Gears of War: Reloaded

Turn off your brain and enjoy blasting enemies in this straightforward yet highly fluid, quintessential game of its era: Gears of War: Reloaded. If you miss the gaming sensibilities of the PS3/Xbox 360 era, you’ll gladly embrace this experience.

Gears of War: Reloaded is a remaster of a 2006 game so players going into the game with that in mind will likely be happy with what's on offer. But those expecting a truly modernized version of this flagship Xbox game might be disappointed, especially if they're PlayStation newcomers who have been told for two decades that they're missing out on one of gaming's best experiences.

Playing Gears of War: Reloaded is a beautiful reminder of how far the industry has come and what we've lost along the way. Upfront, Reloaded is a remaster of a remaster and does nothing to improve the nearly twenty-year-old game. Various quality-of-life improvements for AI, balancing, mechanics, the UI and more would have been greatly appreciated. Outside of that, however, Gears of War remains as compelling an experience as ever. The story, while lacking character development, remains exciting with stellar worldbuilding, foreshadowing and setpieces. The linear campaign is a true gem and reminder that you don't need a bloated 30-60 hour campaign to tell a compelling story. Gameplay remains basic, yet fun and majorly improved thanks to the enhanced framerate. It also goes without saying how spectacular it is to get the full multiplayer suite included given that most remasters don't even bother. The visual presentation is stellar, bringing what was originally an Xbox 360 game up to modern day standards. Reloaded is a stellar value with its campaign, cross-play co-op and full multiplayer suite, especially on PS5. Would a Gears of War Collection been nice, especially given the fact that neither Gears of War 2 or 3 are available on PC or PS5? Absolutely. What Gears of War: Reloaded does set out to accomplish, though, is successful, especially at giving PlayStation players their first of hopefully many trips to Sera.

It's showing its age now, but Gears of War: Reloaded finally allows PlayStation gamers to experience one of the best campaigns in the previously Xbox-exclusive series. It's just a shame you'll likely run into AI issues if playing it alone. Needless to say, this is a game best played with others, either enjoying the campaign in co-op, or engaging in its competitive multiplayer modes.

One of the most iconic Xbox franchises ever lands on PS5 with somewhat of a graphical thud. On its second remaster, Gears of War: Reloaded won’t impress visually. However, with a campaign that still has something to offer despite its dated design, and an excellent multiplayer mode on top, this is a welcome introduction to the Gears of War series. 20 years later, the game that started it all is still more than worth playing.

The remaster of the remaster of a remake from ten years ago. This Reloaded version of the first Gears of War is a beefed-up Ultimate Edition whose biggest appeal is the thrill of being released on PlayStation 5. If only they had put this kind of effort into the rest of the trilogy... is in much greater need of it.

Gears of War: Reloaded is the definitive version of Gears 1, but only by default. A faithful remaster of a remaster that keeps the series alive and opens the door to PlayStation players, but doesn’t do enough to feel essential. It’s both dated and timeless, clunky and exhilarating, simple and unforgettable. A solid nostalgia trip, but a missed opportunity to make the original shine for modern audiences.

A remaster too far for a game that, through no fault of its own, is showing its age and is further encouraging the franchise’s reliance on nostalgia instead of innovation.

Gears of War makes its PlayStation debut with a new remaster of the first game in the series, Gears of War: Reloaded. I'll admit, there is something surreal about seeing Marcus Fenix and Cole Train chainsawing through locusts on a Sony console. However, once the novelty of playing a Gears game on PlayStation wears off, it quickly becomes apparent that you are playing a nearly two-decade-old game with very few visual updates or new upgrades. I was left wanting much more, especially considering this is the second remaster we've seen for Gears of War.