Gears of War: E-Day Is Looking Like One of 2026’s Best Games, and Critics Agree

After years of waiting, Gears of War: E-Day is finally here, and the early reviews suggest The Coalition has delivered the kind of Gears campaign fans have been waiting for.

The prequel is earning overwhelmingly positive reviews, with critics praising its improved combat, visual presentation and more personal approach to the story of Emergence Day.

Pure Xbox has awarded it a perfect 10/10, while several other outlets have also scored the campaign highly. The consensus is that E-Day understands what made the original Gears games work while making some meaningful improvements to the formula.

There are some criticisms, particularly around repetition and storytelling, but they're the exception rather than the dominant theme of the early reviews.

Gears of War: E-Day Reviews Are In, and Critics Are Calling It a Masterpiece

The early review scores paint a compelling picture of a game that understands its audience while making meaningful improvements to the familiar Gears formula.

Here's how critics have rated the campaign so far:

• Pure Xbox: 10/10
• Day One: 10/10
• The Outer Haven: 10/10
• IGN: 9/10
• Daily Star: 9/10
• VGC: 8/10
• GAMINGbible: 8/10
• The Guardian: 6/10

Pure Xbox's 10/10 review praises The Coalition for refining the series' combat while delivering a strong cinematic campaign. Day One's perfect score similarly praises the action and gameplay, describing it as the best Gears has felt to play.