Xboxcame out swinging last week with its Developer Direct. Not only did it revealNinja Gaiden 4and shadow drop a remake ofNinja Gaiden 2, it also offered meaningful updates on and release dates forSouth of Midnight,Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, andDoom: The Dark Ages. What was especially impressive was that all of those titles are looking to launch in 2025.
In truth, Xbox has been swinging for a while. ItsSummer Game Festshowcase was similarly impressive, mixing most of the aforementioned games (sans the surprise of Ninja Gaiden) withindies like Mixtapeand other potential doozies likePerfect Dark. In between these two shows, it launchedIndiana Jones and the Great Circleto critical acclaim. And withGears of War: E-Day, it could make a potentially great year even better.
Could Gears Of War: E-Day Really Launch In 2025?
Rumours have emerged that, despite no-showing at the Developer Direct,Gears of War: E-Day could materialise in 2025. If that’s true and it ends up being Xbox’s closer in the style of Indiana Jones last year, it could cap off a fantastic 12 months for Xbox. With thelaunch of the new Switch, Nintendo will look to dominate the headlines through 2025, but Xbox can wrestle some attention back if all goes to plan.
However, I will say I have serious doubts over this rumour. While some games reveal then launch only a short time later (see: Ninja Gaiden 4), those games also reveal with a release window in mind (see: Ninja Gaiden 4). What we saw of E-Day at Summer Game Fest was a two minute cinematic trailer with not even a hint of any gameplay - much closer to the far off teases ofIntergalactic: The Heretic ProphetorThe Witcher 4atThe Game Awards, both of which hadsignificantly longer trailers too.
This is also a marked change in direction for the series - the next Gears game was widely expected to be Gears 6, continuing on fromGears 5, not a prequel back to the original cast. There will be little discontent from the fans at swinging the focus back to Marcus and Dom, but if there was a ‘back to the drawing board’ moment during development, that surely puts E-Day even further away. The long and the short of it is if the game is looking like it will be ready to launch in December then I’m amazed it didn’t get any billing whatsoever in a showcase all about games coming this year.
Gears Of War Will Always Be Vital To Xbox
Regardless of when it launches, there is a key reason Gears of War remains so crucial to the Xbox ecosystem. While it will be on PC, as all Xbox games are, it is the closest thing to a true exclusive Microsoft still retains. That may change as the game gets closer and we learn more about it, but for now it feels like it belongs to the Green Team.
Gears of War is one of very few games mentioned in this article that is exclusive to Xbox. I’m counting Perfect Dark amongst these ranks too, but that may not be the case when more details emerge. While Ipersonally have a lot of affection for Perfect Darkand consider its legacy important, it is way short of the cultural impact, legacy, and sales of Gears of War. South of Midnight, meanwhile, is unproven. Having Gears come off the bench is a key moment for Xbox.
Of course, the Developer Direct still offered Xbox a considerable advantage. Ninja Gaiden 2 shadow dropped onto Game Pass, where Ninja Gaiden 4 will also arrive on day one - they will be available on PlayStation, but they will be (effectively) free on Xbox. The same goes for Doom and Clair Obscur, even for Mixtape. It feels like Xbox is going back to the Game Pass well,despite appearing to pull away afterwhat it considered to be the failure of Hi-Fi Rush, but it still needs some exclusives to hold everything together.
Despite some major doubts over whether Gears of War: E-Day even has a shot of making it this year, it will be a game of massive importance to Xbox when it arrives. If that’s this year, it could be the Green Machine’s magnum opus.
