John Paul M. Joaquin Games 08.28.2023 08:Aug AM EDT

Gears of War 6 Could Go Open-World

The Coalition could pull a Santa Monica Studio for its upcoming Gears of War game.

The game developer known for its recent Gears of War games is reportedly turning Gears of War 6 into a fully open-world game as opposed to the series' traditionally linear gameplay.

The Coalition will allegedly release Gears of War 6 sometime in late 2024 or 2025, according to YouTuber Rand al Thor 19, per GamersTyme.

Another God of War 2018?

The latest XboxEra podcast dropped quite a few details about the upcoming Gears of War 6. According to podcast co-host Nick "Shpeshal Nick" Baker, the development of Gears of War 6 is quite further than some might think, and it could be a fully open-world game.

The idea of Gears of War 6 going mostly or fully open-world isn't strange, thanks to past precedence. The Coalition also developed Gears of War 5 (Or Gears 5) for it to have some open-world elements.

These elements include the ability to freely explore the game at their own pace in between longer stretches of more linear gameplay and the addition of side missions, per CBR. While the addition of these elements divided the Gears of War fanbase, Baker revealed that The Coalition could take the next logical step into making Gears of War 6 an open-world one a la Ubisoft.

Adding these open-world elements into Gears 5 acted as a way to improve the game's pacing and give the experience The Coalition expected and advertised. Additionally, the gaming industry has seen much success turning linear games into open-world ones, such as Santa Monica Studio's God of War series, FromSoft's Dark Souls series, and Rocksteady Studios' Batman: Arkham series.

Insider Gaming also cited another Microsoft game franchise that thrived because of its switch to open-world, the Halo series with its Halo: Infinite game.

It is no wonder that The Coalition wants to emulate such successes with its upcoming Gears of War game. However, it is difficult to determine if The Coalition will succeed in its gambit of turning Gears of War 6 from a traditionally linear game into a mostly or fully open-world game.

Other Gears of War 6 Rumors

The Coalition has yet to officially announce Gears of War 6 (or Gears 6 if you prefer), but some rumors are floating about since Gears 5's release. According to Dexerto's exclusive interview with Liam McIntyre, the actor for new Gears protagonist JD Fenix, he has yet to receive any communications from The Coalition.

While some people would chalk McIntyre's statement as being a part of his non-disclosure agreement, he admitted he has yet to sign one. As such, there is reason to think that JD Fenix won't be appearing in the upcoming game.

Such a possibility can exist. Gears 5 gave players the choice of (SPOILERS) saving either JD or Del Walker from the clutches of Queen Myrrah, making JD's death a canon event by default.

JD is the son of Marcus Fenix, the protagonist of the first Gears of War trilogy. As such, McIntyre's exclusion from the game could be consequential to Gears of War 6's plot.