Gears of War is back again, and boy, does it feel strange to talk about its availability on the PlayStation 5. Gears of War: Reloaded is essentially a remaster of the original Gears of War, now polished and made available on a new platform.
We got the chance to partake in the recent beta, which took place over the last two weekends, and are here to give our initial thoughts and impressions on the overall experience, as far as the current visuals, performance, and mechanics are concerned.
The Fight is Far From Over
The original Gears of War is one of the first games I owned on the Xbox 360 and one of the first games I played competitively online. I was much younger then (I still can’t believe it launched 19 years ago), but I’m back to flex my muscles online across a few multiplayer modes and a few classic maps.
Players have the option of competing in both Social and Competitive matches, the former of which gives you access to Team Deathmatch and the latter of which gives you access to King of the Hill and Executioner. There are also five maps to play on, including Gridlock, Raven Down, Courtyard, War Machine, and Gold Rush. The Canals map is only available via Competitive modes.
I’m sure everyone has their favourites, but I still can’t get over how much fun I’ve had on Gold Rush. The general pacing of multiplayer matches does feel the same as the original, and not much has changed mechanically either.
It’s fine for the most part, but I feel like some of these mechanics, including the Roadie Run, for example, are a little dated. I wish it were allocated to the left stick, as clicking it here does nothing.
The pace is a little slower when compared to certain popular multiplayer games like Call of Duty, but I still believe there’s a certain charm to these multiplayer matches, which rely more on smart cover options and positioning.
The inclusion of competitive multiplayer modes felt a little strange at first, but given that you can link your Microsoft account to carry your progress over to the full release, I guess you can get a head start on multiplayer levelling.
You’ll have access to several COG and Horde characters, along with various weapons and skins. But unlike newer Gears games, the original multiplayer offerings didn’t lean as much into classes and abilities, and you can feel it here.
Take cover and shoot, and you’ll generally get the job done, leaving it feeling a little more bland and dated by today’s standards.
Look the Part
I’m fine with the way the game feels, but I feel as though I have more of an issue with the way the game looks, once again, by today’s standards.
Gears of War: Ultimate Edition and Gears of War: Reloaded ultimately feel very similar, although the latter now includes 4K support along with new textures, improved lighting and shadow effects.
I would have thought the added HDR and Dolby Vision support would have contributed to a more vibrant colour palette, but Gears of War: Reloaded still looks a little bland.
I can admit this has always been an issue with the original Gears of War, but with the upgraded visuals, it feels a little more prominent.
I understand this is still in beta at the time of writing, but I feel as though the overall performance was pretty impressive. The game even allows 120 FPS support in multiplayer modes, which is a nice touch. But while I mentioned those more polished textures make the overall colour palette feel bland, I would be lying if those textures weren’t much cleaner and more detailed in the first place.
Gears of War: Reloaded will offer a 4K 60 FPS campaign and 120 FPS for multiplayer, whereas the previous Gears of War: Ultimate Edition only offered a 1080p 30 FPS campaign and 60 FPS multiplayer, which is worth noting for returning fans.
Thoughts So Far
While it’s been a fun weekend across a handful of modes and maps, I think this might appeal more to newer fans or those with a PlayStation 5.
The beta itself is such a small slice of the overall experience, but there’s only a visual upgrade and polish when compared to the original, or even the Ultimate Edition, which might not appeal to returning fans as much.
Gears of War: Reloaded launches on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and Windows PC on the 26th of August, 2025.
All gameplay assets were captured directly via a PlayStation 5 Pro console.
