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[GametimeUK]

I love Gears 4, 5 and Hivebusters. I think those games are great. Sure I prefer the original Trilogy, but I still enjoy the franchise. I actually really enjoyed Halo 4 and Infinite too. Halo 5 was mediocre.

I think it boils down to 343 just not being as talented as The Coalition. Quite a lot of sequels these days don't recapture the magic of the 360 / PS3 era in general anyway.

 

[01011001]

because Gears is now made by some of the best, if not THE BEST Unreal Engine developers, and they tried to not rock the boat too much.

Gears 4 and 5 improved the core gameplay subtly... Halo 4 and 5 tried to reinvent the wheel for no good reason.

 

[VAVA Mk2]

 

[Jboemios]

Can somebody tell me what is wrong with Gears 5 multiplayer? I am sure you will put a long list of reasons

 

[SteadyEvo]

Wait, it did?
I was under the impression that everything after 3 was shit.

You are correct.

 

[LordOfChaos]

I thought Gears 5 added too much cruft between the Gears parts (who actually wants to hack a tower? And I didn't find the open world segments added much but confusion on where to go), and later in the game after you hit the red sand it starts to get oddly buggy, nothing game breaking just like disconnected animations and such.

1-3 are still my favorites. On both franchises really.

 

[Warablo]

All of their recent offerings are fun, just doesn't have the same staying power as previous entries because of way more competition these days. Titanfall has similar issues.

 

[Jesb]

Their both are no longer relevant as they were.

 

[legacy24]

gears sucks too
5 ended so badly

 

[bluecowboys]

I thought both Gears 5 and Halo Infinite is great. The problem with infinite was content but the recent update solves that issue. There is literally ( no pun intended) infinite maps to play on now.

 

[Iced Arcade]

In regards to Gears... Sure on a technical level they definitely did BUT not a single person wanted to play as JD and the hip kids.

Let me play as Marcus in an over the top macho gore explosive game.

 

[Ev1L AuRoN]

Gears died on the 360 just like Halo... Only, with Halo, it's worse.

 

[SirKicksalot]

a spin-off that was developed by a studio that previously supported Epic on developing previous installments and ports.

The disrespect lmao
Before Judgment, People Can Fly made Painkiller and Bullestorm! I'd rather play Judgment than walk around villages listening to some emo cunt.
I don't even remember 4, except that it had tomatoes and robots and ended right when it felt like the tutorial was over. I'm pretty sure it wasted my time with some shitty village too.

 

[Hayabusa83]

Gears 4/5 and Judgment are still mediocre games. They just aren't god awful trash like Halo 4, 5, and Infinite.

This is entirely due to having a decent pipeline of development.

I went back and played Judgement after I slogged through 4/5. Had more of an arcadey feel, but I dug it largely because of the legacy characters and the classic gameplay. I also enjoy the little changes to the game design if you activated certain challenges. Nice touch. Considering the current state of the video gaming industry I am glad Judgement and God of War: Ascension came out. At the time they seemed unnecessary and redundant, but now I find them rather enjoyable.

 

[MadPanda]

Can somebody tell me what is wrong with Gears 5 multiplayer? I am sure you will put a long list of reasons

If you like the shotgun meta then
everything is fine. Most people don't so gears multiplayer is irrelevant except to the hard core community.

Everything about gears feel like relics of a long gone era amd that's sad. I remember when the first the came out how big ans important it felt. It really made me feel jealous of people owning xbox 360 (I was a PC Player back then).

 

[kiphalfton]

Everything after Gears 3 has been dire.

The series is in desperate need of a full refresh. I'm taking first person, open world, Battlefield style destruction, complete with a mature x-rated story, A-list voice actors and vehicle combat.

That sort of refresh. Instead, The Coalition have played it safe and Gears has become stale.

No.

 

[Yoboman]

Did it?

To me the original Gears trilogy had the heart of a good 80s action movie

The new Gears games are like the Ghostbusters reboot

 

[supernova8]

Did it?

To me the original Gears trilogy had the heart of a good 80s action movie

The new Gears games are like the Ghostbusters reboot

At a basic level, you cannot really replicate the freshness of the first games. It's a bit like how the first CGI Transformer movie was kinda mindblowing and then everything after it was boring.

I just saw Avatar Way of Water and while it was great, it wasn't "amazing" because I still remember how good the original Avatar was. It's the same thing really.

The Coalition need their own original game to work on. They should let Gears die if they don't have any exciting ideas for its future direction.

