Play the first at its best. Experience the title that launched one of the most celebrated sagas in entertainment.

Painstakingly remastered in 1080p and modernized for Xbox One, Gears of War: Ultimate Edition is packed full of new content, including five campaign chapters never released on Xbox.

Gears of War: Ultimate Edition may be a remake of the first Gears of War game, but Microsoft didn't want to ignore the rest of the series. As a result, all four of the Xbox 360 Gears of War games have been officially confirmed for the Xbox One via the Xbox 360 Backward Compatibility feature. Even better, anyone who purchases a copy of Gears of War: Ultimate Edition (digital or physical) and plays it before December 31, 2015, will be granted free digital copies of Gears of War, Gears of War 2, Gears of War 3 and Gears of War: Judgment. All four of the games will unlock once BC officially launches on the Xbox One. This means you shouldn't expect to play them on August 25, but once BC rolls out to the general public, the four titles will automatically appear in your library, assuming you've played Gears of War: Ultimate Edition at least once.

What's most interesting about this announcement is the simple fact that Microsoft has included the original Gears of War as a BC title. Some had been wondering if remastered games would be mysteriously absent from the BC list. It doesn't appear to be a concern for Microsoft. The only real "catch" to this offer is that the free digital copies are likely to be playable on the Xbox One only. That means, just like Rare Replay, there is no cross-buy support for the included games. You'll be able to play them on the Xbox One via BC, but you won’t be able to download and play them on your Xbox 360 unless you own a separately purchased digital copy.

Gears of War: Ultimate Edition will unlock early access to the "Gears of War 4" multiplayer beta in 2016.