Gears of War fans have long waited for a game in the popular franchise after the release of Gears 5 in 2019. The Coalition finally announced a prequel, Gears of War E-Day, at the Xbox Games Showcase 2024 as a world premiere, and fans are beyond excited to see the beginning of the story.
While the long-time fans are hyped to face the Locust again, many new players will dive into the game. This has led the developer to make some important changes to the Locust, and the team has explained that this horde will be more terrifying than ever before.
The Locust in Gears of War E-Day Will Be an Upgrade
Gears of War E-Day is a prequel and is set 14 years before the events of the first title in the franchise. It will take players back to Emergence Day when the Locust made themselves known to the planet of Sera. The story will follow Marcus Fenix and Dom Santiago as they begin fighting against the Locust invasion.
Developer The Coalition is not bringing the Locust as just enemies but, as the studio states, “living nightmares.” In an interview with Xbox, Creative Director Matt Searcy said that the brief of the design for the Locust was given as the “monsters under the bed” and how the people of Sera, who are unprepared, would react upon seeing these monsters.
Studio Art Director Aryan Hanbeck also explained how the team went about designing the Locust and how players can expect to see these monsters. “When players experience E-Day, they see the monsters through the eyes of those encountering them for the first time,” said Hanbeck, adding that it prioritized the redesign of the Locust Drone, which was considered cannon fodder.
Everything About the Locust Will Be on the Next Level Than Seen So Far
Aryan Hanbeck added that the Drone Locust has been transformed into “something fearsome, physically intimidating, and utterly brutal.” He also said that the horde has an enhanced status in Gears of War E-Day, just behind series heroes Marcus Fenix and Dom Santiago, adding that “Getting the drone right was crucial; everything else with the Locust we’re scaling up from there.”
This could mean that all the Locusts are getting upgrades and will be much more dangerous than ever before in the franchise. This becomes very important as the invasion of Locust on Sera starts the Locust War, which is the backdrop of the franchise.
Also, since these monsters killed a large number of humans, they need to be shown as dangerous as possible. The idea of showing Locust in a horrifying light rather than just as an enemy should do the trick for the developers to get the tone right.
So far, fans have said the developer seems to be doing the correct thing. Given the importance of the horde in the setting of the story, The Coalition will expect to leave no stone unturned to give players an unforgettable experience.
What are your thoughts about the Locust in Gears of War E-Day? Let us know in the comments.
