The Best Xbox Game Every Year 2001 - 2024
6. 2019 - Gears 5
In 2016, The Coalition - a development studio handpicked by Microsoft to take the reigns from Epic Games - put out the first new story in the Gears of War saga. Even with a new cast of characters, a new threat and a significant time jump, Gears of War 4 was criticised as playing things too "safe".
Reacting to this is where Gears 5’s true strengths lay. New robotic companion Jack could be upgraded to change the flow of battle. The game featured optional larger open areas that (whilst poorly marketed as “open world”) made for a refreshing change of pace and allowed players to pause the flow of the story to explore the world a little more. Overall, the level and encounter design are up there as some of the best in the series, and the game was superbly well-written, offering an intriguingly more human drive to the Gears universe.
Unfortunately, the game was severely let down on launch by an extremely thin multiplayer portion. Gears 5's multiple awards of “Best Xbox Game” at the time felt more like the circumstances of it yet again being one of the very few exclusives released in 2019 for the green brand.
That said, like Sea of Thieves, time and updates were kind to Gears 5 in turning it around to something that felt more worthy.