After years of leaning more into explosive action, Gears of War: E-Day is set to bring the franchise back to its horror roots. The upcoming prequel will focus on what made the original 2006 game so special — tension, fear, and atmosphere.
The news has excited Jerry O’Flaherty, the art director of the first game, who compared the tone of the franchise to the Alien films:
If Gears 1 was Alien, the rest of the franchise is Aliens.
O’Flaherty explained that the original Gears of War was built around fear and suspense, using a dark color palette and tight environments to keep players constantly on edge.
It felt it was horror with monsters, and then it quickly became a monster game.
That shift, he believes, changed the spirit of what made the first entry so special — and it’s why he’s glad E-Day is returning to that horror-driven style.
He also remembered that the first game had another goal — to showcase Unreal Engine 3, which was brand new at the time.
We were selling the technology, so there was an understanding in the studio that this was a technology that we’re licensing, so it needs to look f**king great.
Now, E-Day is being developed with Unreal Engine 5, and it seems The Coalition wants to capture that same mix of visual innovation and artistic identity.
O’Flaherty concluded by saying that it’s normal for a franchise to change, but the first Gears had something special. If E-Day can capture that fear again, it will truly be a return to the origins.
