Gears 5

Gears 5’s multiplayer is relaunching today, and with Operation 5: Hollow Storm, it’s getting its biggest new content dropped since the game launched over a year ago. Microsoft have published a new update, in which they have laid out all of the changes and additions that the new Operation is bringing with it- and there’s a lot to dive into here. In the fact, the game is going to now have twice as much multiplayer content than it did at launch.

There’s five new maps, including two new ones, namely Nexus (“fight amongst rivers of Imulsion in this Locust stronghold deep under Mount Kadar”) and Regency (“set high above the clouds inspiring both awe and fear”). Three maps are also returning, including series staples Gridlock and Clocktower, and Gears of War 2 map River.

There’s also seven new characters to play as, all of whom call back to the series’ earlier days, with Anya Stroud, Tai Kaliso, Dizzy Wallin, Lambent Drone, Lambent Grenadier, Lambent Theron Guard, and the Skorge. Meanwhile, the character skin for Gabe Diaz (protagonist of Gears Tactics) is also available.

Notably, in the Horde and Escape modes, characters and character classes have now been separated, which means you can mix and match the two to your heart’s content, even with characters that were previously not available in the two modes. There’s also balancing changes, 13 new Achievements added to the game, optimizations for the Xbox Series X/S, and more.

Gears 5 – Operation 5: Hollow Storm has gone live, and you can check out a trailer for it below. Meanwhile, its single player DLC, Hivebusters, will be launching in December.