An experience you’ll walk away from with a big smile on your face – in campaign, Versus, and Horde modes alike. It’s about as good of a franchise reawakening as I could’ve hoped for.

Gears of War 4 is a worthy successor to the series and an enjoyable game overall, especially if you are fan of blistering and intense action games. It doesn't reinvent the wheel, it plays mainly into the "safe" net that was built by Epic Games, but for PC users who couldn't play any of the latest games of the franchise, GOW 4 is a great opportunity to find out about it.

Gears of War 4 is the best Gears yet. Don't expect a revolution, but a refinement of all of the aspects that make Gears great, including an over-the-top, almost cartoonish campaign, and a kick-ass upgrade of Horde mode. It's also a flawless representative of Microsoft's new "Play Anywhere" and Universal Windows Platform initiatives.

With The Coaltion at the reins Gears is in safe hands, and we're genuinely intrigued to see what happens next. [Issue#257, p.64]

Most obvious are the efforts of artists and designers: Sera after two decades of peace looks much more vibrant, and every location – even local mines – is instantly recognizable. Gameplay, on the other hand, hasn’t changed in its core – but it’s much more polished now (which is especially noticeable if you compare it to recent remake of first Gears of War). [Issue#213, p.50]

A serviceable campaign is augmented by a very robust multiplayer offering. Gears of War 4 offers spectacular graphics and great PC performance, but the story feels unfinished.

Gears 4 takes only half measures. It discards a lighthearted adventure premise for another fate-of-humanity monster invasion. It gives up on the anti-militarist bent of its early fight against the COG for another plot about soldiers trying to save humanity.