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Gears of War: E-Day promises rewards with no Battle Pass gating and no 'pay-to-win'

"Whether it's a Legendary Character Skin, an Epic Weapon Skin Set, or a Rare Pose, almost all of it can be earned through gameplay."
Jonas Mäki Editor Sweden 31 July 2026

Yesterday, The Coalition shared a wealth of information about the multiplayer mode in the upcoming Gears of War: E-Day. Among other things, they revealed more about the 12-player action in Horde Siege, where three squads of four players each play together along different routes before finally meeting up for a joint finale.

Now, GamingBolt is highlighting a detail many have overlooked on the official website: how the Battle Pass and microtransactions will work in the game, and it's a solution we think many of you will appreciate:

"No Battle Pass, no Tour of Duty, no gimmicks, no BS. Whether it's a Legendary Character Skin, an Epic Weapon Skin Set, or a Rare Pose, almost all of it can be earned through gameplay."

Nor will there be a flood of players running around with rare gear they've purchased, while others have really had to work hard to unlock the same items. There won't be any shortcuts:

"Crucially, items that can be obtained directly via a challenge or achievement can only be earned through that acquisition method so long as the challenge is active. In other words, you can't bypass an achievement or challenge by opening your wallet. You also can't bypass an active challenge with Coins. We respect the time and skill it takes for players to earn those items."

However, it shouldn't be impossible to unlock things; the point isn't that you should have to do the same repetitive tasks over and over again just to get that shockingly pink Lancer you want, and the developers explain:

"Earning Coins shouldn't be an arduous grind. Chasing your favorite skin and unlocking new items should be fun. As such, we've carefully tuned the rate you earn Coins with this principle in mind, and we'll pay close attention to player feedback to adjust as necessary in post-launch."

We're guessing very few of you will take issue with any of this? The Coalition seems to have its ear to the ground, gauging what the community thinks ahead of the October 6 release of Gears of War: E-Day for both PC and Xbox Series S/X.

Editor Sweden Jonas Mäki has written for Gamereactor since 2002, becoming an editor in 2007. He covers the video game industry across news, releases and the business side, with a particular interest in sales figures and where the industry is heading.
Full profile Gamereactor author since 2007 · 12,194 published articles
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