At a time when competitive multiplayer gaming was dominated by first-person shooters like Halo, Gears Of War managed to cut a very particular niche. The gameplay made it unable to have one truly dominant player that could tip the scales of a match in one direction. Instead, gameplay focused on teamwork and communication above all else.
This was promoted heavily through a series of great maps that forced players to work together to secure weapons and territory. Some of the early maps were so popular they remade them several times. Here is a ranking of some of the best maps from across the franchise.
10 Security (Gears Of War 2)
One of the great things about Gears Of War maps is that a lot of the maps had very specific features to help diversify the gameplay. Security’s big feature was to activate a series of lasers that could cut players down in half.
While it was immensely fun to utilize in regular Execution and Warzone, activating the lasers played a big role in some objective games, especially in King of the Hill, where teams could seal themselves in a location and rack up points while their opponents couldn’t get in.
9 Thrashball (Gears Of War 3)
Thrashball was first introduced as a concept in the very Gears Of War game. It was only mentioned that Augustus Cole was a star thrashball player, but the game itself wasn’t really developed or shown.
It wasn’t until Gears Of War 3, with the introduction of an actual thrashbowl court as a map, that players got to immerse themselves in the sport. The setting of the map really puts players in the competitive spirit, and there are tons of places to cover for a real hide-and-seek experience.
8 Avalanche (Gears Of War 2)
Environmental features are always fun when they are unexpected. That’s how Avalanche operates. At any given moment, an avalanche could descend upon the map, killing anyone in its path.
It’s especially fun when two players may be fighting, and they will both have to pause their battle to take cover or risk being decimated. Or even more hilariously, if players are playing the map for the first time and have no idea what’s going on only to find themselves trapped under the snow.
7 Checkout (Gears Of War 3)
While some maps like Avalanche and Security are fun for their special features, some maps are good just because they have a superb layout. That’s where Checkout excels. So there’s no surprise that they kept the blueprints the same when it was remade in subsequent games.
Although, the map does have a cool feature of accessing a fire extinguisher. It doesn’t do any damage, but it does have its own execution that is quite humiliating.
6 Exhibit (Gears 5)
While Exhibit is certainly fun for a lot of different game modes, it is perhaps best when paired with King of the Hill. It doesn’t seem like a map that has anyone specific great spot to guard, but that is probably what makes it so special. It forces players to defend territory that is vulnerable to multiple angles.
This doesn’t even take into account the fact that the map’s upper and lower levels also allow multiple routes to get to the same place.
5 River (Gears Of War 2)
When River premiered in Gears of War 2, it’s hard to imagine it being designed for anything other than Guardian. There is even a building for guardians to take up shop and hide while their teammates have to cross the river to try and invade the opposing team’s building.
It’s an easily defendable location, which can make games last for longer than they should. However, there’s also a wisely placed Boomshot on the map, which could take out a guardian from a distance.
4 Hail (Gears Of War 2)
Just like Avalanche, Hail’s environmental factor can catch a lot of players by surprise, especially if it’s their first time on it. The basic idea of razor hail is that it cuts players down as it falls from the sky, forcing players to take shelter until it dissipates.
This can create a bizarre lapse in action as players wait, often exchanging fire from a distance, before being able to make a move. It becomes especially frustrating on objective matches, where time is a big factor.
3 Canals (Gears Of War)
Gears of War matches are all about clashing. Since rounds are played so often, players are forced to head out quickly and meet the player head-on. What makes Canals great is that there are multiple layers in a tight space for this to happen.
There is the canal itself, as well as raised levels on either side and even above the canal itself. This can create a lot of back-and-forth battles with the feeling of real front-line warfare.
2 Blood Drive (Gears Of War 2)
Blood Drive has a particularly unique layout to it. With two elevated positions on either side, the map essentially creates a sort of kill zone on the level below that is very difficult to cross.
This makes games of Guardian and Capture the Leader particularly intense. Games could theoretically go on for an hour or more as leaders are held up in an easily defensible position. This could result in many, many deaths, probably earning the map its namesake.
1 Gridlock (Gears Of War)
It’s hard to imagine a more influential map in the Gears of War franchise than Gridlock. For many players, charging ahead on this map as Marcus Fenix was their very first Gears of War multiplayer experience as it was the most popular map in the first game.
To no one’s surprise, they remade it multiple times after that, but the overall layout has remained the same. It truly embodies what it feels like to be a Gear’s soldier as players battle it out in a ruined street with deserted cars all around them.
