Microsoft is finally getting the itch to remaster and remake some of its more iconic games. Gears of War: Reloaded launched in August, and we’ve now learned that Halo: Campaign Evolved will be released next year. To me, the most fascinating thing about both of those games is that they’re the second re-releases that the first Gears of War and Halo games have received. Meanwhile, games like Gears of War 2 are still stuck on Xbox 360.
Video game remasters and remakes tend to rehash the most popular or well-known titles, but other games deserve that same treatment. Gears of War 2 was released 17 years ago today, November 7, and in my mind still stands as the best game in the entire franchise. As such, I hope The Coalition and Xbox Game Studios reflect on this anniversary and choose to remaster Gears of War in the future, especially once Gears of War: E-Day renews interest in the franchise.
Gears of War 2 holds up 17 years later
It’s better than its predecessor in every way
Originally released on Xbox 360 on this day in 2008, Gears of War 2 is one of my favorite video game sequels ever. It’s the Gears of War game I spent the most time playing during my childhood, and I have lots of fond memories of playing in co-op with my brother. It’s the quintessential Gears of War game to me, and the game I judge all the other titles in the series by.
Like the best video game sequels, it improves upon its predecessor in almost every way. The story is more interesting, with the campaign featuring more memorable set pieces. While Epic Games was still finding its footing as to what a Gears of War game could be with the original, Gears of War 2 has a lot more fun recontextualizing and building on the grisly core combat, which still holds up in 2025.
Gears of War 2 was also the first game in the series to introduce a horde mode. It also colloquially made
I can’t believe this classic Xbox 360 game still hasn’t been remastered
