Special offer. See more information about Outbyte and uninstall instructions. Please review EULA and Privacy policy.
This checklist covers all 30 COG Tags in the original Xbox 360 campaign of Gears of War: 12 in Act 1, six each in Acts 2 and 3, and three each in Acts 4 and 5. PC and Gears of War: Ultimate Edition guides include three additional tags in extra Act 5 chapters, so this Xbox 360 route is not a 33-tag checklist for those editions. The directions below follow nismojoe’s Xbox 360 FAQ, updated February 15, 2007; they are a legacy walkthrough, not independently verified in-game. Source
Source link correction: the cited GameFAQs URL is not available in the supplied source material, so no source link is included here. The route details below are attributed to nismojoe’s 2007 Xbox 360 FAQ.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
|
Gears Of War - Xbox 360 (Renewed) | $15.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
|
Gears of War 2 - Xbox 360 (Renewed) | $18.74 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
|
Gears of War 3 (Renewed) | Buy on Amazon | |
| 4 |
|
Gears of War Triple Pack - Xbox 360 (Bundle) (Renewed) | $41.95 | Buy on Amazon |
| 5 |
|
Gears of War: Judgment | $11.72 | Buy on Amazon |
Before you start
- Tags carry over between playthroughs and difficulty settings, according to the FAQ. You can collect missing tags on a later run.
- The Crimson Omen can help you search nearby, but it does not guarantee a tag is on that wall or even in the same room. One Act 2 Omen is specifically described as misleading.
- Some routes close behind you or trigger chapter-ending events. Follow the warnings in the checklist, especially for tags 12, 15, 29, and 30.
- In co-op, a pickup credits both players if neither has that tag. If only one player is missing it, only that player can collect it.
Act 1: Ashes — 12 COG Tags
14 Years After E-Day — Tags 1–3
- After choosing either opening route, walk straight to the far end of the area. Find the tag on the floor to the right of the Crimson Omen.
- In the next large room, look behind a pillar beneath the catwalk, near ammunition.
- After clearing the room with tag 2, leave for the open area and take the staircase immediately to the left. At the top, turn sharply left.
Trial by Fire — Tags 4–5
- In the area with a long stone wall and a small stone block, collect the tag from the floor between them before going up the stairs.
- Cross the long bridge and enter the building. Look to the left just before leaving the room.
Fish in a Barrel — Tag 6
- As you enter the fountain area, look straight ahead near a pole and ammunition.
Knock Knock — Tag 7
- After the slow-walking sequence, go outside. Follow the opened ground fissure up the stairs; the tag is near a van.
Hammer — Tags 8–9
- In the corridor with Wretch tracks on the floor and walls, follow the tracks left from the entrance toward the boarded opening.
- In the room where you find Rojas’s remains, look to the right of the staircase as you descend.
China Shop — Tags 10–12
- After the Kim cutscene, go left. The tag is in the right-hand patch of fire.
- Near the third breakable door, search the floor to the left of the darkened window.
- Once outside, turn sharply left. Search the grass after the fifth square-shaped planter, near a lamppost. Collect this before killing the Berserker; otherwise, the FAQ says you must reload the chapter.
Act 2: Nightfall — 6 COG Tags
Tick Tick Boom or Grist — Tag 13
- In the room with two sets of stairs, take the second staircase down to the dead end and destroy the couch; the tag is beneath it. From the Grist checkpoint, turn left down the stairs, vault the ledge, and destroy the couch.
Grist — Tags 14–15
- After the room where a catwalk breaks and Wretches attack, continue outside and clear the enemies. Descend the stairs, turn around, and search the dead end beneath the walkway, behind a rock. The Omen in the preceding room does not mark this tag’s location.
- After the street fight with the pushable car and Troika, look ahead behind the newspaper-stand-like objects before entering the settlement. The FAQ warns that crossing into the settlement may mean restarting the chapter if you missed the tag.
Lethal Dusk — Tags 16–17
- After checkpoint one, an emergence hole opens outside. To its left is a shack with a propane tank. Shoot the tank to reach the tag.
- During the spotlight sequence, after Dom turns on the streetlights, shine the light slightly above Dom’s starting position. The tag is in the corner near a wrecked car.
Dark Labyrinth — Tag 18
- When you exit the dark building, look immediately right before the gas station. The FAQ says interacting with the nearby car is not required.
Act 3: Belly of the Beast — 6 COG Tags
Downpour — Tag 19
- At the plant, find the elevator building and generator building. Go behind the elevator building to the long wooden dock and follow it to the end.
Evolution — Tag 20
- After entering the plant and meeting a stranded survivor, find the room with wooden floorboards. The tag is in the far-right corner. Which boards rot out can vary between runs, according to the FAQ.
