Gears Tactics Walkthrough and Guide

Gears Tactics is a spin-off of the Gears of War franchise and a prequel to the first game. You play the role of Sergeant Gabriel 'Gabe' Diaz who must recruit, develop and command a squad on a desperate mission to hunt down the relentless and powerful leader of the Locust army: Ukkon, the evil mastermind monster who makes monsters. Outnumbered and against all odds you and your team must fight for survival and outsmart your enemy in turn-based tactical combat. Check out our Gears Tactics Walkthrough and Guide to find out more about the game.

Upgrade all Characters

As you progress the game will become more punishing, particularly when it comes to the boss battles that close out the acts. In order to give yourself different options it is important that you continually upgrade all your squad members and regularly rotate them in and out of side missions and not just leave them on the sidelines to focus on the main characters.

Investing Skill Points

In Gears Tactics there are five different classes: sniper, support, scout, vanguard, and heavy, and they each have their own unique weapons and abilities. Each individual squad member also has their own skill trees that you can level up with Skill points earned through successfully completing missions and killing enemies that will allow you to specialise your classes. You will only have a limited number of Skill points to invest so you need to figure out what skills are integral to your playstyle and focus on maxing those.

Keep using Executions to get Action Points

Playing aggresively and going on the offensive is rewarded in Gears Tactics. Whenever you use an execution move on a downed enemy, each member of your squad will recieve an extra Action point. Take advantage of this by performing an execution move on a downed enemy at every opportunity to extend the length of your turn and the actions your character's can take within it.

Line Up Shots

Gears Tactics has bullet penetration which makes it possible to kill two enemies with one well placed shot. This mechanic is present on all weapons, you just need to ensure the sightlines overlap to perform it. The bullet penetration mechanic means you need to make sure you know where your squad members are at all times to avoid them being hit by friendly fire.

Reloading Weapons

In Gears Tactics each of your squad members will reload all their available weapons for free after a skirmish so it is more beneficial to focus on eliminating enemies instead of spending Action points on reloading weapons.

Take Advantage of Overwatch

In Gears Tactics the Overwatch mechanic enables your squad members to secure a selected part of their field of vision. You can control the direction and size of the cone, which determines the attack range of your weapon. The wider the cone, the less accurate your shots will become, so a good tactic is to overlap Overwatch zones at the end of your turns. Well-placed squad members can create 'death zones' in which the enemy won't be able to survive. Make sure you take advantage of the Overwatch mechanic whenever possible.

Using Cover

Not all cover in Gears Tactics will provide the same protection or opportunity for your squad members. Low cover will provide minimal protection from a head on attack, while high cover will keep you safe but severely limit your firing opportunities. Also be weary of using wooden objects as cover as these are liable to shatter upon the first impact from a bullet leaving you susceptible to attacks for the entire run. The ideal position has a cover from at least two sides and enemies on only one side. In this way, you reduce the risk of getting flanked and limit the enemy's options.

Start Over at Checkpoints

Gears of War is not a forgiving game and if you suddenly realise you made bad investments in the skill trees which is preventing you from picking up decent equipment you can use the checkpoint systen to take the game back a turn or two and rectify your mistake. Thankfully, Gears Tactics checkpoints regularly.

Gears Tactics Official Launch Trailer