Microsoft acquires Gears of War franchise from Epic

Never been a fan of Gears of War, so personally I don't think it's a huge loss for Sony, but a lot of my friends are hardcore PC players and they really enjoyed the first one. It kinda sucks for them that they'll probably won't get a PC port thanks to Microsoft's stubbornness in regards to that franchise.

 
Well this confirms Gears for the X1, sometime in 2015 I expect. I never really got into the series so no big deal for me, will be interesting to see what they do after how badly Judgment was received.
 
I really hope they do a good job at making a new game. Gears 3 was too noob friendly for my taste, but it was a hell of a lot better than Judgment.

 
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I just hope they bring back/continue to improve Horde, which I think is pretty much a given. That was the big thing that was missing from Judgment for me, which overall I still liked a lot, though not quite as much as 1 through 3.

 
It was a given there would be more Gears games, but I guess it's good news that they won't be from the developer who did Judgment.

I loved the series, but am kind of tired of it at this point and thought 3 was a great ending to the trilogy.  So I doubt it will sway me from PS4 to X1 (and I'm definitely not getting both this go around--already drowning in games on PS3, Wii U and 3DS).

 
Kia-Tiaph said:
Never been a fan of Gears of War, so personally I don't think it's a huge loss for Sony, but a lot of my friends are hardcore PC players and they really enjoyed the first one. It kinda sucks for them that they'll probably won't get a PC port thanks to Microsoft's stubbornness in regards to that franchise.
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Not a loss at all per say since it was never on Sony's system, but I'm sure they would have taken a billion dollar franchise in a heart beat had they had the opportunity.

Personally, I'm extremely excited for the news. I've invested thousands of hours into the games and it's my most beloved franchise. After the abomination that was Judgment, the only way to go is up. Getting Rod Ferguson is the smartest thing they could have done.

 
Vinyl said:
Don't really know what else they could do with it, but I'm always up for a new Gears game.
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After Judgment's lackluster performance, probably not another prequel. I hope not anyway. Maybe they'll skip forward a few years and have Marcus and Anya's son fighting a new threat to Sera, an alien invasion maybe. Or maybe a new human-on-human war. That'd be my best guess.

 
As a Gears fan, I'm optimistic it'll get a nice new makeover with an X1 version.  As long as it's a great game, this game will probably be the Xbone system seller for me. 
 
Judgment was so horrible though that for some of the fans, Black Tusk will need to hit this one out of the ballpark to win back some of the fans.  Not to be taken the wrong way here, but seriously the majority of the remaining players for Gears of War 3 are a bunch of Spanish speaking players and last I checked more people play Gears 3 online than Judgment.  Um, no thanks.  The current community is dead to me. 
 
 
 
chubbyninja1319 said:
This pleases me. But wasn't Fergussen heading up a new 2K studio on the west coast? I thought hat was a big deal?
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I read a rumor, no idea if this is actually true, that originally he was going to have the chance to create a brand new IP for his team to work on, but then 2K changed its mind and assigned him to a new Mafia game instead. If that's true, a promotion at Microsoft and a chance to work on Gears again probably looked pretty good.

 
While it's good to read that Rod is back, we cannot forget that both he and Cliff were involved with Judgment.  It's conspicuous that they did leave months before the release of the game, but it's not definitve that it was due to in-house issues (though Rod coming back once a new studio obtains the franchise sure does support that).  If you watch the behind the scenes for the games, Rod really involved with the games, even though he's not a designer or programmer.  Hopefully it returns to that dark, bleak game we were given in 2006.

That same website Ryu linked to has an article with Cliff stating he's done with the franchise, and is not making a return, not even as a consultant.  I know Cliff was the one who really pushed for the dramatic, nightmarish vision, but Rod seemed to be very much in support of Cliff's vision.  Plus, Rod did the live streams for Gears of War 2 and 3, so he did have community involvement.  Hopefully he'll do those again.  He just comes across as professional and personable, though he's not above making money, either (as he explained with the intentional decision to tie so many DLC achievements in Gears of War 3 to needing multiple players, hoping that it would entice people to convince their friends to also buy the DLC). 

Hopefully they wait until at least 2016 to release this game.  Give gamers a 3 years break, let us forget about any issues we (may have) had with Judgment, let the series seem to begin anew, keep that grand (split-screen) cooperative campaign, and definitely feature a Beta for the game, showing us confidence in the product, while also letting gamers potentially find problems that they can correct well before release (they did this with Gears of War 3 and it worked so well, with both weapons and maps being changed to correct these sorts of issues, yet idiotically did not do this with Judgment; AI Wretches attacking the E-hole before the match started...a simple Beta would have found and addressed this issue).

This is the only thing interesting me in the Xbox One right now, as Halo has lost me.  If this is made well, I'd have a reason to buy into next generation.  I wonder if we'll see Horde, Beast, Overrun, Survival and/or free for all return?

