Screenshots & trailers
Review sentiment over time
Weekly positive-review rate (green) and review volume (bars). Dashed lines mark significant patches; the amber line is the start of the current scoring window. Hover the dots to see what drove a dip or a jump.
How this score was computed
The VGC Score is a weighted blend on a press-comparable 0-100 quality scale. Steam approval rates are first calibrated (95% positive on Steam ≈ 89.5 quality, since Steam approval skews high). Press and tracked creator reviews each count ~2x a player review and share one cap against player evidence (creator buy/skip calls pool into an approval rate, calibrated like Steam approval); all-time sentiment is capped and halved (it's context, not verdict); reviews of the current build carry the most weight when a fresh patch anchors the window; and a 'typical game' prior keeps small samples from pegging the scale. Because press reviews and Metacritic user aggregates describe the launch build, their weight decays as the game ages (3-year half-life after a 1-year grace). That's how a game that launched rough can outgrow its old reception once updates win players over. Reviews under 2h playtime (the refund window), non-Steam activations, and free copies are downweighted.
| Component | Positive | Quality (0-100) | Weight (pseudo-reviews) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Press reviews (OpenCritic) | – | 85 | 50 |
| Creator reviews (2 tracked) | – | 88 | 1 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 71% | 68 | 1000 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | – | 0 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 84% | 78 | 258 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 299 reviews sampled · 736 total reviews in window · weighted 197.4 up / 37.8 down · computed 2h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (144)
Individual verdicts from outlets we track: scored reviews first, most trusted outlets first among them. The small badge is each outlet's trust score: how well its scoring history aligns with players.
- 80
“Gears 5 is a dynamic and exciting third-person shooter with incredibly beautiful graphics, hardcore multiplayer and a variety of cooperative modes, which lacks the challenge in the main campaign and really unexpected and interesting plot twists. New elements, such as large maps, RPG-system, stealth and side missions, turned out worthy and add freshness to the classic mechanics, so if you are a fan of the genre and the series, it is not recommended to miss. Especially given the democratic price on Steam and the presence of the project in the Game Pass for Windows 10 and Xbox One.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“The story of Gears 5 is so breathtaking, that to be honest, I cried many times. Gears 5 moved the series in a new direction, but unfortunately some older mechanics can still make you angry. It was difficult to determine the final degree of recommendation of the title. So we give an excellent eight, but if you are fans of the series, or looking for a title that you can play with your friends on the PC calmly add one more point to good. Now we have no choice but to pray that we will see the sixth part soon and I hope that I will get it again for a review.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“Classic Gears of War experience is greatly modified with cool new mechanics and not so necessary open world sections. But overall the game is close to be brilliant.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Gears 5 is the first time the series has made the brutality of its combat feel captivating and disturbingly intimate.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Gears 5 takes the series to new heights but it's weighed down by some annoying bugs and a story that seems to try a touch too hard to tie itself to the original trilogy. Whilst Horde mode is still excellent and the various Versus modes are fun, the new Escape mode is a bit hit and miss.”
read full review ↗ - 85
“Gears 5 is simply a very good game, tailored for the fans of the series. The new installment works great regardless of whether you play alone, or in coop, as well as during multiplayer battles. Sure, maybe it's not very inventive and rather similar to previous GoWs, but in this case, it’s a great recommendation.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Luckily the foundation of the series is still strong in and out of the campaign, with the multiplayer suite of Horde and Versus being as fun as ever. Escape, clearly inspired by Left 4 Dead, is also a great way to kill an hour if you've got competent squaddies for the ride. Ultimately, I had a fair amount of fun tearing my way through swarms of foes with shotguns and chainsaws, but there's definitely a part of me that's disappointed Gears 5 isn't the evolution its bloody heart is set on being.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“With Gears 5, the developers truly put their best effort in giving the players a game perfect in every aspect. However some flaws can be found: the narrative aspect has some issues, and the multiplayer part of the game is afflicted by many errors.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Among the upper echelon of Gears entries but sometimes stifled by technical issues.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Undeniably, this is a free upgrade worth downloading for new Xbox Series X owners, as it brings over some of the technical performance boosts from the PC version as well as 60fps cutscenes. Owners of both the Series S and Series X experience a number of upgrades including the sublime 120fps in multiplayer, alongside a huge toolbox of customisable options for the main story campaign. Although at the same time, as mentioned in the Cubed3 Xbox One review, the campaign mode still suffers from a weird mesh of linearity in some chapters followed by some bland tedious back-and-forth sandbox exploration. Any Gears of War fan should definitely take Gears 5 for a spin if they really want to test the power of their new hardware but may feel somewhat let down by the campaign mode if they are huge fans of the initial trilogy.”
read full review ↗ - 86
“Gears 5 is The Coalition’s coming-out party, showing the world that the Gears IP is in good hands, and that the future for fans of the series is bright.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“Gears 5 has undergone major gameplay changes. Qualation has used open world elements to create large, eye-catching environments for gear 5, but it's not impeccable, and sub-missions are tedious and repetitive.”
read full review ↗
GameMAG
INDIANTVCZ
3DNews
Slant Magazine
Jump Dash Roll
GRYOnline.pl
Paste Magazine
SpaceNerd.it
VGChartz
Cubed3
Nexus Hub
Zoomg…and 132 more tracked reviews.
Patch history
- Steam Deck UpdateJun 21, 2023
- This Week in Gears: Operation 8!Aug 3, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Operation 8: Drop 1 - RevealJul 28, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- This Week in Gears - July 13 - 19Jul 12, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Operation 7 Drop 2 - Reveal!Jun 23, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- This Week in Gears – June 15 – 21Jun 15, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- This Week in Gears: Operation 7!May 17, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Operation 7: Drop 1 - RevealMay 12, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- This Week in Gears - Operation 6 Drop 2!Apr 12, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Operation 6: Drop 2 - RevealApr 7, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- This week in Gears - Operation 6Mar 2, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Re-up update: 24 hours onFeb 10, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- This Week in Gears: February 2 - 8Feb 1, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Operation 3: GridironMar 24, 2020significant · resets scoring window