 

[SABRE220]

It did? Gears of war was a massive franchise for the xbox360 and the games were arguably all amazing games/system sellers. After coalition games came in the series fell into irrelevancy, the newer games were disappointing and despite the brand power coming from the last generation the new games basically amounted to little in terms of impact and simply existed really,they feel generic and heartless.

Atleast Halo is still a massive name for Microsoft that gets attention even if its bad, no one really even cares about Geow anymore which should never have happened.

 

[Yoboman]

At a basic level, you cannot really replicate the freshness of the first games. It's a bit like how the first CGI Transformer movie was kinda mindblowing and then everything after it was boring.

I just saw Avatar Way of Water and while it was great, it wasn't "amazing" because I still remember how good the original Avatar was. It's the same thing really.

The Coalition need their own original game to work on. They should let Gears die if they don't have any exciting ideas for its future direction.

Agreed. I think the Coalition are talented but they're being told to replicate somebody else's passion project. Its clear to me it just doesn't work that way.

Like God of War would have never worked as a reboot if they didn't bring back Cory who was there since the start who understood the DNA of the game wasn't in the specific gameplay mechanics or camera they used

If Epic and Cliffy B made a new Gears game it would probably be amazing and fresh

If Coalition tried something from scratch that is their passion it would probably be really good

 

[supernova8]

Agreed. I think the Coalition are talented but they're being told to replicate somebody else's passion project. Its clear to me it just doesn't work that way.

Like God of War would have never worked as a reboot if they didn't bring back Cory who was there since the start who understood the DNA of the game wasn't in the specific gameplay mechanics or camera they used

If Epic and Cliffy B made a new Gears game it would probably be amazing and fresh

If Coalition tried something from scratch that is their passion it would probably be really good

Yeah I think at a basic level there aren't very many "visionaries" left. Peter Molyneux was a bit of a snake oil salesman but at least he had grand visions!
Maybe that's why we're getting so many remakes these days. Could also be because the (financial) stakes are higher and executives don't want to take a risk on a new IP.

Sometimes it just feels like we're getting the same games over and over and over with ever so slightly better graphics and smoother edges. Or maybe I'm just getting old and grumpy.

 

[Gobjuduck]

They should do a MCC collection for gears. The new ones are not bad by any means, just not great. Coalition is technically very talented though.

 

[The Tourmaline Gorilla]

Did they though?

Putting aside Gears: Judgement, Gears 4 and Gears 5 are the lowest rated mainline Gears entries. Gears 1-3 were all regularly rated in the 9s by critics and users alike, 4 and 5 were in the 8s by critics and 7s by users. By comparison, Gears 4 and 5 are rated about the same as Halo 4 and 5, respectively.

Speaking only for myself, I really didn't care much for Gears 4 or 5 and 5 didn't capture my interest at all until Hivebusters came out. Gears feels just as dated and tired as Halo. I used to be a massive fan of both but now they feel like relics of an earlier age. There's no doubt 343 has cocked things up worse than The Coalition, but neither franchise has aged well. I've long since reached the opinion that Gears should have ended with 3, and Halo should have ended with Reach. Everything that's come after has been lacking, at best.

I don't think 343 needs to take any notes from The Coalition because they've both put out mediocre content.

Thank you!

 

[Graciaus]

Gears 4 and 5 were not good games. The fake zone open world shit in 5 was complete garbage.

 

[GymWolf]

Latest gears made me abandon the brand and i couldn't even finish the last one so talk about finding their footing...

 

[Jboemios]

If you like the shotgun meta then
everything is fine. Most people don't so gears multiplayer is irrelevant except to the hard core community.

Everything about gears feel like relics of a long gone era amd that's sad. I remember when the first the came out how big ans important it felt. It really made me feel jealous of people owning xbox 360 (I was a PC Player back then).

So the problem is that the gameplay is equal to the previous versions? But we have 2 pages of people saying that new versions are trash when you compare them against the original trilogy

 

[Madserb2023]

I don't agree that Gears found its footing. While 4 and 5 aren't bad games they are certainly a step down from 3. The Hivebusters DLC was pretty good and comparable with the early stuff in quality so at least there is potential unlike 343.

 

[gooner4life_uk]

It didn't, Gears of War was an amazing game, but it got worse with every sequel, not just gameplay wise, story wise, should be laid to rest now.

I would like a re-make of the original though, as it was gameplay wise.

 

[MadPanda]

So the problem is that the gameplay is equal to the previous versions? But we have 2 pages of people saying that new versions are trash when you compare them against the original trilogy

It depends on who you ask. The gameplay is similar but the rest isjr. Cast is different, story is different, pacing, delivery, world they're all different. We've had 5 basically the same games gameplay wise. I think that's enough. Just like gow became stale so Sony retired it until ssm came up with something new, Microsoft should do the same. That's my opinion on one of my favorite franchises from xbox 360 era.

