Gears of War: Ultimate Edition is a remake of the original Gears of War which released back in November 2006 for Xbox 360. For those unfamiliar with the title, Gears of War is a third-person shooter originally developed by Epic Games for Microsoft Studios. Microsoft eventually bought the rights to the franchise and appointed The Coalition to manage the expansion of the series. The original Gears of War follows Delta Squad’s efforts to help deploy a Lightmass bomb deep in the Locust tunnels to wipe out the growing threat. While The Coalition is hard at work on Gears of War 4, they still managed to update a classic title that gave us numerous memorable characters, phenomenal gameplay, and a beloved franchise for the next-generation. The results are magnificent and the multiplayer portions are where the remake truly shines.
The story behind Gears of War is one of the most intriguing. The beginning of the game gives you an overview of the events that changed the course of a civilization forever. Rather than letting the subterranean invaders known as Locust take over their world, humans destroy their own cities and turn everything into an ashen wasteland. If you think about it, it does seem like what we would do when faced with such a threat. Instead of using giant orbital lasers, we would deploy nuclear weapons. Despite the casual dialogues and humorous interactions between the various characters, the game accurately captures the intensity of prolonged war and everything from the environment and music add to that feeling.
Instead of taking you all the way back to Emergence Day when the Locust first appeared, the game drops you in the middle of the conflict and does not hold your hand to discover every element of the story. You learn about it through the dialogues and places you visit. Abandoned gas stations, empty manors, and dark factories paint an accurate picture of the devastation and strife prevalent through the world. The story is conveyed through visuals as much as it is through words. For example, posters that hint at political unrest and protests against the use and drilling for the energy source Imulsion give you glimpses into what life was like leading up to the war.
There are also many touching moments in the story. At one point you venture into the old Fenix Estate which is the family home of the main character. Looking at the pictures and imagining what life was like before the war makes you feel sorrow for all those affected. Gears of War manages to invoke complex emotions throughout its campaign even though it is shrouded in a veil of humor and nonstop action.
The original game also introduced us to amazing characters like the legendary Marcus Fenix, Dom, and the loveable Cole Train. While their backgrounds are hinted at in the first game, your journey throughout the title with these individuals makes you care about them. You want to know more and thankfully the Xbox 360 games that come with Gears of War: Ultimate Edition give you a chance to learn about them all. The addition of the previous Xbox 360 games in the franchise was a brilliant move that allows players to continue the adventure even after the first game is over.
Gears of War: Ultimate Edition is presented at 1080p for both single-player and multiplayer modes. The graphics are absolutely gorgeous and the remake is one of the most visually striking titles available for Xbox One. It definitely feels like a next-generation game. However, the game runs at 30 frames per second during its single-player campaign and a smooth 60 frames per second for the multiplayer parts.
When I played the game, I went back and forth between playing the two modes and it was a rather jarring experience to make the switch between 30 frames per second and 60 frames per second over and over again. I realize that the development process is difficult and choices have to be made regarding these factors, but I would have preferred that both components ran at 60 frames per second. Going back to single-player from multiplayer detracts from the experience because you keep on wishing both parts were 60 frames per second. It is harder to control your character and the shooting feels sluggish in comparison. I would have liked the controls during single-player to be more responsive and the shooting mechanics tighter. Multiplayer feels like a separate game that you wish would spill over into the single-player experience. I wanted a consistent experience across both modes.
I realize some people prefer the cinematic quality of 30 frames per second but I had a hard time going back and forth. Halo: The Master Chief Collection, despite its troubles at launch, adopted the right approach. They bumped up the frame rate to 60 for single-player and multiplayer and it elevated the entire experience. It felt like playing a new game because the shooting never felt better. Gears of War: Ultimate Edition should have adopted that approach for the Xbox One version.
With that said, the shooting mechanics are the best they have ever been. It seems that The Coalition made tweaks to the gameplay and mechanics because everything seem better than when you play the original Xbox 360 version through backwards compatibility. Even the 30 frames per second presentation when compared to the original game seems more precise and satisfying. The 60 frames per second multiplayer is just on another level though. It is a phenomenal shooting experience and quite possibly the best third-person multiplayer shooter out there. The fluidity and precise shooting mechanics are unmatched by anything I have ever played before. It definitely raises the bar once more. Even moving from cover to cover—a core pillar in the Gears of War franchise might I add—feels better than the original. This is definitely the definitive Gears of War experience. It makes the wait for Gears of War 4 even harder.
I could go on and on about Gears of War: Ultimate Edition but I have to say that the remake is almost perfect. The extra features like the comic books you can unlock by picking up tags add to the game’s appeal. Fans of the franchise will enjoy experiencing the title again just for the added content, updated visuals, and smooth 60 frames per second multiplayer. Newcomers will get the chance to play one of the best third-person shooters out there and relive the entire original saga because it grants you access to the Xbox 360 games for free. Gears of War: Ultimate Edition is another amazing value like Rare Replay and Halo: The Master Chief Collection.
Overall, despite my issues with the single-player frame rate and some minor performance problems, Gears of War: Ultimate Edition is a great title that every Gears of War fan should experience because it offers so much more apart from the graphical upgrade. Do yourself a favor and pick this one up. The title comes with many add-ons too that let you tweak your guns and looks in multiplayer. There is so much to discover and do. I cannot recommend this title enough.
Xian was a regular ICXM contributor between 2015–2017, publishing 162 articles across game reviews, Windows and PC, and Xbox news. Their work focused on hands-on reviews, platform commentary, and breaking-news reporting during the Xbox One X launch year and Microsoft’s wider Play Anywhere / UWP gaming initiative.