Gears of War: E-Day Drops Gameplay First Look, Xbox Exclusive Launching October

The Gears of War prequel has dropped its first gameplay footage at the Xbox Showcase case, and it did not disappoint. Oh, and we’ve got a release date too.

As we already knew with Gears of War: E-Day, it takes place years before the events when the Locust and their queen had taken over the planet Sera.

The stunning gameplay featured a young Marcus Fenix alongside his brother-in-arms, Dominic Santiago, battling the Locust on the streets of Sera, which is a strange sight to see considering we’re used to seeing this planet in ruins in the sequel games.

It was believed that Gears of War: E-Day would be coming to PlayStation 5, as well as PC and Xbox Series X/S. However, that is no longer the case because Asha Sharma, the new Xbox CEO, has confirmed that it will be an Xbox console exclusive. So it might be worth assuming that it won’t be coming to PS5 anytime soon, if at all.

Why isn't Gears of War: E-Day coming to PS5?

We can safely assume that it’s a tactic to help get Xbox back on track. Back in the day, the thought of Gears of War coming to PlayStation would have been unthinkable. Though we did get the remaster of the original Gears on PS5 in 2025, which still feels weird to this very day.

Whether or not this tactic will work by making Gears of War: E-Day a console exclusive remains to be seen. However, it will take a lot more console exclusives to help Xbox get back on track. But as they say, “one step at a time” and whatnot.

One Xbox game that we know for sure won’t be a console exclusive is the upcoming remake of Halo: Combat Evolved, which is also coming to PlayStation 5 next month, after it was revealed that the remake will have three all-new missions not in the original game.

What’s the Story of Gears of War: E-Day?

“Experience the horror and brutality of Emergence Day. Fourteen years before the original Gears of War, join Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago in a gripping origin-story campaign as the Locust Horde first erupt from below, igniting a desperate fight for survival,” reads the synopsis of the game. “Rally your squad and fight on in multiplayer with a reimagination of Gears’ iconic PvE mode, Horde Siege, or go head-to-head with a refined Versus PvP.* Built from the ground up in Unreal Engine 5, Gears of War: E-Day delivers the most immersive Gears yet.”

Gears of War: E-Day Release Date

Gears of War: E-Day will be released on PC and Xbox Series X/S on October 6, 2026. It will also launch on Xbox Game Pass.

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