 

[SkylineRKR]

I played Gears 5 on Series S a few years ago and I enjoyed it a ton. Its a far better and cohesive game than the 343 Halo games. Technically Gears 5 is very impressive as well.

 

[phil_t98]

I think the story telling is what let gears 4 and 5 down badly. as games they are ok but gears 1 2 3 had great story to them and built up to a great ending in each game. with 4 and 5 it just seemed to get to a fight with a boss and ended and no build up to being the big fight that it should be. just didn't feel as good story wise

 

[suspicious mind]

I couldnt stop playing gears 5 and even got the srsly 5.0 achievement but i agree that the open world zones sucked.
There is so much to do in the gears games sp, mp, horde, hivebusters. Its like a complete package.

 

[Black_Stride]

As long as the coalition go back to a more linear title for Gears 6 im sold.
I really didnt like the open world, cuz there was nothing to do there and I got a borked checkpoint when finding one of the beacons under the ice.
I kept thinking to myself, why wasnt this just a straight linear path?

Some of the open world "side missions" were also really well designed, but I was like dont like having to find these, they should have just been action sets in the main path.

HiveBusters was an easy 9/10 experience.

And im still a sucker for Horde Mode once ive completed the Campaigns.
I just wish people with stick with it for longer in my region.
I miss living in North America where Horde Mode would basically never die until the next Gears game came out.

Halo Infinite is probably not going to get a FireFight Warzone mode now, but im keeping hope alive for that mode to return.


P.S Lol at people saying 85 is a mediocre score.

 

[Team Andromeda]

I find Halo Infinite to be best Halo game ever made single player. I coudnn't give a toss about the multiplayer

 

[Banjo64]

Pretty simple IMO.

The Coalition are confident in their vision for the franchise and don’t feel the need to answer to the fanbase because of this.

343i are not confident in their vision and are constantly seeking validation and approval from their fanbase.

 

[Drizzlehell]

Both franchises have gotten worse not better, Gears 3 was the last really good one IMO but the last two have easily been the worst in the series with Gears 5 being the absolute worst. The change to a female lead didn't do anything to make things better, she's boring and hard to root for and she feels the same to play as every other character in the series. I think that's a franchise that needs to go away for a while, that or get a major overhaul and become larger in scope and speed up the gameplay, get rid of bullet sponge enemies and the constant need for cover.

I know game pass hurt its sales but Gears 5 only charted in the top 20 for one month, it was number 7 in its first month then out of the top 20 its second month so clearly it's not a franchise people get that excited over anymore.

I think that the story is overall the weakest part of those new games. You got one game with generic hunk who tried way too hard to sound like Nathan Drake, and one game that took an absolute dump on previous protagonist for no reason and replaced him with someone who was just fucking dull and completely one-note.

At least James tried to be quippy and energetic and there was something going on there with him and Marcus, even if it was just about some daddy issues. They could've tried doing something interesting with his character in the follow up. But I was really taken aback when they decided to completely butcher him instead and replace him with a Strong Female Character™ who I struggle to even remember the name of.

 

[winjer]

I didn´t play Gears 4. But I played Gears 5 and never finished it.
It's not a good game.

 

[Drizzlehell]

The disrespect lmao
Before Judgment, People Can Fly made Painkiller and Bullestorm! I'd rather play Judgment than walk around villages listening to some emo cunt.
I don't even remember 4, except that it had tomatoes and robots and ended right when it felt like the tutorial was over. I'm pretty sure it wasted my time with some shitty village too.

Yeah man it wasn't taking a shot at PCF. It's just what they did. First they ported the original GoW to PC and later they supported the development of Gears of War 3. Painkiller and Bulletstorm are some of my favorite games ever, chill.

 

[StueyDuck]

Gears 4 and 5 are by no means bad games. But I wouldn't say they found their footing considering the franchise feels like it's still stuck in the late 2000s

Just remember to throw your knife at friend a or b

 

[Drizzlehell]

It did? Gears of war was a massive franchise for the xbox360 and the games were arguably all amazing games/system sellers. After coalition games came in the series fell into irrelevancy, the newer games were disappointing and despite the brand power coming from the last generation the new games basically amounted to little in terms of impact and simply existed really,they feel generic and heartless.

Atleast Halo is still a massive name for Microsoft that gets attention even if its bad, no one really even cares about Geow anymore which should never have happened.

