The first three Gears of War games are some of the most celebrated third-person shooters of all time, but they aren't easily accessible on modern platforms. Gears of War 1 was remastered for both Xbox One and Windows PC several years ago, but Gears of War 2 and 3 are still stuck on Xbox 360. Although these two Gears games are, at the very least, playable on modern Xbox consoles via backwards compatibility, they don't have native Xbox One or Xbox Series X/S ports. Because of this, many fans have begged Microsoft to remaster the games and make a Gears of War trilogy bundle in the vein of Halo: The Master Chief Collection. Fortunately, if rumors are to be believed, those fans may finally get their wishes granted.
Recently, the Spanish YouTuber and industry insider extas1s claimed that a Gears of War collection containing the series' first three installments was in development, and that it would be announced during the June 2025 Xbox Games Showcase for Xbox Series X/S, PC, and PlayStation 5. Rumors about this potential "Marcus Fenix Collection" have been circulating around for years at this point, but this is the first time anyone has claimed that it will be coming to PlayStation on day-one, or that it will be released this year. As exciting as this sounds, there is a catch to this rumored Gears of War collection that, if true, can be bittersweet for new fans.
Gears of War: Why You Should Start Over in 2025
Now that the Gears of War franchise is back in the spotlight, now is the best time to revisit the chapter that started it all.
The Rumored Gears of War Collection May Lack Some Major Multiplayer Components
Recent Reports Suggest the Gears of War Collection Will Include Co-Op, But No PvP
Shortly after extas1s commented on the Gears of War collection's existence, a Twitter user by the name of DetectiveSeeds provided some additional details about said collection. Not only did he claim that it would be released in early-to-mid August, he also alleged that it would be enhanced for PS5 Pro, just like the former Xbox exclusive Forza Horizon 5 was. DetectiveSeeds added that the Gears of War collection had already been loaded onto the PlayStation Store backend and that, most surprisingly of all, it would not contain any PvP content whatsoever. Instead, it would eschew the multiplayer component of the Gears games in favor of retaining their single-player campaigns.
Unlike extas1s, DetectiveSeeds doesn't have an extensive track record when it comes to leaks and rumors. However, the ever-reliable insider Jez Corden did corroborate at least part of DetectiveSeeds' report. In a post on Twitter, Corden said that he heard there would be "no multiplayer" in the unannounced Gears of War collection. When asked to elaborate on the matter, he added that it would include campaign co-op but no PvP, according to his sources. Corden also noted that he was still double-checking this information at the moment, so it's best to take these statements with a grain of salt.
The Potential Lack of PvP in the Gears of War Collection Would Be a Big Disappointment
Multiplayer has been a central part of the Gears of War franchise since its inception. The early Gears of War games helped popularize the concept of co-op campaigns and, even though their PvP modes never really became popular in the same way that Halo PvP did, they were still a highlight of the series for many fans. As such, launching a Gears of War collection without PvP, or even Horde Mode, would be like shipping Halo: Master Chief Collection with nothing but single-player campaigns. That, for some gamers, might be too big of a step in the wrong direction.
Even for those that are only interested in playing the Gears of War campaigns, whether solo or with a friend, the potential removal of PvP modes can still be disappointing from a preservation standpoint. Since Gears of War 2 and 3 are more than 15 years old, it's possible that Microsoft will shut the servers for these games down in the near future and thus render their multiplayer modes permanently unplayable. Therefore, as great as it is that co-op campaigns are apparently still going to be available in the Gears of War collection, newcomers to the series may never get the chance to experience the PvP modes in the franchise's earlier installments, which would be incredibly unfortunate.
- Developer(s)
- The Coalition
- Publisher(s)
- Xbox Game Studios
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 5
- Franchise
- Gears of War
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Third-Person Shooter
