Gears of War: E-Day's Intended Difficulty Is Hardcore, Says The Coalition

The Coalition creative director Matt Searcy has said that Hardcore is the intended difficulty for Gears of War: E-Day's campaign. The game defaults to Normal, but Searcy's comment suggests the studio expects players to opt for a tougher challenge.

The campaign offers four difficulty modes: Casual, Normal, Hardcore, and Insane. In co-op, the game supports split difficulty, with individual damage and health balancing for each player. Players also get limited 'down but not out' opportunities, two per encounter.

Gears of War: E-Day is set to launch on Xbox and PC on 1st October. The game stars Marcus Fenix and Dom Santiago, and is set before the events of the original Gears of War.

The Coalition previously worked on difficulty modes in Gears 4 and Gears 5. Completing Gears games on Insane difficulty has traditionally been a badge of honour for players.

Searcy's comments were reported by Eurogamer.