This article is based on a Gears of War: E-Day preview build. This is not a full review, so please note that certain aspects may still change before release.
The Gears of War series' post-apocalyptic world is a familiar sight, filled with ruined cityscapes and overgrown environments, the aftermath of a war that has spanned over a decade even during the original trilogy. Emergence Day is marked as the day that kicked off the war between humans and the Locust Horde, but outside of short cutscenes and novels, this iconic event has been largely missing from the games.
However, Gears of War E-Day is taking fans back to the beginning, and in more ways than one. Developer The Coalition has already given fans the opportunity to check out the multiplayer side, but only snippets of gameplay footage of the story campaign have been shown off so far. I had the opportunity to go hands-on with a small slice of the E-Day campaign last week thanks to Microsoft. The brief time I spent with the game, which was spread across two levels, wasn't enough to let me assess the full experience. But I was definitely wanting more by the time it ended.
Welcome to Kalona
The entirety of Gears of War E-Day is set in the city of Kalona, focused on the first three days of the war as humanity gets surprised by this emerging monster threat. Skipping the introduction, the preview mission I had access to was set in Act 2, bringing Marcus, Dom, and the rest of Bravo Squad (including the new squadmates Mags Carter and Lucas Reyes) in contact with the first semblance of a defense force. As I was introduced to the COG army command that's building up this quick reaction force, what first caught my eye was just how good the facial animations looked inside the in-engine cutscenes.
