A Few Cogs Short of a Gear
Multiplayer has always been a big part of the Gears of War games, both in PvP and co-op. In the campaign of the first two games, players would take control of Marcus or Dom. In Gears of War 3 and Judgement, co-op was expanded to four players. Then in Gears of War 4, it reverted back to two player co-op. Some fans wondered, why the step back? The reasons behind it carry over into the Gears 5 co-op campaign that why it settles at 3 players.
Gears is very story-driven. While the gameplay is iconic, the characters and the journey they take is an experience unto itself. Gears 5’s campaign designer Matt Searcy spoke to Screen Rant about the importance of balancing gameplay and story. “Four player co-op means you have at least four characters in every single cinematic and every single story beat at all times,” he told them. “It also changes the gameplay quite a bit, because with four players on foot running around in any direction, a game that’s based very clearly on fronts and enemies and cover and ammo scarcity can devolve pretty quickly into a bit of a free-for-all.”
The story of Gears 5 is centered around Kait Diaz and Delmont Walker. Basically, to have more characters heavily involved would not really serve the story in any meaningful way. The co-op is not limited to two players, however. A third player can control JACK the robot. Remember JACK? It was the gameplay device that forced players to fight against waves of enemies before progressing through the levels. Honestly, maybe they should have just stuck with 2-player co-op. We shall see if this was a good move when Gears 5 comes out on September 10th on Xbox One and PC. It will be playable starting on September 6th if you have the Ultimate Edition.
Do you see yourself playing as JACK? Let us know in the comments below.
Source: Screen Rant