s may have been the most impressive in the gaming company’s long history. While the entire Xbox Showcase was packed with phenomenal reveals, a key stand out for many fans wasGears of War: E-Day, acting as the showcase’s “one more thing” announcement. While many fans expected a newGears of Wargame to show up atXbox’s Showcase, few expected it to be a prequel, and that layer of surprise has already given the game some real buzz.
Gears of War: E-Dayis already set to be a pretty huge release, but if recent rumors are true, then it could end up being the biggest entry in franchise history. Back in July, a job listing forE-Day’s developer, The Coalition, asked for someone with experience working with PSN as well as Xbox Live and Steam. Some fans believed this job listing hinted thatGears of War: E-Daycould come to PlayStation as well as PC and Xbox, and the rumor sprouted from there. As far as gaming rumors go, this one is particularly unfounded, butGears of War: E-Daycoming to PlayStation might actually be a great idea.
Gears of War: E-Day Could Benefit From a Simultaneous Launch on PlayStation
The Gears of War Franchise Has Been Out of the Spotlight For a While Now
Thelast mainlineGears of Warentrywas released back in September 2019, almost five years ago. WhileGears 5earned a decent critical reception across the board – currently sitting at an 82-84 on Metacritic depending on the platform – its sales were a little lower than some of the entries before it. And despite being Microsoft’s most successful launch since 2012’sHalo 4,Gears 5’s launch wasn’t really met with the pomp and fanfare that earlier entries in the series received. It was clear thatGears of Wardidn’t quite have that X factor anymore.
Even at its peak, theGears of Warfranchise never truly stood as tall asHalo, or as any of Nintendo orPlayStation’s biggest flagship franchises. The originalGears of Wartrilogy was instrumental in showcasing the technical prowess of the Xbox 360, and they all helped to bolster an impressive first-party line-up, but in being an “ol' reliable” for Xbox,Gears of Warwas never able to gain more attention elsewhere. So now that theGears of Warfranchise doesn’t have quite as big of a following as it once did, its exclusivity might actually be holding it back, and it might be time for that to change.
Gears of War: E-Day Should Cast As Wide of a Net As Possible
ThoughtheGears of Warfranchiseis far from dead, andGears of War: E-Dayis sure to be a sizable success regardless, it might still be a smart move on Microsoft’s part to release the game on PlayStation. Delivering a PlayStation port ofGears of War: E-Daywould bring the franchise into more hands than ever before, and there’s no better entry to do that with than a prequel set before the events of the rest of the franchise.
Going hand-in-hand with this notion is Xbox’s recent strategy regarding platform exclusivity. Earlier this year, first-party titles likePentiment,Grounded,Hi-Fi Rush, andSea of Thievesall came to PlayStation, and some even made their way to Nintendo Switch. Though fans don’t know if these first-party ports were successful by Microsoft’s requirements, they had some pretty impressive sales figures, which suggests that more first-party ports could be on the cards in Xbox’s future, maybe even includingGears of War: E-Day. While it makes sense that fans want their Xbox exclusives to remain exclusive, a PlayStation port could be the best thing forGears of War: E-Dayand the long-term success of the franchise.
Gears of War: E-Day
WHERE TO PLAY
The Story of E-DayFourteen years before Gears of War, war heroes Marcus Fenix and Dom Santiago return home to face a new nightmare: the Locust Horde. These subterranean monsters, grotesque and relentless, erupt from below, laying siege on humanity itself. New FoundationsBuilt from the ground up with Unreal Engine 5, Gears of War: E-Day delivers unprecedented graphical fidelity.
