Since its inception, first party Xbox studio The Coalition has been focused exclusively on the Gears of War franchise, but recent months had made it seem like the studio was preparing to expand its horizons. Last year, it was confirmed that The Coalition had multiple unannounced projects in the works, one of which – as per job ads – was going to be a new IP. Leaks also claimed that the studio’s next game was going to be a smaller and more experimental game that would allow it to get more acclimated to Unreal Engine 5 before moving on to the next Gears game.
However, it seems plans have changed. The Coalition was one of several first party Xbox studios to be affected by Microsoft’s recent round of widespread layoffs, and as per journalist Jeff Grubb, that’s resulted in some shifts within the studio.
Speaking during a recent episode of his Game Mess Mornings podcast on Giant Bomb, Grubb said that The Coalition has internally cancelled two unannounced projects, including the aforementioned experimental game. Allegedly, that’s also partly down to the fact that the studio feels it is comfortable enough with Unreal Engine 5 as it is. As such, The Coalition seems to have shifted its full focus to Gears 6, which is seemingly going to be its next project.
Multiple job ads over the last few months have made it quite clear that work is already underway on the next mainline Gears of War game.
Grubb goes on to say that while Gears 6 is still likely going to be very far away, it’s possible that it ends up launching within the next three years- though presumably, that’s speculation, especially given how volatile release dates for games tend to be. Stay tuned, and we’ll keep you updated on any new details that come our way.