Coalition Cargo — Tag 21
- In the plant room with guns, ammunition, two mine carts, and a computer terminal, go to the bottom of the room before activating the computer switch. At the bottom of the stairs, look right behind the weeds.
Darkest Before Dawn — Tags 22–23
- After entering the underground area, take the straight path at the fork. The tag is near grenades and a visible Omen.
- After the water ride and a short fight, look right before the stairs leading to a small hut.
Darkest Before Dawn or Angry Titan — Tag 24
- After Marcus and Dom reunite and the Corpser retreats, hug the right wall toward an ammunition crate; the tag overlooks Imulsion. Alternatively, start Angry Titan, turn around, and follow the left ledge to its end.
Act 4: The Long Road Home — 3 COG Tags
Campus Grinder — Tag 25
- In the act’s first area, head forward and right, past the second staircase.
Bad to Worse — Tag 26
- After Baird and Cole split off, take the right route at the dead end. The tag is behind a car; the FAQ says you can collect it before or after the fight.
Imaginary Place or Entrenched — Tag 27
- Inside the Phoenix mansion, find the room with four pillars, bookcases, and a desk. Destroy the desk to reveal the tag beneath it. The FAQ says it is also reachable from Entrenched.
Act 5: Desperation — 3 COG Tags
Train Wreck — Tags 28–30
- In the first train car you enter, look left on the floor as the door opens.
- After a passenger car and an exterior battle car, the next passenger car contains the tag on the right, before its exit. The door locks behind you.
- In the fourth car before the locomotive, jettison four fuel tanks, then turn around just before entering the ammunition car. The tag is back the way you came. The door locks once you enter the ammunition car; if you miss the tag, the FAQ says to restart the chapter from the front of the train.
What happens if a tag is missing?
The 2007 FAQ says collected tags disappear for that profile, while tags you have not collected remain available. It also says there is no in-game list identifying which tags you missed or confirming that you cleared a particular Act. If you are unsure, revisit the locations and check them.
Xbox 360 tag achievements
The FAQ describes the original Xbox 360 achievement set: Time to Remember for 10 tags, Honor-Bound for 20, and For the Fallen for all 30. It lists 60 gamerscore across those three achievements. These thresholds and the gamerscore total refer to that platform’s historical achievement set, not necessarily other releases.
Quick wins for a faster PC:
Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Special offer. See more information about Outbyte and uninstall instructions. Please review EULA and Privacy policy.
#1 Best Overall
Sale
Gears Of War - Xbox 360 (Renewed)
- This renewed game has been cleaned, tested, and shows minimal wear. It may come repackaged in a generic case.
Why some guides list 33 tags
Thirty is the count for the original Xbox 360 campaign. PC and Ultimate Edition guides include three more tags in additional Act 5 chapters; IGN’s 2025 guide is titled for all 33. The 30 numbered locations above should not be treated as exhaustive for those expanded editions, and the extra locations are not included here.
Quick Recap
Bestseller No. 2
Bestseller No. 3
Bestseller No. 4
Bestseller No. 5
Best Value
Gears of War: Judgment
- Set years prior to the events of the previous "Gears of War" trilogy, "Judgment" centers on Kilo Squad, a troop of soldiers led by Damon Baird and Augustus "The Cole Train" Cole.
- "Gears of War: Judgment" introduces brand-new multiplayer experiences, including OverRun, a thrilling new class-based competitive mode that pits Locust and COG soldiers in a head-to-head battle unlike anything "Gears" fans have experienced yet.
- "Gears of War: Judgment" introduces a new Smart Spawn System [S3] for both campaign and multiplayer action.
- Marking a first for the "Gears" franchise, "Gears of War: Judgment" features a "Misson Declassification" system that lets players experience more challenging gameplay scenarios and achievements by uncovering critical information during the course of the campaign.
- Playable cooperatively with up to three friends on Xbox LIVE (four players total), "Gears of War: Judgment" depicts the planet Sera on the brink of annihilation by an unstoppable new Locust menace, giving you a new vantage point into one of the richest and most acclaimed sagas in gaming.
Rank #4
Gears of War Triple Pack - Xbox 360 (Bundle) (Renewed)
- HD Gaming's New Standard Innovative controls and unmatched intensity made Gears of War one of the best-selling Xbox 360 games ever.
- Breakthrough advances in Unreal Engine 3 raise the bar again.
- A Blockbuster Experience Use enemies as shields, fight chainsaw duels
- Explosive Xbox LIVE Play The most visceral online shooter gets even better with a new party system, more co-op modes
Rank #3
Gears of War 3 (Renewed)
- 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.
Rank #2
Gears of War 2 - Xbox 360 (Renewed)
- 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.
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.
