Gears of War: E-Day is a prequel set 14 years before the original Gears of War, while Gears 5 follows Kait Diaz later in the series. E-Day lists Campaign, Horde Siege and Versus; Gears 5 lists Campaign, Horde, Escape and Versus. On PC, E-Day has the higher published hardware floor: its minimum calls for 12 GB of RAM, a ray-tracing-capable listed GPU and an SSD with 115 GB free. These are storefront requirements, not matched performance benchmarks.
How E-Day’s story differs from Gears 5
Xbox Wire’s E-Day announcement and the E-Day Steam listing place the prequel 14 years before the original Gears of War. Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago are its named leads as the Locust Horde emerges and humanity struggles to survive.
Gears 5’s Steam description centers on Kait Diaz, who breaks away during the war to investigate her connection to the enemy and the danger facing Sera. The official descriptions establish the broad contrast—E-Day’s early-invasion story versus Kait’s later personal investigation—but are not full plot summaries.
Gameplay and modes
E-Day
The E-Day listing describes cover-based combat with modernized movement and traversal, including jumping, vaulting, sliding and flanking. Its listed modes are:
#1 Best Overall
- AN ORIGIN STORY BEGINS — Fight alongside Marcus Fenix and Dom Santiago in the gripping origin story of Emergence Day, as the Locust Horde erupts from below.
- A DARKER, GRITTIER THREAT — Face reimagined enemies and a terrifying underground invasion that restores the fear, dread, and intensity at the heart of the Gears of War series.
- MULTIPLAYER EVOLVED — Battle in Horde Siege for large‑scale PvE action or prove your skill in refined Versus PvP with greater precision and competitive depth.
- CLASSIC COMBAT, MODERNIZED — Experience signature cover‑based gameplay enhanced with updated movement, traversal, and controls that feel like Gears while playing like something new.
- CO‑OP YOUR WAY — Play online with up to four players across Campaign, Horde Siege, and Versus, or team up locally with 2‑player split‑screen co‑op on console.
- Campaign: Play alone or online with up to four players. The listing separately identifies two-player split-screen as console-only.
- Horde Siege: Co-op PvE wave survival.
- Versus: PvP, including 4v4 modes and Ranked and Social playlists.
Gears 5
Gears 5’s Steam feature summary lists Campaign, Versus PvP, Horde and Escape PvE. Its Campaign supports three-player online or split-screen co-op. The page also notes that character and weapon skins can carry into new campaign playthroughs.
These are the modes and features the listings identify; they do not establish comparative quality, map counts, long-term activity, balance or player population.
Rank #2
- This Certified Refurbished product is tested and certified to look and work like new. The refurbishing process includes functionality testing, basic cleaning, inspection, and repackaging. The product ships with all relevant accessories, a minimum 90-day warranty, and may arrive in a generic box. Only select sellers who maintain a high performance bar may offer Certified Refurbished products on Amazon.com
- Includes full game of the original Gears of War remastered in 1080p.
- Play five campaign chapters never released on console.
- Experience competitive multiplayer in 60FPS with 19 maps and six game modes.
PC requirements compared
The figures below reproduce the published Steam listings accessed in 2026. E-Day’s listing says requirements may change and vary by country. Xbox Wire reported that The Coalition revealed final launch PC specifications on September 17, 2026, and noted that the specifications image was updated September 28; Steam provides the detailed tiers below. The game’s listed minimum OS should not be confused with current Steam Client support: the Gears 5 page says Steam Client support has required Windows 10 or later since January 1, 2024.
