The Coalition’s Matt Searcy says the prequel will “feel like a new game. It’s going to feel fresh and good at the same time.”

The Coalition and Gears of War made their eagerly-awaited return at this year’s Xbox Games Showcase. However, instead of the oft-rumored Gears 6, it dished out Gears of War: E-Day. Exploring the origins of E-Day from the perspective of Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago, it’s a prequel that will “shape the future” of the franchise.

However, that doesn’t mean it’s returning to the first game’s execution and gameplay, per director Matt Searcy and brand Director Nicole Fawcette. Searcy told Windows Central, “We think we have a pretty good handle on what makes Gears feel great, but that doesn’t mean we have to return Gears to its simplest possible version. There’s some things we tried that didn’t work great, and some things we tried that actually turned out pretty good.”

“We know that there’s this core, linear ‘against all odds’ thing that flows through it, but there’s room for us to play with that. We’ve got a whole city to play with. Gears of War: E-Day will feel like a f*g kick-ass Gears game like the one people have in their heads. But it’s going to feel like a new game too. It’s going to have a new feel. It’s going to feel fresh and good at the same time.”

Interestingly, Searcy and Fawcette smirked when asked if General RAAM, the first game’s antagonist, would appear. “We’re not really answering story questions right now…”

Fans can look forward to the Chainsaw Lancer, however. Fawcette confirmed that E-Day would explore its origin story. “We’ll see the Chainsaw Lancer was built after the fact since there were no weapons that could pierce their super thick hides. We’ll tell the story of how that came to be, and yes, you will get to use it too.” Of course, it also outlines the origin story of “many things,” so we could see other facets of the Coalition of Ordered Governments established.

Gears of War: E-Day is coming to Xbox Series X/S and PC.