Versus is the competitive mode in Gears of War: E-Day, rebuilt from the ground up alongside the rest of the game. The design goal was to keep the tension, skill ceiling and team play that define the series' player versus player while running it on the new movement mechanics and the updated combat sandbox.
Format
Every Versus mode is 4v4 and built around fair starts. All players begin a match with the same loadout weapons and equipment, and there are no weapon mods in Versus at all, so nothing separates two players except decisions and execution. The competitive edge comes from on-map power weapons, which both teams contest, and from map control.
One important exclusion: aim assist affects the campaign and Horde Siege only. Versus is not affected by it.
Launch Modes
Mode | How it plays |
|---|---|
Team Deathmatch | Returns with a dynamic respawn system that moves spawn locations in response to where the fight is happening. As before, the mode centres on eliminating enemy lives rather than reaching a score, which sets up the classic situation of one player holding the line against a full enemy team. |
Conquest | A variant on King of the Hill. Teams occupy and defend specified zones, but instead of rotating on a fixed interval a zone stays active until one team banks enough time inside it to score. That makes a late comeback possible with coordinated play. |
Demolition | Teams fight for a neutral bomb that must be carried to one of two enemy bombsites and planted. Once armed, the planting team defends until detonation while fighting without respawns. Three successful detonations win the match. |
Crucible | New to this game. Built around the Power Core, a heavy piece of COG equipment that can be picked up and carried. Holding the Power Core inside the zone accrues score, and the zone moves and shrinks as the round runs. The Power Core also stores an electrical charge that can be discharged as a defensive blast. |
Rotating featured experiences run alongside the four core modes. After launch these include limited time modes, both seasonal ones such as a Trick or Treat mode during a Halloween event, and returning favourites from earlier games in the series updated for this one.
Maps
Six brand new maps ship at launch, all set in and around Kalona. They keep the series' symmetrical structure and its focus on cover positions, fronts and lanes, while being built around the new movement set so each layout includes its own risk and reward routes. Every map is described individually on Versus Maps.
Playlists
Playlist type | Structure |
|---|---|
Ranked | Each mode has its own playlist with its own rank and skill rating. Matchmaking is tight and quitting carries strict penalties. |
Social | The wider set: 4v4 Quickplay, Player versus Bot playlists organised by bot difficulty, limited time modes and special events. Players vote on what to play next at the end of each match so lobbies can stay together. |
Ranked Structure
After placement matches a player receives a Skill Division and a rank. The two measure different things and move independently.
Skill Division: derived from the skill-based rating used for matchmaking. It reflects perceived skill relative to everyone else in that playlist, so it can drift over time regardless of how you are playing.
Rank: based on Rank Rating, which tracks progress up that playlist's ladder. Points are only gained in victory and only lost in defeat, and the amount at stake scales with Skill Division, so the higher the competition the bigger the swings.
Onboarding
Two places exist to learn the game before queueing. Boot Camp is a short training course set in a COG military facility, aimed at teaching the new controls and mechanics to both new and returning players. Combat Training expands that space to include a multiplayer map with opportunities to try weapons and spawn short Locust encounters, and it supports four-player co-op so a squad can settle on control schemes and weapon combinations together. Player counts for that are on Co-Op and Split-Screen.
Progression
Versus and Horde Siege share one progression spine. Player Experience, medals, weekly challenges and cosmetics all pool across both, and none of it is behind a battle pass. See Progression and Medals and Cosmetics and Currencies. Access at launch requires a Game Pass Essential membership or higher, covered on Release and Platforms.