It hasn’t updated the formula much since the first game, but it hasn’t needed to, either. Gears of War popularized the cover-based shooter that dominated gaming in the mid-aughts. From there, I’d aim down the sight to attack the baddies, or move between cover to out-flank the enemy. Pushing a button would make Kait crouch and cling to the nearest chest-high wall. If I was out in the open, the bad guys would quickly kill me. Gears 5’s single-player campaign mostly involved making my way down linear sets of wide corridors with chest-high walls I ducked behind to fling grenades and take shots at Swarm and Locust troops. The plot of Gears 5 revolves around Kait discovering the secret of her birth while battling alongside COG forces and against the monstrous bad guys. Story events quickly sideline JD, leaving me to spend most of the game as Kait, a woman born on the fringes of the COG empire with a mysterious secret. Players spend the first act playing as JD, the badass son of long-time series protagonist Marcus. In Gears 5, that struggle seems to be drawing to a conclusion as the pseudo-fascist human rulers, the Coalition of Ordered Governments (COG), consolidates power. In sum: on an Earth-like planet in a futuristic world, humanity has been locked in life-or-death struggles with monstrous enemies called The Locust and The Swarm. Thankfully, The Coalition included a brief movie that caught me up on everything I’d missed. Sadly, I missed the last few entries in the series. These games have always been over the top, but they take their story seriously. Gears 5 is, weirdly enough, the sixth title in the franchise that started with 2006’s Gears of War. In a video game market increasingly dominated by live experiences and “free to play” schemes, that’s no small thing. Gears 5 won’t challenge you, but it looks and sounds incredible, controls well, and is worth every penny of its $60 price tag. It’s like a Marvel movie or the latest Fast & Furious movie. Gears 5 is the game equivalent of a reliably dumb yet fun summer action blockbuster.

Some, like Gears 5, I play on a huge 4K television while surround sound explosions shake my walls. Some I play while a podcast or TV show runs in the background and my brain turns to gelatin. Some video games I play on the train while waiting for my stop.

Gears of war 4 campaign length