Gears of War: E-Day Editions, Early Access and Game Pass Explained

Gears of War: E-Day comes in a $69.99 Standard Edition and a $99.99 Premium Edition, and the only thing Premium adds that affects when you play is up to five days of early access from 1 October. Everything else is cosmetics, a campaign weapon pack and 1,000 Iron of premium currency. Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass members get the base game on 6 October, according to Microsoft's own Gears of War: E-Day FAQ.

This guide is built on the official store listings and two posts from The Coalition: the editions and pre-order overview on GearsofWar.com and the "gone gold" post on Xbox Wire of 17 September. Prices and contents were checked on 28 September 2026, before early access. Nothing here depends on playing the game.

How much does each Gears of War: E-Day edition cost?

There are three ways to buy the game plus one add-on. The Standard Edition is sold digitally and on disc; the Premium Edition is digital only; the Premium Edition Upgrade turns a Standard copy into Premium for $30.00. The Collector's Edition is $299.99 on the Xbox Game Studios Shop, for Xbox Series X (with a disc) and Steam (with a digital code), and it includes the Premium upgrade.

The UK prices come from the Steam store page, which lists only two packages: the base game and the Premium Edition. Steam's store data showed no separate upgrade add-on on 28 September, so the upgrade route we could confirm is on the Xbox Store. If you want early access on Steam, buying Premium outright is the safe option.

What does the Premium Edition actually add?

GearsofWar.com lists the Premium contents in full. Apart from early access, all of it is cosmetic or currency, and one item is limited to the campaign:

• Up to five days of early access, starting 1 October.
• The Emergence Customization Pack at launch: a Legendary "Death's Rendezvous" Marcus Fenix skin, an Epic Bloodied Hunter Tai Kaliso skin, two Legendary poses, two weapon skin sets, and a banner, emblem and icon.
• Four more Seasonal Customization Packs, each with two character skins, two weapon skin sets, two poses and one banner, emblem and icon, released "as available".
• 1,000 Iron, the game's premium in-game currency.
• The Bravo Squad Signature Weapon Pack, which the editions page says is for use in the campaign only.

Two things are missing from the official material. The Coalition has not dated the four later packs, and we could not find a standalone price for Iron on the store pages we checked, so there is no way to put a dollar value on that part of the bundle. Judge the $30 on the five days and on whether you care about skins.

When does early access start in your time zone?

According to Xbox Wire, all three milestones happen at 8am Pacific (15:00 UTC) on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox on PC and Steam: pre-install on 29 September, early access on 1 October and the worldwide launch on 6 October. It is a simultaneous unlock, not a midnight-by-region rollout. The local times below are our conversion of 15:00 UTC.

The PC version needs 115 GB on an SSD, per the official requirements. GameSpot puts the Xbox Series X|S download at roughly 100 GB; we found no official console figure on Microsoft's pages, so leave some headroom.

Can Game Pass members play Gears of War: E-Day early?

Not with the subscription alone. The Xbox Wire post is explicit: Premium Edition players start on 1 October, while Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass members "can join the fight starting October 6". Game Pass members can pre-install from 29 September, though, so the download is out of the way before launch day.

The route to playing early without buying the game is the $30 upgrade. Its Xbox Store listing carries the small print "Requires base game or Xbox Game Pass Ultimate membership", and Insider Gaming reads it the same way: subscribers can skip the full purchase and buy only the upgrade.

Microsoft's small print also says online campaign co-op, Horde Siege, Versus and other multiplayer features require a Game Pass subscription that includes online multiplayer. The notice does not separate console from PC, so check which tier you have if you plan to play online on Xbox.

What do you get for pre-ordering?

Any edition bought before 6 October at 7:59am PT comes with the Exfil Dom Legendary Character Skin and the Exfil Legendary Weapon Skin Set. GearsofWar.com says they appear in game from early access on 1 October, but only in Horde Siege and Versus, not the campaign. Digital pre-orders unlock them automatically; physical pre-orders may come with a code from the retailer.

The other pre-order perk, early access to the multiplayer Open Beta, has already been and gone. Playing through Game Pass is not a pre-order, so it does not include the Exfil bonus.

Which platforms does each purchase cover?

A copy bought on the Xbox Store is an Xbox Play Anywhere purchase: one licence covers Xbox Series X|S and Xbox on PC, with shared progression and achievements. A Steam copy is a separate purchase on a separate store. The Steam page promises cross-platform play and optional account linking for roaming saves, so a Steam player can still join friends on Xbox.

Microsoft lists only Xbox Series X|S and PC (Xbox app and Steam); no PlayStation or Xbox One version has been announced. Two-player split-screen co-op is console-only, according to the Xbox.com small print; online co-op supports up to four players.

What should PC and Steam Deck players check first?

The minimum specification asks for a GPU capable of hardware ray tracing (an RTX 2060, RTX 5050, RX 6600 or RX 9060), 12 GB of RAM and Windows 10 64-bit. The recommended tier moves to an RTX 3060 Ti, RTX 5060, RX 6700 XT or RX 9060 XT with 16 GB of RAM and Windows 11. An SSD is required at both levels. If your card lacks hardware ray tracing, don't pay for five days of early access before checking.

On Steam Deck, the Steam page says the game is optimised for handheld play on Deck and Xbox Ally devices. Valve's own compatibility check had not rated the game when we looked on 28 September, so there is no independent Verified or Playable label yet.

Standard, Premium or Game Pass: which should you pick?

The choice comes down to how much the five days and the skins are worth to you.

Everything else we publish on the game, including reviews once the scores settle, lives on our Gears of War: E-Day hub. For the rest of the month's release dates, see our list of every October 2026 release.