The May content update arrives tomorrow, May 2, packed full of surprises for Gears of War 4 fans! Strap in as we unveil a new original map created by The Coalition, celebrate the return of a fan-favorite map from Gears of War 2 and see a beloved hero brought back from the dead to join the multiplayer ranks.

Maps

This month brings a brand-new map designed by The Coalition in Dawn, along with our first returning map from Gears of War 2 – Security!

Dawn

Set in a stunning Outsider village built around an abandoned mining colony, Dawn is a map defined by two defensive structures – the high ground of the bar, and the entrenched mine on the low side. Prepare for a new kind of fight centered around the vital Dropshot spawn, as it’s surrounded by both high and low flanks and features a risk-it-all one-way vault to secure the weapon.

This map combines tight corridors of combat with open spaces – learn to use the right weapon for the right situations on this map and you’ll truly become a master of Dawn.

Security

Fans have been asking us since the launch of Gears of War 4 to bring back some of the classic maps from Gears of War 2, and we’re incredibly excited to answer your cries with Security! We’ve worked extensively to bring this map up to modern graphical and gameplay standards, with improvements that incorporate Gears 4’s close-cover combat, Horde and proper support for respawn-based modes like TDM.

This new reimagined setting for Security takes you to a fight over a glorious decadent COG depository, with stacks of gold bars providing makeshift cover throughout the map. Defensive lasers bar access to key parts of the map, so prepare for a tough fight for the button that disables the lasers to give your team control over the flow of combat.

For Gears of War 4, we’ve made a major change to how the lasers work. In King of the Hill and one of the key central rings on Escalation, the security lasers will only block the side entrances to the top sandbags to focus on opening flanks rather than blocking off entire areas. In addition, the lasers are activated in Horde when pressing the button (rather than disabled), offering a short defensive window that kills enemies as they try to run through it. Time your press just right to decimate groups of enemies getting too close to your base!

Multi-GPU Support Arrives on Windows 10

We are excited to announce that Multi-GPU support arrives with the May Update for our Windows 10 players! Our Windows 10 team have been hard at work implementing support for users who use multiple graphics card setups, and now fans can take full advantage of their setup to really push the stunning visuals of Gears of War 4.

Looking Forward

As always, there’s plenty more for Gears fans to play for this month!

Back in Gears of War 2, the plucky Benjamin Carmine met his horrible end inside the Riftworm. This month, you’ll be able to find Benjamin Carmine back from the dead in one of our May Gear Packs as Zombie Ben Carmine – complete with his missing lower torso innards.

Our monthly Versus and Horde events also continue in May with a brand-new Horde variant and the return of Gnashers Only King of the Hill for Versus fans. Head on over to our Gears of War Community Hub for full dates and information.

And for you Locust collectors out there, start saving your Scrap – the Locust Grenadier Elite will be our Craftable Character for this month!

Season 1 is Underway!

Last month, we launched our Seasons feature in Gears of War 4 alongside numerous Ranked Matchmaking improvements to provide better quality skill matchups.

At the beginning of each season, we reset your Tier in each playlist in order to re-evaluate your starting skill level for the month ahead. You’ll need to head back out there and complete your five placement matches for each playlist to earn your starting Tier, then win matches consistently in order to progress up the ranks.

However, with progress comes with rewards! Depending on your Tier placement at the end of the Season, you’ll earn parts of special Weapon Skin sets to take onto the battlefield. Check out the Diamond Weapon Skin set below – the ultimate prize for placing in the top echelon of players!

We’ve also updated GearsofWar.com with a rich Season experience, showing you your past and current placements plus exactly where you stack up with the rest of the community. Head on over to the site to check out your stats now!

That’s it from us. Get out there tomorrow, play some Gears and let us know what you think of our May maps. See you online, Gears fans.