When and where
Six weeks after the Pendulum Wars end, the COG is demobilizing and Kalona — an industrial city shaped by decades of Imulsion production — is holding a memorial for the fallen of Aspho Fields. Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago are among the soldiers facing civilian life. Then the ground opens.
E-Day is a prequel set fourteen years before the original Gears of War, during humanity’s first encounter with the Locust Horde. You do not need the earlier games’ stories to follow it.
The four you play
| Character | Who they are |
|---|---|
| Marcus Fenix | A worn veteran soldier, voiced again by John DiMaggio. |
| Dominic Santiago | Marcus’s closest friend, planning to leave the service, voiced by Carlos Ferro. |
| Mags Carter | A discharged Gear working at Kalona’s Imulsion refinery. |
| Lucas Reyes | A young communications cadet with no frontline experience. |
The campaign supports four-player online co-op, two-player split-screen on console, and is built around a “never fight alone” squad ethos.
Who you meet along the way
The defense of Kalona brings Bravo Squad into contact with the city’s command and other COG forces: Colonel Trench organizes the city’s defense, Captain Akila Grey commands Bravo, veteran warrior Tai Kaliso and Raven pilot Gil Gettner appear among the fighters, and Dr. Dalia Fabbri is a scientist the COG badly wants extracted. The story also shows the earliest days of the chainsaw-equipped Lancer — humanity’s iconic answer to the Locust.
The threat from below
The Locust Horde erupts from tunnels beneath the city, coordinated and far more intelligent than first appearances suggest, with emergence holes opening throughout battles — explosives can collapse them. Their attacks in Kalona are directed by a leader named Vraahk, who hunts high-ranking Gears and officials. Familiar enemies return alongside new creatures from the Hollows.
How the story is told
The campaign unfolds across three in-game days, each with its own theme: the confused, horror-tinged first night; the squad’s formation and the military response on day two; and desperation on day three. Kalona itself is the constant — you move through the same districts as they deteriorate, which the developers compares to watching a character collapse in slow motion. Optional encounters let you help civilians and investigate what is happening across the city.
The full story (spoilers)
Show the complete plot recap — major story spoilers ahead
After the emergence, Marcus and Dom fight to City Hall, where Colonel Trench forms them — with Mags and Lucas — into Bravo Squad under Captain Akila Grey. The bayonet proves useless against the Locust, and a prototype chainsaw Lancer is rushed into service.
Bravo is tasked with destroying an Imulsion shipment and recovering Dr. Dalia Fabbri, while Trench prioritizes her extraction over trapped civilians. The Locust, led by Vraahk and listening in on COG communications, destroy the airfield and kill the incoming General Iver. Crash-landing in the forests, Bravo discovers the tunnel network the Locust are using to march an army into the city.
Trench’s ruthless defense — culminating in stranding civilians on a bridge as bait — turns the squad against him; Vraahk kills him before he can detonate it. The survivors fall back to Fort Vigil, learn every city on Sera was attacked simultaneously, and uncover a secret COG lab developing a Lightmass Missile at the Timgad refinery, which Mags vents into the tunnels to prevent an overload.
The endgame is an escape by sea aboard the reactivated warship Resolute. At the port bridge, Marcus stops Dom from sacrificing himself, destroys the bridge with Trench’s explosives and kills Vraahk. Sailing from the ruins, Dom resolves to learn the fate of his family in Ephyra, and the two promise to keep fighting.
Where to go next
New to the series? The beginner briefing covers the controls, weapons and progression without story details. Looking for what to play with others? See the multiplayer guide.
Source notes
Based on the following material, checked October 9, 2026. Features and availability may change.
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