Microsoft is finally getting the itch to remaster and remake some of its more iconic games. Gears of War: Reloaded launched in August, and we've now learned that Halo: Campaign Evolved will be released next year. To me, the most fascinating thing about both of those games is that they're the second re-releases that the first Gears of War and Halo games have received. Meanwhile, games like Gears of War 2 are still stuck on Xbox 360.

Video game remasters and remakes tend to rehash the most popular or well-known titles, but other games deserve that same treatment. Gears of War 2 was released 17 years ago today, November 7, and in my mind still stands as the best game in the entire franchise. As such, I hope The Coalition and Xbox Game Studios reflect on this anniversary and choose to remaster Gears of War in the future, especially once Gears of War: E-Day renews interest in the franchise.

Gears of War 2 holds up 17 years later

It's better than its predecessor in every way

Originally released on Xbox 360 on this day in 2008, Gears of War 2 is one of my favorite video game sequels ever. It's the Gears of War game I spent the most time playing during my childhood, and I have lots of fond memories of playing in co-op with my brother. It's the quintessential Gears of War game to me, and the game I judge all the other titles in the series by.

Like the best video game sequels, it improves upon its predecessor in almost every way. The story is more interesting, with the campaign featuring more memorable set pieces. While Epic Games was still finding its footing as to what a Gears of War game could be with the original, Gears of War 2 has a lot more fun recontextualizing and building on the grisly core combat, which still holds up in 2025.

Gears of War 2 was also the first game in the series to introduce a horde mode. It also colloquially made "horde mode" the term for a mode where you try to survive against waves of enemies for as long as possible. I remember it being the first such mode I ever played in a shooter as a kid and sinking dozens of hours into it.

My love of horde modes in shooters can be traced back to this, and I think there's a reason every Gears of War game since has iterated on that mode in some fashion. 17 years after its release, Gears of War 2 stands as one of my favorite Xbox 360 titles and a quintessential game in the third-person genre. So why hasn't it been remastered or remade?

Gears of War 2 was only released for Xbox 360

Xbox's backward-compatible game visual upgrades only go so far

While I liked Gears of War: Reloaded and am looking forward to Halo: Campaign Evolved, my main issue with those games is that they've already been remastered. Gears of War: Ultimate Edition came out in 2014, while Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary launched in 2012.

Xbox clearly wants to offer a fresh start for players interested in these franchises, but that means it's retreading the same ground with those series. Meanwhile, a game like Gears of War 2 has yet to be remastered or remade, even though I think one with improved visuals, a revamped horde mode, and game feel more in line with later Gears of War games would be fantastic.

Currently, players have to settle for backward-compatible versions of the game on Xbox One, Xbox Series S, or Xbox Series X. While I appreciated the boosted resolution and frame rate backward-compatible Xbox 360 games receive, the texture quality didn't improve to make up for it. It's a half-step toward a remaster, but still far behind the treatment Gears of War: Reloaded gave the first game in the series.

There's also the fact that its multiplayer lobbies are barren, and it's not on PC at all. Gears of War: Reloaded even came to PS5, so I'd be fine with a Gears of War 2 re-release doing the same as well. At the very least, I'd like to see Gears of War 2: Reloaded on PS5. A full-on remake would be even better.

Gears of War 2 should be Xbox's next remaster or remake

I want to see new life breathed into all of Xbox's classic games

When Gears of War: E-Day comes out, I think interest in this franchise will be revitalized. People who want to experience the story chronologically will be able to try out Gears of War: Reloaded next, but then be stuck playing a native Xbox 360 game if they want to continue the story from there.

There is a beauty to going back and playing the original version of Gears of War 2. That said, I think countless more people would feel enticed to experience this Xbox 360 classic if it were to get a comprehensive remaster or remake for modern platforms. If Xbox is going to be digging into its back catalog for re-releases, I'd love to see all of its classics modernized.