Gears of War: E-Day Launches with Notable Missing Features
- Gears of War: E-Day launched for early adopters on 5th October.
- The Coalition announced that some legacy features may be added post-launch or in future titles.
- The game’s first Season will run for eight weeks, concluding on 1st December.
Gears of War: E-Day became available yesterday, 5th October, for early adopters who purchased the Premium Edition, Premium Upgrade Edition, or Collector’s Edition of the game. Players have pointed out the absence of certain features, known as ‘legacy features,’ which were present in previous installments of the franchise.
In a statement issued alongside the launch, The Coalition specified that features such as Meat Shields, Chainsaw Duels, select historical weapons, and the ability to create Private Lobbies and leaderboards might be introduced after the game’s release or potentially in future titles.
The studio explained, “We started E-Day with an empty hard drive building our entire gameplay sandbox from scratch to ensure a more unified gameplay experience across Campaign, PvE and PvP.” They acknowledged the trade-off required to create this new sandbox, indicating that including all legacy features at launch was not feasible.
They further added that the excluded features are not removed from the franchise entirely, stating, “Our team is working hard to deliver the strongest and most stable launch experience we can with an eye to how, and what, to deliver and improve on fan-favourite features either post-launch or in our next title.”
In light of recent layoffs at The Coalition, including the departure of story director Juan Vaca, the prospects of future titles may involve different creative directions. The studio has received favorable reviews for the story and campaign of Gears of War: E-Day.
Additionally, The Coalition provided insights regarding the Gnasher shotgun, stating that it is “one of the most iconic and unique weapons in Gears of War,” and emphasized the importance of maintaining its punchiness and consistency. They noted that while the methods for aiming and firing have evolved, the fundamental mechanics of the Gnasher remain unchanged in E-Day.
The first season of E-Day kicked off with the Early Access release on 5th October and will last for eight weeks, concluding on 1st December. Competitive ranked modes for PvP will be introduced on 13th October, with a full general release of the game slated for 6th October. Initial reports suggest a successful debut on Steam and Xbox platforms.
News Courtesy of Eurogamer
