Gears Tactics
War Before the Legends, Strategy Before Survival
Gears Tactics, released in 2020, is both a structural and thematic departure for the franchise. Set twelve years before the original Gears of War, the game shifts the series away from visceral third person action and into turn based tactical combat. This change is not cosmetic. It allows the story to slow down, examine intent, and focus on the granular cost of decisions made long before Marcus Fenix becomes a symbol. Gears Tactics is about how the war began to harden people, and how victory started to resemble obsession.
Sera in the Early Years After Emergence Day
The game is set in the early years following Emergence Day, a period when humanity is still struggling to understand the nature of the Locust threat. Cities are falling, command structures are fragmenting, and the Coalition of Ordered Governments is scrambling to respond with incomplete information and improvised doctrine. This is a time of uncertainty rather than attrition. The enemy is real, but its motives, biology, and scale remain largely unknown.
Unlike later entries, Gears Tactics emphasizes that the war has not yet settled into routine. Soldiers are not legends. They are recruits, survivors, and specialists pulled together by necessity rather than tradition. The COG is still forming its identity as an authoritarian wartime government, and its moral compromises are only beginning.
Gabe Diaz and a Personal War
The narrative centers on Gabriel Diaz, a former COG soldier turned Outsider following the death of his wife during a Locust attack. Gabe’s motivation is not ideology or loyalty to the COG. It is revenge. When intelligence reveals that a powerful Locust leader known as Ukkon is responsible for creating new monsters and refining the Horde’s war machine, Gabe is pulled back into the conflict.
Gabe’s journey is deeply personal and intentionally narrow. Where later protagonists fight to save the world, Gabe fights to make sense of his loss. This focus allows Gears Tactics to explore how grief becomes fuel for prolonged violence, and how personal vendettas can align uncomfortably well with institutional goals.
Ukkon and the Nature of the Enemy
Ukkon is one of the most significant antagonists introduced in the franchise. A Locust scientist and strategist, he is responsible for the creation and refinement of creatures such as Brumaks and Corpsers. Unlike other Locust leaders, Ukkon is methodical, experimental, and driven by adaptation rather than conquest.
His presence reframes the Locust as more than a brute force invasion. They are innovators responding to pressure, evolving tactically and biologically. Ukkon’s work suggests that the war is not static. It is an arms race, and humanity is losing ground.
The Squad and Tactical Focus
Gears Tactics places heavy emphasis on squad composition and specialization. Soldiers are procedurally generated, each with distinct classes such as Vanguard, Sniper, Support, Heavy, and Scout. Permadeath is a constant threat. Every decision carries weight, reinforcing the idea that war is shaped by loss as much as by success.
Named characters such as Sid Redburn, a disgraced former Gear seeking redemption, provide emotional anchors within this system. These figures humanize the broader strategic layer, reminding the player that every tactical sacrifice echoes beyond the battlefield.
Gameplay as Narrative Expression
The turn based combat system is not merely a genre experiment. It reinforces the themes of calculation, consequence, and control. Positioning, overwatch, ability synergy, and action economy become expressions of command responsibility. Success requires foresight. Failure is immediate and often irreversible.
Boss encounters against Ukkon’s creations are deliberately punishing, forcing players to adapt tactics and accept casualties. These battles mirror the narrative reality of early E Day. Humanity does not yet understand how to fight this war, and experimentation comes at a cost.
Key Story Moments
As Gabe’s campaign progresses, the line between COG objectives and personal obsession blurs. His relentless pursuit of Ukkon begins to strain alliances and compromise broader strategic goals. The final confrontation reveals that killing Ukkon will not end the war or dismantle the Locust threat. It will only remove one architect.
This realization is central to the game’s message. The war cannot be solved through targeted vengeance. It is systemic, adaptive, and deeply entrenched.
Themes of Control, Obsession, and Militarization
Gears Tactics explores how war incentivizes obsession. Gabe’s grief aligns with the COG’s need for decisive action, creating a feedback loop where personal trauma becomes strategic utility. The game also examines the early militarization of COG command, where experimentation and secrecy are justified as necessary evils.
There is no triumphant ending. Victory is measured in temporary containment rather than resolution. The enemy adapts. The war continues.
Creators and Design Philosophy
Gears Tactics was developed by Splash Damage in collaboration with The Coalition. Rod Fergusson served as executive producer, ensuring narrative and tonal continuity with the mainline series. The shift to a tactical format allowed the developers to explore Gears lore from a different angle, focusing on decision making rather than reaction.
The Meaning of Gears Tactics
Gears Tactics is a story about how wars begin to shape people before they become myths. It strips away spectacle and replaces it with consequence. Every fallen soldier, every compromised objective, and every hard choice reinforces a single truth.
The war against the Locust was never going to be won cleanly. Long before heroes rose, the cost was already being paid, one calculated move at a time.
