Scratch one grub! Xbox recently announced the next title in the Gears of War series, Gears of War: E-Day. The upcoming prequel, which is being described as this series' Halo: Reach or Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, is coming in the near future, which means now is the perfect time to play through Gears of War games in order.
The Gears of War series takes place in an alternate universe, on the planet Sera, which is Earth-like, but has a few distinct qualities. After the 79-year-long Pendulum Wars between the COG and UIR human factions, which were fought over the control of Imulsion (a very valuable resource for energy and tech advancements), the Locust Horde emerged from Sera's underground and wiped out one quarter of the planet's human population. The games tell the story of what happened after Emergence Day, though E-Day will, as its title suggests, throw us right into the moment that changed everything on Sera.
The sci-fi franchise is about to expand with Netflix's movie adaptation too, which could be synced with the new third-person shooter game's release if the powers that be don't hit too many road bumps. That said, we wouldn't be surprised if the long-awaited live-action project got stuck in 'movie limbo' again.
You can play all of the Gears games on Xbox currently (and the more recent entries are on PC too) and they're all available through Xbox Game Pass. So, whether you're a returning fan or new to the series, it's time to rev up those chainsaws and clear out those grubs. But with a bunch of prequels and spin-offs, it can be tough to know which games fit where in the timeline — that's where our Gears of War games in order list comes in.
If you're after some more space action, take a look at these legendary sci-fi FPS video game franchises that you shouldn't miss: Borderlands, Halo, and Half-Life. Or take a break from all that carnage and give the best space settlement and best space explorations games a go.
Mild spoilers ahead (key story and world-building beats) for the entire Gears of War franchise.
GEARS OF WAR GAMES IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER
- Gears of War: E-Day
- Gears of War: Judgment
- Gears Tactics
- Gears of War
- Gears of War 2
- Gears of War 3
- Gears of War 4
- Gears 5
1. Gears of War: E-Day
- Platforms: Xbox Series X/S, PC
- Developer: The Coalition
After a (roughly) millennia-long conflict on the Earth-like planet of Sera, mankind enters an era of peace and scientific advancements that peaks with the discovery of Imulsion, a natural substance that can be easily refined into an unparalleled power source. This solves Sera's energy crisis, but creates new divisions among the people and nations, some of which have easier access to Imulsion than others. As a direct result, two warring factions, the Coalition of Ordered Governments (COG) and a Union of Independent Republics (UIR), are formed.
The ensuing 79-year conflict is known as the Pendulum Wars, costing each side far countless lives and locking them in a stalemate. At some point, the UIR develops the 'Hammer of Dawn' satellite-based weapon, but a team of COG commandos led by Marcus Fenix, Dominic 'Dom' Santiago, and Victor Hoffman steal the schematics of the superweapon. After that, the COG-controlled Hammer of Dawn destroys a major UIR military target and forces an armistice between the COG and UIR.
Six weeks later, however, the Locust Horde, a race of subterranean creatures that hadn't been seen before (or so everyone believed), attacked human cities all over Sera and wiped out 25% of Sera's population in a single day. These hellish 26 hours are referred to as 'Emergence Day' and will be depicted in the upcoming Gears of War prequel.
2. Gears of War: Judgment
- Platforms: Xbox 360
- Developer: People Can Fly, Epic Games
Gears of War: Judgment focuses on Baird and Cole, two major secondary characters in the mainline Gears of War games, during the early months of the Locust War. The story is told via flashbacks recalled by Baird and his team during a COG military hearing.
It was Baird and his team who used a lightmass missile to destroy Locust forces that were occupying a key COG location. While the 'Kilo Squad' is thoroughly court-martialed, the team ends up being acquitted due to the resulting victory.
3. Gears Tactics
- Platforms: PC, Xbox One/Series X/S
- Developer: Splash Damage, The Coalition
Gears Tactics is a squad-based strategy game inspired by the XCOM series. It takes place roughly one year after the events of E-Day. Sgt. Gabriel Diaz (Kait's father) and Major Sid Redburn are tasked with assassinating a key Locust figure, a scientist known as Ukkon, who might've found a way to acquire regeneration powers.
