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Gears 5 Horde Mode gameplay demos new Ultimate abilities

Gears 5 finally gets some details on the latest iteration of Horde mode, which will include new Ultimate abilities.

Ozzie Mejia

August 19, 2019 9:00 AM

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For all the talk about a new entry to the Gears franchise, there's been one item that's been conspicuous by its absence. For all the talk about the game's story, its competitive multiplayer, and even its new co-op, has there been any word about Gears 5's Horde mode? After all, Horde mode is a big part of what helped make Gears of War into a gaming phenomenon in the first place. Wonder no more, because Microsoft and The Coalition have finally broken their silence about Gears 5's Horde mode during this year's Inside Xbox Gamescom presentation.

If you've ever played Horde mode in any Gears of War game, you should know what it's all about. Waves of enemies, which grow more and more dangerous, must be taken out by you and three other players. The idea is to survive as long as possible. The Horde mode returns fully intact in Gears 5, but now players have a few more tools at their disposal. This includes a new feature called Power Taps, which revolves around returning to your team's base for additional power-ups and rewards.

Gears 5 will debut new Ultimate abilities, which can do some heavy damage against entire enemy waves. JD, for example, can call in an air strike to wipe out numerous enemies. Kait can cloak herself and infiltrate enemy defenses before taking them out, sight unseen. Other characters will have their own Ultimate abilities and they can all be game-changers in different ways.

All of the Gears heroes will be playable in Horde, along with Jack. Jack doesn't utilize cover, but he's more of a support character in that he can buff nearby teammates. He can also hack enemies and wreak havoc on their defenses, making him a valuable part of the team, even if he doesn't get quite as physical.

Gears 5 is not far away from release. The game will release on Xbox One and PC (including both Windows 10 and Steam) on September 10. We'll have more news from Gamescom throughout the week, so stay tuned to Shacknews for all the latest.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?