The latest update to Gears of War 4 is here, and it's a doozy. Called "Rise of the Horde," this latest update packs in a ton of new content, included new difficulties, maps, and class skills.
A total of 15 new skills are being added in Rise of the Horde — three for each class. Some notable additions include cloaking for Scouts and grenade regeneration for Soldiers. A full list of the new skills can be found on the Gears website, and it's safe to say that there's enough here to change up gameplay quite a bit. You'll also have more chances to get your hands on these skills, as Horde Mode will now serve up a random skill for defeating boss waves a 30, 40 and 50.
For those looking for a challenge, this update also includes two new difficulty modes: Inconceivable and Ironman. For Horde Mode, Inconceivable offers a general step up in difficulty, while Ironman ratchets things up by removing COG tag drops when you die and ends your run after a failed wave. Campaign mode, on the other hand, offers an interesting survival twist on the new difficulties. From Xbox Wire:
In Campaign, Inconceivable takes a more Survival based twist, giving you less health than Insane difficulty but also less health to your enemies. That's because surviving on Inconceivable is all about effectiveness – weapons and crates drop significantly less ammunition, so you'll have to make every shot count with whatever pickups you can find on the battlefield.
Two new maps are also included in this update. The first, called Avalanche, takes place in a snow-covered mountainside resort. The other, Rust Lung, is a revamped version of a Gears 3 map that places the emphasis on close-quarters combat.
The update is pretty large, so make sure you have plenty of space available. Once downloaded, however, you should notice the game takes up far less space than before. If you already own the game, you should be able to start downloading the update now. And if you've never dipped your toes into the latest Gears, Microsoft will offer a free trial from June 9 through June 15.
