PC players need a ray-tracing GPU for Gears of War: E-Day's October 6 launch

Gears of War: E-Day, the new third-person shooter from Xbox Game Studios, launches worldwide on October 6 at 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC). Premium Edition buyers and Game Pass subscribers who purchased the Premium Edition Upgrade have been playing in early access since October 1 at the same time, five days before launch[1]. The game is coming to Xbox Series X|S and Windows PC, including Steam, with cloud play also available through Game Pass Ultimate and GeForce NOW[1]. The information below reflects Xbox Wire announcements and the US Steam and Xbox Store listings checked as of October 4, 2026.

Surviving Emergence Day, 14 years before the original

The Coalition is developing the game[2][3]. Its story begins 14 years before the first Gears of War, on Emergence Day (E-Day), when the Locust Horde first rises from beneath the ground. Players face that day alongside Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago[2].

The campaign supports solo play and two-player split-screen on consoles. Online, groups of up to four can play the campaign, Horde Siege and Versus together[2]. Horde Siege is a cooperative mode about holding off waves of enemies. Players choose from the Assault, Marksman, Medic and Breacher classes before joining a four-person squad. Multiple squads work together to complete shared objectives and defeat world bosses. Versus offers 4v4 matches through Ranked and more casual Social playlists[2]. Built on Unreal Engine 5, the game supports up to 60 frames per second at 4K in both the campaign and multiplayer[2].

Edition prices and the Game Pass conditions

On Steam (US), the Standard Edition costs $69.99 and the Premium Edition costs $99.99[3]. The Standard Edition is also $69.99 on the Xbox Store (US). The Premium Edition Upgrade, which lets Game Pass subscribers access the game early, costs $30[1][4]. The Premium Edition includes up to five days of early access, the Bravo Squad Signature Weapon Pack, five seasonal customization packs and 1,000 Iron, the premium in-game currency. The Emergence Pack arrives at launch, with the remaining customization packs delivered as they are released[2].

The game joins Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass on launch day, allowing subscribers to play from October 6[2]. There is one condition in the note at the bottom of the Xbox Wire announcement: online campaign co-op, Horde Siege and Versus require a separate Game Pass subscription that includes online multiplayer[2]. The announcement does not specify which platforms this requirement applies to.

Check your graphics card before the PC launch

Steam's minimum requirements come with a graphics card condition. A graphics card with hardware ray tracing support is required, with the GeForce RTX 2060 and Radeon RX 6600 given as examples. The game also requires 12GB of RAM and 115GB of storage on an SSD. Recommended specifications are a GeForce RTX 3060 Ti or Radeon RX 6700 XT and 16GB of RAM[3]. Steam lists English voice and subtitles, along with full audio in Japanese, Korean and both Chinese scripts. The Steam listing shows an ESRB rating of M[3].

Pre-installation has been available since September 29 on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox on PC and Steam[2]. With 115GB required, skipping the preload means starting with a download when the game launches on October 6 at 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC).

Sources

[1] Xbox Wire. Gears of War: E-Day is Available in Early Access Today, Watch the Launch Gameplay Trailer. October 1, 2026.

[2] Mike Crump (The Coalition). Gears of War: E-Day Has Gone Gold, Pre-Install Begins September 29, Full PC Specifications Revealed. Xbox Wire, September 17, 2026.

[3] Valve. Gears of War: E-Day on Steam. Accessed October 4, 2026.

[4] Microsoft. Gears of War: E-Day Xbox Store (US), Premium Edition Upgrade. Accessed October 4, 2026.