| Published tier | Gears of War: E-Day | Gears 5 |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum OS | Windows 10 64-bit 22H 19045.7291 | Windows 7 SP1 64-bit or Windows 10 64-bit |
| Minimum CPU | AMD Ryzen 5 2600X / Intel i7-6850K / i5-10400 | AMD FX-6000 series / Intel i3 Skylake |
| Minimum memory | 12 GB RAM | 8 GB RAM |
| Minimum GPU | Hardware ray tracing required; NVIDIA RTX 5050 / RTX 2060 or AMD Radeon RX 6600 / RX 9060 listed | AMD Radeon R9 280 / NVIDIA GTX 760 (Windows 10) / GTX 1050 (Windows 7) |
| DirectX | Version 12 | Version 12 |
| Storage | 115 GB free; SSD required | 80 GB |
| Recommended OS | Windows 11 64-bit (25H2) or newer | Windows 10 64-bit |
| Recommended CPU | AMD Ryzen 5 5600 / Intel i5-11600K | AMD Ryzen 3 / Intel i5 Skylake |
| Recommended memory | 16 GB RAM | 8 GB RAM |
| Recommended GPU | NVIDIA RTX 5060 / RTX 3060 Ti; AMD RX 6700 XT / RX 9060 XT | AMD RX 570 / NVIDIA GTX 970 (Windows 10) / GTX 1660 Ti (Windows 7) |
| Recommended storage | 115 GB; SSD required | 80 GB |
Sources for every tier: E-Day Steam listing and Gears 5 Steam listing. GPU names and requirement tiers are not equivalent benchmark targets. Neither list alone predicts frame rates for a particular PC.
Rank #3
- Disc only. Original case and manual not included. Will come packaged in a generic case.
- This renewed game has been cleaned, tested, and shows minimal wear.
What E-Day’s PC listing says about features
The E-Day Steam page lists uncapped frame rates on capable hardware, ultrawide support, controller and keyboard/mouse remapping, HDR10, hardware ray-traced lighting, reflections and shadows, NVIDIA DLSS 4.5, AMD FSR Redstone, optional frame generation and a built-in benchmark. It says compatible hardware and a suitable display are required. The listing also names Steam Deck, Xbox Ally X and Xbox Ally as handheld targets. These are storefront feature statements; check the current listing for implementation and support details.
Which game suits you?
- Choose E-Day for the earlier timeline: Its official premise follows Marcus and Dom during the Locust invasion’s emergence, before the original Gears of War.
- Choose Gears 5 for Kait’s story: Its listed premise follows her investigation into her connection to the enemy.
- Compare the mode lists, not presumed quality: E-Day lists Horde Siege, while Gears 5 lists Horde and Escape; both list Campaign and Versus.
- Check your PC against E-Day’s explicit requirements: Pay particular attention to ray-tracing capability, the exact OS, GPU, and SSD space available before buying or upgrading.
Release and availability
Xbox Wire’s September 17, 2026 announcement said E-Day would launch October 6, with early access from October 1 for Premium Edition players, on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox on PC and Steam; it also announced day-one availability through Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass. Steam records October 6, 2026 as the release date. Gears 5’s Steam page records September 9, 2019. Platform, subscription and regional terms can change, so check the relevant storefront for current availability.
Quick Recap
Best Value
- Includes full game of the original Gears of War remastered in 1080p.
- Play five campaign chapters never released on console.
- Experience competitive multiplayer in 60FPS with 19 maps and six game modes.
Rank #4
- PREMIUM EDITION — Includes Bravo Squad Signature Weapon Pack, five Seasonal Customization Packs starting with the Emergence Pack, plus 1,000 Iron to unlock additional in‑game content.
- AN ORIGIN STORY BEGINS — Fight alongside Marcus Fenix and Dom Santiago in the gripping origin story of Emergence Day, as the Locust Horde erupts from below.
- A DARKER, GRITTIER THREAT — Face reimagined enemies and a terrifying underground invasion that restores the fear, dread, and intensity at the heart of the Gears of War series.
- MULTIPLAYER EVOLVED — Battle in Horde Siege for large‑scale PvE action or prove your skill in refined Versus PvP with greater precision and competitive depth.
- CLASSIC COMBAT, MODERNIZED — Experience signature cover‑based gameplay enhanced with updated movement, traversal, and controls that feel like Gears while playing like something new.
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
