Gears of War: E-Day is off to a strong critical start, but early sales estimates suggest Microsoft's latest Xbox blockbuster may be struggling to turn that acclaim into actual sales. The latest entry in The Coalition's third-person shooter series launched Oct. 6 on Xbox Series X and PC, returning players to the early days of the Locust invasion. But according to estimates from Alinea Analytics, the game sold just 230,000 copies during its early-access period, with most players instead accessing it through Xbox Game Pass.
Alinea analyst Rhys Elliott shared the figures on X on Oct. 9, estimating that E-Day sold 168,000 copies on Steam and another 62,000 across Xbox console and PC. The game reportedly attracted 1.7 million Game Pass players, including an estimated 722,000 who paid $30 for the Premium Edition upgrade to play five days early. The numbers have not been confirmed by Microsoft, and they don't tell the whole story.
Elliott noted that Xbox accounted for nearly three-quarters of the game's estimated revenue, despite Steam accounting for the majority of sales. Still, the figures raise questions about whether Game Pass is undermining Microsoft's ability to sell its biggest games at full price. Gears of War: E-Day is tracking well, earning an 88 on Metacritic and an 87 on OpenCritic, making it the best-reviewed entries in the franchise in more than a decade.
Polygon's review praised the prequel's combat, visuals, and emotional story about Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago during Emergence Day, calling it Gears at its finest despite some significant flaws. The review also highlighted the game's cinematic set pieces and detailed environments, though its lengthy campaign and sprawling open sections can drag. Elsewhere, IGN awarded the campaign a preliminary 9/10, praising its emotional weight, while ScreenRant also gave it a 9/10.
PC Gamer, meanwhile, criticized the repetitive encounters and exhausting 20-plus-hour campaign, and GameSpot's in-progress review took issue with the game's reluctance to move beyond familiar series conventions. Those scores could also change. Critics initially reviewed the single-player campaign without access to the game's Horde Siege and multiplayer modes, leaving the full package's reception uncertain.
For Microsoft, the bigger question may be whether strong reviews and millions of players translate into a sustainable business. E-Day appears to have found an audience on Game Pass, but Alinea's estimates suggest that audience may not be buying the game in the numbers Microsoft would hope for from one of its flagship franchises.
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