Big updates coming to Gears 5 for Xbox Series X / S

With the launch of the Xbox Series X / S comes a big update for the Gears 5 campaign and visuals for the new Microsoft console.

Earlier this week, there was a big update announced to be coming for Gears 5, the latest entry in the Gears of War franchise. And it just so happens to be coming on the release date for the Xbox Series X / S — November 10.

Campaign Updates

First off, Gears 5 is getting a campaign update for all versions of the game, whether you own it on Xbox One or Xbox One X. The first big change to the campaign is the addition of actor Dave Batista in the role of Marcus Fenix. You might know Dave Bautista as a former WWE wrestler and actor in the Guardians of the Galaxy films, My Spy, and Stuber. Bautista re-recorded all of Marcus Fenix’s lines and has his likeness in the game. That’s right, Fenix now looks like Bautista. But don’t worry, purists; if you want to keep the original Marcus Fenix in there, you can.

Another change to the Gears 5 campaign is the ability to use your multiplayer skins in the campaign. You will be able to use your character and weapons skins in chapters where you play as that character, and they will be visible in cut scenes.

If you’re looking for more challenge in the campaign, the next two updates are for you. The Gears 5 campaign will have two new modes — Inconceivable Mode is the hardest mode to play on, and Ironman Mode wants you to beat the campaign without dying in any difficulty. Then there’s mutators (options you can activate to change how the game plays). You’ll be able to turn on multiple of 16 mutators that will activate anything from Big Head Mode to you only reloading on a successful active reload.

Xbox Series X / S Upgrades

In the post from Xbox Game Studios, the upgrades coming to Gears 5 for the Xbox Series X / S is everything you could expect.

• PC Ultra visual feature set (this is more true on Series X)
• PC Ultra-HD texture pack (Series X only)
• 60 FPS (Series X only) cinematics allowing more seamless blending between gameplay and cinematics
• 120 FPS in Versus
• Screen Space Global Illumination which gives your scene dynamic bounce lighting
• Contact Shadows allowing per-pixel accurate shadowing
• 4x improvement in load times
• 50% more particles than PC Ultra
• Dynamic Latency Input (DLI) for more responsive gaming

That 120 FPS in Versus is the biggest addition in my opinion. And the shadows you’ll be able to get from this upgrade is going to be pure eye candy. Keep in mind, if you’re getting the Series S, some of the above upgrades you won’t be getting.

Again, this Gears 5 update comes on November 10.