Redburn reveals he was at New Hope, a research base where the Locust – as well as Ukkon – were created as genetic experiments. Without getting into further spoilers, Tactics is ultimately a key entry in Gears canon despite belonging to an entirely different genre to the mainline games.
4. Gears of War
- Platforms: PC, Xbox 360/One
- Developer: Epic Games, The Coalition (Ultimate Edition)
Gears of War, the first-ever Gears game, takes place 14 years after E-Day. Marcus Fenix has been imprisoned for roughly four years, and the COG forces are trying to assemble a last-ditch offensive to destroy the Locust Horde with a lightmass bomb to be deployed into their tunnels.
Marcus is reinstated into the COG army at the start of the game and joins Dominic Santiago, leading Delta squad after a while alongside him and two other soldiers, Augustus Cole and Damon Baird, as they try to complete their seemingly suicidal mission.
5. Gears of War 2
- Platforms: Xbox 360
- Developer: Epic Games
Gears of War 2 happens roughly six months after the 'Lightmass Offensive' and follows Delta and a larger COG army as they try to stop the Locust from sinking the human city of Jacinto. After learning about the origins of the Locust at New Hope and their true nature, the COG attacks Mount Kadar, where the Locust capital of Nexus was built.
It turns out the Locust are fighting their own underground war with a faction called the Lambent — organisms infected with Imulsion that have been forcing the Locust out of the Hollow and into the surface world, and Gears of War 2 establishes them as the final threat of the original trilogy.
6. Gears of War 3
- Platforms: Xbox 360
- Developer: Epic Games
Three years after Jacinto's intentional sinking by the COG to stop the Locust evacuation of their underground world, the remaining human population has settled on the island of Vectes, which was untouched by the Locust War. However, the Lambent have begun to emerge.
Former COG Chairman Prescott returns with news of a targeted radiation weapon that's being developed in secret with the help of Adam Fenix, Marcus' father. This weapon can destroy both the Lambent and Locust for good, and so the last stand against what remains of the Locust and the Lambent invasion begins.
7. Gears of War 4
- Platforms: PC, Xbox One
- Developer: The Coalition
Gears of War 4 fast-forwards the Gears universe 25 years into the future after humanity won the war with the Lambent and Locust. The new story follows J.D. Fenix (Marcus' son), Kait Diaz, and Delmont Walker, a new trio of heroes affected by the Locust War in different ways. Older surviving characters from the original trilogy play important roles as the story progresses too.
The COG actively pursues the group for a while, believing they're responsible for a string of kidnappings. It's soon revealed a new menace called the Swarm — Locust who were 'evolved' by the Imulsion countermeasure — has been rising and transforming humans into soldiers for a new army.
8. Gears 5
- Platforms: PC, Xbox One/Series X/S
- Developer: The Coalition
Gears 5 takes place only moths after the events of Gears of War 4, and follows the previously established characters, now from the point of view of Kait, as they try to combat the Swarm while trying to understand Kait's connection to the Locust and her (unwanted) place in the future of the Swarm.
Ultimately, the conflict reaches New Ephyra, a major city where the COG tries to repel the Swarm and kill Queen Reyna. As it stands, the Gears timeline and overarching story have been put on pause around this point. The expansion-like DLC Hivebusters adds a bit of post-Ephyra plot though, and we highly recommend it.
GEARS OF WAR GAMES IN RELEASE ORDER
- Gears of War (2006)
- Gears of War 2 (2008)
- Gears of War 3 (2011)
- Gears of War: Judgment (2013)
- Gears of War: Ultimate Edition (2015)
- Gears of War 4 (2016)
- Gears 5 (2019)
- Gears Tactics (2020)
- Gears of War: E-Day (TBA)
