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Gears of War

2006 Epic Games Third-person shooter Updated 25 Jul 2026

Gears of War is a 2006 third-person shooter developed by Epic Games, a landmark console title that popularized cover-based combat and showcased the studio's Unreal Engine 3. Players join hardened soldier Marcus Fenix and Delta Squad in humanity's brutal war against the subterranean Locust Horde on the planet Sera.

The game built its tense, deliberate combat around ducking behind cover and advancing in bloody firefights, punctuated by the active-reload mini-game that rewarded well-timed button presses and the iconic Lancer rifle with its chainsaw bayonet. Its gritty, muscular aesthetic, drop-in cooperative campaign, and multiplayer modes helped define the visual style of a console generation and cemented the stop-and-pop cover shooter as a genre staple imitated for years.

Gears of War launched a hugely successful franchise spanning numerous sequels and spin-offs. The original was later remastered with updated visuals and effects, letting new players experience its brutal war on modern hardware.

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Modern alternatives to Gears of War, with the devices they run on and their price. Ordered editorially by how well each one stands in for the original, with community votes weighted in as they accumulate.

Prices, platform availability and Steam Deck compatibility can change at any time. Always check the store page before buying.

Modern alternatives to Gears of War compared: price, Steam Deck rating and the devices each one runs on.
Alternative	Price	Steam Deck	Runs on
Deadlink Indie	€ 24,99	Steam Deck Playable	PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
Remnant II	€ 49,99	Steam Deck Unsupported	PC, PlayStation, Xbox
Gears 5	€ 39,99	Steam Deck Playable	PC, Xbox