Gears 5 is nearly three years old at this point, so it makes sense that support for the game has wound down, especially with developer The Coalition now firmly focused on what lies ahead for the studio. To that effect, the developer continues to divert its resources to those future efforts, as a result of which a chunk of the Gears 5 experience is being taken offline.
Recently taking to Twitter via the official Gears of War page, The Coalition announced that Gears 5’s Map Builder mode will be removed from the game “as the team focus on future projects”. If you have the game, Achievements tied to the Map Builder mode will be automatically unlocked for you. Players who’ve already unlocked the “I Made it All By Myself” Achievement will receive an exclusive in-game banner, while those who unlocked the “Homegrown Hive” will receive 10,000 coins.
Gears 5’s Map Maker wasn’t exactly among its most popular or frequently played modes, so it’s unlikely that it’s loss well be felt too heavily by players who’ve stuck around with the shooter until now. With The Coalition focusing on multiple projects, it makes sense that the studio is looking to focus on games that are in development instead.
While it goes without saying that we will eventually get a Gears 6, The Coalition is currently also working on new IP, which, according to reports, is going to be smaller and more experimental in nature. It and other future projects will be built on Unreal Engine 5, which The Coalition says is going to enable much larger and more interactive environments, among other things.