Gears of War 4 almost became a first person shooter

The Gears of War series is well known for its third-person gameplay. Prior to selling the IP off to Microsoft, Epic Games had its own ideas for Gears of War 4, including a dramatic shift to first-person gameplay. 

Before Microsoft acquired the IP and put together The Coalition studio, Gears of War was developed at Epic Games as a third-party exclusive series. Speaking on the XboxEra podcast last week, Gears co-creator Cliff Bleszinski talked a little bit about his ideas for continuing the series before Microsoft took the IP. Specifically, he wanted to move from third-person gameplay to first-person gameplay.

Phil Spencer spearheaded the IP acquisition and formation of The Coalition back in 2014. According to Bleszinski, a big focus for Microsoft at the time was to bring more horror elements back to the series, which we see in action throughout the Gears 4 campaign.

Since acquiring the IP in 2014, Microsoft has released two Gears titles. Currently, The Coalition is hiring in preparation for Gears 6.

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KitGuru Says: Gears of War in first-person would have been a huge shift for the series. Do you think this is something Microsoft should consider in the future? Or should Gears stick to its third-person shooter roots? 

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