I don't think it's entirely Coalition's fault, though. Huge part of it was the fact that cover shooters in general fell into obscurity and third person games started getting a bit more dynamic and mobile with their combat systems. Also, Gears of War 4 may have suffered from low exposure. I don't know if it was just me or if it was a more general problem, but I honestly didn't even know of this game's existence until almost 2 years after it came out, and I'm the literal target audience for games like that.

 

[Drizzlehell]

Agreed. I think the Coalition are talented but they're being told to replicate somebody else's passion project. Its clear to me it just doesn't work that way.

Like God of War would have never worked as a reboot if they didn't bring back Cory who was there since the start who understood the DNA of the game wasn't in the specific gameplay mechanics or camera they used

If Epic and Cliffy B made a new Gears game it would probably be amazing and fresh

If Coalition tried something from scratch that is their passion it would probably be really good

Couldn't agree more. I think these games would be way more successful if they modernized the gameplay but kept the spirit. Get rid of sticky covers but keep the testosterone, violence, and memorable characters. Instead it's like they did the opposite. They kept the sticky cover but got rid of testosterone, instead replacing it with a bunch of soy.

 

[vodka-bull]

Gears 4 and 5 were not good games. The fake zone open world shit in 5 was complete garbage.

It was the point where I stopped playing and I was a massive Gears fan during X360 days. Gears just doesn‘t cut it for me anymore tbh, the multiplayer was already dead when I played Gears 5, something I would‘ve never imagined possible because I played Gears 3 multiplayer for years.

 

[Robb]

I would assume it’s because the Coalition is actually a competent studio while 343i is an absolute trainweeck.

 

[ChuckeRearmed]

From my point of view Gears and Halo have opposite problems - Gears has stuck to a formula for far too long, while Halo has been chasing the trends.

 

[Shut0wen]

Now, to answer the possible question that one may ask, which is what do these franchises have to do with each other, there are a number of parallels between them. Both are a flagship Microsoft IPs that peaked on Xbox 360, both were cherished for their engaging story campaigns and robust multiplayer components. Both received two follow ups that formed a coherent trilogy storyline, and after that Microsoft attempted to expand both franchises into a number of spin-off titles. The trajectory of both IPs slightly deviates here because Bungie stayed on for a couple more years and created two more successful games, and we also got a half-decent RTS, while Gears kinda stumbled around with a spin-off that was developed by a studio that previously supported Epic on developing previous installments and ports.

But then they aligned again when Microsoft announced that they're gonna set up new development studios, both of which will be dedicated franchise developers and got christened with names related to their respective franchise's lore.

But the difference here is that The Coalition managed to produce one respectable and one very successful follow-up and a spin-off tactical strategy, while 343 Industries started with a pretty mediocre game and things only got progressively worse from there. Honestly, I think the only redeemable thing they ever did was porting The Master Chief Collection to PC and not making it into such a colossal fuck up that was the console version of MCC. But other than that, the list of mistakes and embarrassments that they've committed it staggering. And the single most frequent excuse that comes out of their mouths is that they're under a lot of pressure from the fans of such a huge hyped up franchise.

Well, in that case maybe they should have a real talk with The Coalition and take some notes while they're at it. Maybe they're gonna learn how to steer a legacy franchise in the right direction for once.

Worth pointing out that a huge portion of what I just said is just me connecting the dots based on common knowledge about the games and their development and release history. I don't claim to know a lot about what goes on behind the scenes. Feel free to correct me on anything as long as you're not gonna seethe like a raging fanboy.

The key to gears success all goes down to rod fergusson while bungie pushed frank o connor out of halo until microsoft given him his own studio ti continue with halo, alot of halos problems goes down to him

 

[ozz ex machina]

Yeah I think at a basic level there aren't very many "visionaries" left. Peter Molyneux was a bit of a snake oil salesman but at least he had grand visions!
Maybe that's why we're getting so many remakes these days. Could also be because the (financial) stakes are higher and executives don't want to take a risk on a new IP.

Sometimes it just feels like we're getting the same games over and over and over with ever so slightly better graphics and smoother edges. Or maybe I'm just getting old and grumpy.

It's 100% the financial risk factor. I fail to believe this industry has no future visionaries out there. They are just either stuck in the indie sector or put in a box and not allowed to explore their ideas. You could argue the environments these days don't foster out of the box thinking and creation is way too data driven (see marvel movies) which has trained younger generations to be less creative.

Once AI makes creating AAA environments much cheaper and quicker. We will see another golden age of creative and well made games. I feel like these huge dev cycles at ridiculous expense and also the GaaS models will be seen as a dark age of gaming in 20 years.