Gears of War: E-Day gives everyone RAAM for free as the series turns 20

by VideoGamer.com Staff Last Updated November 8, 2026

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Guardian, For the Queen and a free Locust general The Coalition looks back at 20 years Season 2: Legacy lands December 1

The Coalition is celebrating 20 years of Gears of War with a two-week anniversary event in Gears of War: E-Day. As part of it, every player can log in and pick up RAAM as a free multiplayer character, and Season 2: Legacy follows on December 1.

Gears of War first came out on Xbox 360 on November 7, 2006, and gave us Marcus Fenix, Dom Santiago and the Lancer’s chainsaw bayonet. E-Day is developed by The Coalition and published by Xbox Game Studios. It goes back 14 years before that first game for an origin story about the night the Locust first broke through.

Guardian, For the Queen and a free Locust general

Nicole Fawcette, studio brand director at The Coalition, confirmed the event on Xbox Wire. It started this week and lasts a fortnight, with limited-time modes and new rewards. Here’s what’s in it:

• Guardian: a Versus mode built around team leaders, where only one leader is still standing at the end.
• For the Queen: a Horde Siege variant with the supply cache switched off, so squads have to survive on the loadouts they bring.
• RAAM: a free multiplayer character for every E-Day player since November 7, the series’ actual birthday. You get him just by logging in.
• New rewards for taking part, though Xbox Wire doesn’t list them all.

Taking away the supply cache is a real change for Horde Siege. That’s E-Day’s bigger take on wave survival, where four-player squads pick Assault, Marksman, Medic or Breacher and can join up with other squads for shared objectives and world bosses.

The Coalition looks back at 20 years

The studio also put out an anniversary video alongside the event. In her post, Fawcette writes about the community around the series, from friendships that began in multiplayer lobbies to fans who played while deployed with the military.

She also thanks Epic Games, which created the series, along with the voice cast and other collaborators. Her message ends with a note to players: “Thank you for making Gears part of your lives, and for letting us be a small part of yours.”

Thank you for making Gears part of your lives, and for letting us be a small part of yours.

Nicole Fawcette, studio brand director, The Coalition

Season 2: Legacy lands December 1

The next season starts on December 1 and leans on the past, bringing back favourite maps, modes and multiplayer skins from across the series. The Coalition also plans to rework a few characters. First up is a Solemn Memories skin that puts Dom in the suit he wears in his photo with Maria from Gears of War 2.

The Microsoft Store listing shows the $99.99 Premium Edition includes five seasonal customisation packs, added as each one comes out. The listing also says online campaign co-op, Horde Siege and Versus need a Game Pass subscription that includes online multiplayer. The Coalition hasn’t said yet which maps are coming back, so Gridlock fans will have to wait and see.

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