Summary
- Fans speculate on a possible Gears of War anthology, fueled by Phil Spencer's revisiting of the series.
- Rumors suggest The Coalition is working on a Marcus Fenix collection remaster for Xbox fans.
- A potential Gears of War collection release may coincide with the upcoming Gears of War: E-Day launch.
Fans of Xbox's beloved Gears of War franchise are getting their hopes up about a Halo: The Master Chief Collection-like anthology release after they see Phil Spencer has recently revisited the series. Gears of War has been back on Xbox fans' minds for the past several months after the reveal of Gears of War: E-Day closed out Xbox's Summer Game Fest showcase last June. E-Day is set before the events of the original Gears of War trilogy, and will focus on the friendship of Marcus Fenix and fellow COG Dom Santiago.
Rumors about The Coalition working on a Gears of War Marcus Fenix collection began cropping up back in 2022, when several well-known industry insiders claimed the project was moving forward at Xbox's dedicated Gears studio. While all the mainline and spinoff Gears of War games are currently available on Xbox, some of them via Xbox 360 backwards compatibility, only one of them has seen a remaster, the original in 2015's Gears of War: Ultimate Edition. Many fans of the franchise believe it's high time the Gears of War sequels also receive the remaster treatment in the form of an anthology collection.
Now it seems even Xbox boss Phil Spencer is feeling nostalgic for Gears, as fans have noticed his Xbox profile has been filled up with a bunch of freshly unlocked Gears of War 2 and Gears of War 3 achievements as of late. According to his profile, it's been well over a decade since Spencer has touched any of these earlier Gears of War titles. This, combined with Gears of War: E-Day having been stamped with a 2025 release window, has reignited the conversation and speculation surrounding a potential Marcus Fenix Collection.
Phil Spencer Has Been Revisiting Gears of War 2 and 3 on Xbox
It would make a lot of sense for a Gears of War collection to be released ahead of Gears of War: E-Day. Despite E-Day being a prequel, it would be nice to make the original games more accessible all in one place on current hardware for gamers who are looking to get into the series for the first time. As for the content of this potential Gears collection, it would be interesting to see whether Xbox would include the 2013 spinoff Gears of War: Judgment or the two most recent Kait Diaz-led entries, Gears of War 4 or Gears 5. Though, if the collection's purpose is to supplement the release of Gears of War: E-Day, it'll likely just include the original Gears trilogy, at least initially.
Xbox has its third annual Developer Direct showcase coming up later this week, and while Gears of War: E-Day likely won't be there, Xbox fans are sure to be pleased with fresh looks at Doom: The Dark Ages, Compulsion Games' South of Midnight, and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Fans hoping for a Gears of War collection announcement will probably need to wait until Summer Game Fest in June to find out if it's indeed real.
Gears of War
Xbox Game Studios' Gears of War franchise began on the Xbox 360 and instantly became a flagship franchise for the green brand. The original Gears of War trilogy is considered one of the finest in the history of the third-person shooter genre, with the trilogy's intense action and surprisingly touching story moments creating memorable experiences.
The series has had another two solid main series entries since and even a turn-based tactics game.