Why Gears 5 Has 3-Player Co-op But Not 4-Player Co-op

Gears 5 will not feature four-player co-op play for its story campaign. The game will however, feature a new three-player option, with the third player offering a unique spin on asymmetrical cooperation. The first two entries in the Gears of War series featured two-player co-op that could either be played online or via split-screen. For Gears of War 3 and Gears of War: Judgment, that story mode was expanded to include four players (but still only two for local play).

When the series made the jump to the Xbox One, that number was brought back down to two players, either locally or online, for the first entry from new developer The Coalition (previously Black Tusk Studios). While some fans appreciated the more focused nature of two-player co-op, a great many lamented the loss of taking on the epic storyline of the franchise as part of a larger group. It felt like a step backward. The series staple Horde mode still included options for up to five players, but Horde provides a decidedly different experience from the main story.

Fans hoping for a return to four-player co-op in Gears 5 are going to be disappointed. Like Gears of War 4 before it, Gears 5 is limiting its co-op story mode to only two regular characters. This was done to keep the narrative focused on its central lead characters, as well as to keep the action from becoming too chaotic. As Campaign Design Director Matt Searcy explains to Screen Rant’s Rob Keyes, who visited The Coalition to try out the game’s campaign earlier this week:

“Four player co-op means you have at least four characters in every single cinematic and every single story beat at all times. 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.”

With the story squarely focused on Kait Diaz’s journey and the trust issues that arise between her and Delmont Walker, The Coalition felt it was best to limit the story mode to fewer players. Still, the upcoming sequel does support a third player via a unique new mechanic. As Searcy explains it, Gears 5 co-op is “two players, plus a totally new way to play the game.” The story follows Kait and Delmont as they embark on a massive adventure, while a third player controls JACK, a flying drone that accompanies the two soldiers on their journey, creating an asymmetrical experience for slightly bigger groups, while still keeping the story centered around Kat and Del at all times:

“We really wanted (it) to be about Kait and Del going off on their own and separating from everything. There’s still this whole big threat going on, but it’s about them dealing with their own thing and having a more intimate story beat in the middle of this big war.”

While this asymmetrical approach may not appease fans of the four-player insanity of Gears of War 3 and Judgment, Gears 5 looks to provide a new twist on co-op play, and it even supports three-player local splitscreen with the feature. The series has always been at its strong when played in two-player co-op. The classic formula of having one player draw fire while the other goes from cover to cover in search of a flanking position has held strong for well over a decade, and Gears 5 aims to preserve that level of excitement and the idea of closed corridor, more scary segments, while adding the new twist of having a third player as JACK – a unit that brings an RPG element and upgrade path with abilities to the campaign (he’s also playable in Horde!).

Gears 5 releases September 10, 2019 for PC and Xbox One. Gears 5 Ultimate Edition releases early on September 6th.

About The Author

Zak Wojnar
(946 Articles Published)

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Zak Wojnar is a writer from New York City. He’s covered everything from video games and movies to maple syrup and deli business. Thanks to Screen Rant, he’s discovered his newest passion, interviewing artists. He takes great joy in letting film and gaming legends tell their own story and share their passion for their art.
Zak’s first memory is going with his dad to Tower Records and buying the VHS boxed set of the original Star Wars trilogy. Over the next decade or so, those tapes would be completely worn out through overuse. When he’s not preparing for the next big interview, he can usually be found sitting too close to the TV, either re-watching Miami Vice or The X-Files, or getting lost in a video game.
Zak has bylines at Game Informer, Muscle & Fitness, PopCultureGalaxy, Men’s Fitness, Cheese Connoisseur, and Deli Business (see, that wasn’t a joke before!), among others.
Follow and engage with him on Twitter @ZakWojnar.

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