 
Donut2922 said:
Not to be taken the wrong way here, but seriously the majority of the remaining players for Gears of War 3 are a bunch of Spanish speaking players and last I checked more people play Gears 3 online than Judgment. Um, no thanks. The current community is dead to me.
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I recently played a few online matches of the first game (still hoping to add to getting Seriously...) and there are still people playing that. The same is true for Gears of War 2. While they lack the smoother looking visuals and dedicated servers, you can still find matches (and Horde players in 2 as well). While it's not ideal to have to go back through a series to actually play matches, I think Judgment really did turn people completely from the series, so the community had some people just abandon it fully.

 
Yeah after hearing the news today I did some research. Fergusson, after leaving Epic, headed up the end development of Bioshock Infinite and then around April left. I didn't hear anything about the 2K game rumor other than that he was in place to lead that team. Think it's good news that they're building a new studio, Epic is working on Fortnite and they prob just added a bunch to their development budget there lol, and basically making a new "343" so to speak. Interesting article talking about how Halo 4 laid the ground for a next-gen Gears. Horde Mode is back!

 
The Ebbtide said:
I recently played a few online matches of the first game (still hoping to add to getting Seriously...) and there are still people playing that. The same is true for Gears of War 2. While they lack the smoother looking visuals and dedicated servers, you can still find matches (and Horde players in 2 as well). While it's not ideal to have to go back through a series to actually play matches, I think Judgment really did turn people completely from the series, so the community had some people just abandon it fully.
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Gears undoubtedly deserves another chance. Some of my favorite gaming memories of all time were playing online matches past 3am due to the sheer fun I was having playing it through the entire night. When a game makes you pull all nighters like Gears did for me, you know you've got a great game on hand. I support the darker, nightmarish direction and I hope they go back to their roots ala the way Neatherealms did with Mortal Kombat. I'm optimistic they'll fix things and listen to the ultimate voice: the fans.

They need to do away with that God awful cog vs. cog concept and getting rid of the secondary weapon option. Incredulous.
 
Well outside outside of Fable and Halo, Gears was the biggest exclusive franchise on the 360 (well and of course Kinect Adventures which was bundled with every Kinect) so It's a win-win for MS. I however think Judgement left a sour taste in peoples mouths. HOWEVER, this is America (for a majority of the owners) and people tend to forget things. Given 2-3 years of a development period for the new Gears I think people will buy into it, especially being on the X1. It's a win-win for MS. The only thing better would have been some absurd deal like the next GTA exclusive or Red Dead which would have been a fanboys wet dream.

 
I have a permanent memory of playing Gears of War on my father's 55 inch HDTV co-op with my cousin Christmas night. Haha soo f'n tired the next day, we played all night.

Deets on Black Tusk.

 
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Good link, Spy.  I'm interested in what Black Tusk comes up with.  I remember superannuation was pondering this studio via twitter a few weeks/months back. 

 
The only thing i liked about Judgments MP was no stopping power and no active reloads. Keeps the game more balanced than having people pre active right when they spawn. Other than that i really hope they dont even take anything from Judgment, well ok they can take the breechshot, that gun was fun. Jumping off higher ledges was okay, its part of the game i like more than mantle kick. But i dont want to see judgment style levels where there is so many ledges its hard to even find where people are at. If there were 1 or 2 areas in a map where you could jump down fine, but dont build the whole map based on FFA and jumping off ledges. Overrun was also pretty fun, but it could use some work.

Judgment was bad though compared to the previous games, but this news has me excited. I think they can win fans back by showing us gameplay before the game even comes out. Im sure if its close to the original trilogy then fans will jump back on board fast. But if they see anything similar to judgment, with modes like FFA i think they will have horrible sales again. Stick with what made Gears great. Modes like Guardian, and Warzone. Not these modes like FFA or Gun Game. They need to stop with all the goofy weapon and armor skins too. I know they are trying to make money but damn, stop trying to nickel and dime us to death. Its all going to come down to how they take the series. To me it seemed like they tried to make Gears easier for casuals in 3. Gears has always had a steep learning curve, and Gears 3 does too, but not as bad as Gears 1 or 2. Either way i am excited and hope they are actually going to make a game. I know if i like what i see i will buy an Xbox One just for this series.

And for the love of COG, bring back the locust!

 
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After the flop that was Gears Judgment, there's no way the series can take another hit, so I fully expect MS to shell out a huge budget for this and make sure quality control is top notch at Black Tusk, and with Rod on board, I'm really optimistic that this will be a great reboot into the franchise!  This is overall my most favorite XBOX series, I really hope to see at least a teaser at E3 this June.

 
This seems to be the one thing Microsoft is doing right. Making sure that they have exclusive content.
 
Phil Spencer tweeted that Black Tusk began development work on Gears last week. I'd thought it was possible that they had been working on it for weeks/months in advance, in anticipation of the deal being finalized, but that wasn't the case. Looks like we'll probably be waiting until 2016 for more Gears.

 
Haven't gotten into the next-gen consoles yet as I'm pretty content with the 360 n PS3 right now...But leaning towards the PS4.  If they get a killer Gears game, I'll definitely buy the XB1, as that was the one franchise that I really enjoyed.  I thought, Judgment Got a C- from me at best but gaming with CAG buddies made it enjoyable.  Can't wait to hear more in the future.

