On name recognition alone, Gears of War 4 is one of the biggest games being released this fall, but for some reason, there doesn’t seem to be as much hype for it as there’s been for past entries in the series. The franchise has been going strong ever since Cliff Bleszinski and his team at Epic Games put out the first installment on the Xbox 360 back in 2006, although the most recent game, 2013’s Gears of War: Judgment, was considered by many to be the weakest of the bunch. Based on what’s been shown so far, current franchise developer The Coalition Gears of War 4 looks like it could be a return to form for the series after the missteps of Judgment and could very well be a game of the year contender if it doesn’t prove to be too derivative of past entries in the series.
Look, I have no idea if Gears of War 4 is actually going to be any good, but as someone who has enjoyed the franchise quite a bit up to this point, I do think the game deserves more attention than it is currently getting, especially since the franchise celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. Here’s why:
10. A New Beginning Of Sorts
Diehard Gears fans are already sold on the new game, but newcomers or even people who have only played one or two of the previous Gears games may be a bit wary of jumping into the fourth numbered sequel in the franchise. Fortunately, Gears of War 4 developer The Coalition is aware of this problem, which is why they’re positioning the game as a jumping off point for a new story in the Gears universe. As Studio Head Rod Fergusson tells Windows Central, Gears of War 3 was the end of a trilogy and the new game introduces a new cast of characters and storyline, so while returning fans will benefit from callbacks to previous titles, it won’t be difficult for newcomers or people who have totally forgotten what the premise of the Gears franchise even is to pick the game up and not be totally lost.
Source: Microsoft