Gears of War 4

I never expected to compare Gears of War 4 to The Force Awakens, but I couldn’t be happier to do so. Like the latest chapter in the story from a time long ago in a galaxy far, far away, Gears of War 4 is directed by a new generation of creators, shares a lot of similar narrative structures to the beloved first piece of the trilogy it succeeds, and is an experience you’ll walk away from with a big smile on your face – in campaign, Versus, and Horde modes alike. It’s about as good of a franchise reawakening as I could’ve hoped for. J.J. Abrams would no doubt appreciate what Gears 4 accomplishes.

Gears of War 4 makes the best of the franchise's multiplayer modes, but delivers a lackluster campaign in the process.

A cautious revival but a very worthwhile one, which creates a great foundation for future games.

A by-the-numbers campaign feels stuck in 2006, but multiplayer builds on classic Gears with a great variety of new modes.

Gears of War 4 is a remarkably complete package.

Gears of War is fresh and exciting again, and its future is potentially even more so.

The campaign is too familiar at times, but the gameplay is top notch. All multiplayer modes showcase high levels of depth and reasons to come back

A coherent single-player campaign and excellent online options bring this Xbox stalwart right back into the battle

Sorry all of you “Pokemon Go” players, “Gears of War 4” is my social game of the season.

The nature of Gears of War 4 is that we won't know its legacy until there are more games in the canon. That's frustrating now but it'll hopefully be exciting later. This was a fine first showing but it'd be nice to see The Coalition carve its own identity for Gears of War. Using Epic's foundation is understandable and expected, but it often feels like a crutch. Marcus' boy had grown up just like him.