 
Ryuukishi said:
Phil Spencer tweeted that Black Tusk began development work on Gears last week. I'd thought it was possible that they had been working on it for weeks/months in advance, in anticipation of the deal being finalized, but that wasn't the case. Looks like we'll probably be waiting until 2016 for more Gears.
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Yeah i was just reading rumors on joystiq that said Gears wont be done for 2.5 years. Doesnt look like i will need an Xbox One for a couple years. But its nice to know they are taking their time with the game and hopefully it will end up really good in the end.

 
The 7th Number said:
Yeah i was just reading rumors on joystiq that said Gears wont be done for 2.5 years. Doesnt look like i will need an Xbox One for a couple years. But its nice to know they are taking their time with the game and hopefully it will end up really good in the end.
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Abso-fucking-loutely. Let them take their sweet time, I want AAA game not some Judgement crap. I am happy with my X1 now and having AAA games in the future is a must. In It's first year the X1 will have plenty of great titles but they also need must haves in 2015 and 2016 as well, and beyond.

 
I think the best part about this is that it should help quell rumors of Microsoft considering abandoning the Xbox division, even if those rumors were a stretch.  Them going so far to buy (and it couldn't have been cheap) and taking the time to fully develop the series is (hopefully) a great sign of continued focus and interest in developing 'games' for the Xbox One, and not just having it be an entertainment thingy that coincidentally plays games.

 
There are also rumors of Halo 2 HD remake with MP. If they have that coming out, whats stopping MS from making Gears of War 2 HD remake with multiplayer. Seriously if they made an HD remake, with the smooth fluid gameplay that im used to in Gears 3 and added dedicated servers for a Gears 2 HD remake that alone would make me want a Xbox One. I loved that MP and the maps were really good. I would play Guardian forever until xbox two comes out lol.

 
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Gears 1 remake maybe. Gears 2 and 3, I don't know, those games look and play like a dream as-is. HD remakes seem superfluous. That doesn't mean they won't happen though. :)

 
Yeah it's too soon for that, they usually HD a collection that hasn't been widescreen, and with Halo 2 widescreen but not full 1080p, or where the textures look like ass on HDTVs now. Halo 2 being a HD release on Xbox One makes sense as it's via popular opinion one of the best Halo games. Any Gears game still looks great, large in part by the Unreal 3 engine under Epic's tweaking hands.

 
Ive been active in the gears forums. Seems like a lot of people are hoping for a more true gears game like 1 and 2. Which is good. There should be a rodcast pretty soon. Maybe he will shed some light on what the game might be like. Any info is good info right now.

 
Did you see the thread Rod started about what was one thing people really wanted to know the answer to but were never told in the entire trilogy and even Judgment?

Aside from the dumbass joke questions, some people were pointing out that we were never explained about the Queen, the Locust in general, the Sires, and with many other things.  I've only glanced at the thread, but I wonder if Rod will try to have explanations for those things included in the new game.

 
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The Ebbtide said:
Did you see the thread Rod started about what was one thing people really wanted to know the answer to but were never told in the entire trilogy and even Judgment?

Aside from the dumbass joke questions, some people were pointing out that we were never explained about the Queen, the Locust in general, the Sires, and with many other things. I've only glanced at the thread, but I wonder if Rod will try to have explanations for those things included in the new game.
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Yeah i actually said the same thing as that in my reply. I wouldnt mind an E-Day type story that maybe shows more about the Queen or Adam Fenix if he was ever involved with her. I know some dont like prequels but i think it would be a good idea, especially if they make it dark and scary like the first gears.

 
The first Rodcast #1 will be taking place on Thursday, May 15th at 5:00 PM Pacific Standard Time!
Mark it down in your calendars and tune in live.

 
So my wife was just watching Say Yes to the Dress and the bride was a "former professional gamer" named Lauren. I realized after it ended that it was Lauren Bleszinski and the guy she was marrying was CliffyB. Her budget for the wedding dress was $20,000 so that's where all that Gears money is going. :lol:  :drool:

 
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Ryuukishi said:
So my wife was just watching Say Yes to the Dress and the bride was a "former professional gamer" named Lauren. I realized after it ended that it was Lauren Bleszinski and the guy she was marrying was CliffyB. Her budget for the wedding dress was $20,000 so that's where all that Gears money is going. :lol: :drool:
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Rofl. My wife said I should watch one of say yes to the dress because they were talking about gamers. I just gave it no thought as she's clueless to gaming. Guess she was right then
 
Jimmienoman said:
Rofl. My wife said I should watch one of say yes to the dress because they were talking about gamers. I just gave it no thought as she's clueless to gaming. Guess she was right then
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Okay, this is really gonna mess with your head. The narrator of Say Yes to the Dress is Roger Craig Smith, aka Chris Redfield aka Ezio Auditore. :hot:

 
Ryuukishi said:
Okay, this is really gonna mess with your head. The narrator of Say Yes to the Dress is Roger Craig Smith, aka Chris Redfield aka Ezio Auditore. :hot:
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aka Young(er) Batman/Bruce Wayne.

Cliff better cut the cake with a chainsaw or the whole wedding is a disappointment.

 
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