Gears of War 5 leak reveals the box art and maybe even its release date

The Gears of War 5 box art may have surfaced a little earlier than Microsoft may have intended, thanks to the Taiwanese ratings board. Though it's possible the listing itself isn't legit, it is a believable design, and it's being hosted by the official Taiwanese Industrial Development Bureau. The listing was originally spotted by Spanish fan site Generacion Xbox, who cite a different unspecified source to say that Gears of War 5 could arrive as early as September 10 this year.

The box art as shown on the listing features Kait most prominently, holding up the Locust-icon pendant that she revealed at the end of the last game. Marcus Fenix is on her right and Myrrah, the queen of the locusts, is on her left. Marcus killed Myrrah at the end of Gears 3, so she may just appear in flashbacks, or else Myrrah isn't as dead as we think. Anyway, Gears 5 developer The Coalition has confirmed that the game will star Kait as the playable protagonist and explore "her family ties to the Locusts", so putting her in the middle between the leader of the Locusts and the de facto champion of humanity teases the conflict in her future.

Del and JD Fenix – the other two members of the ragtag squad from Gears of War 4 – are on the lower right, and a pair of combatants who will probably not be your friends are on the lower left. Finally, we can see some kind of alpine-ish scene in the blood stain below all the characters, but it's too small to be sure of what it's showing. Maybe the slopes of Mount Kadar, original home to the Locusts?

Gears of War 5 is a shoo-in for the lineup of E3 2019 games since its official release window is still set for 2019. Chances are we'll see this box art and a lot more at Microsoft's presentation – make sure you read our E3 2019 schedule so you don't miss it.

You don't have to wait for more good times on Xbox - check out our guide to the best Xbox One exclusives. Or watch our video review of the latest big Xbox game right here.

Connor Sheridan

I got a BA in journalism from Central Michigan University - though the best education I received there was from CM Life, its student-run newspaper. Long before that, I started pursuing my degree in video games by bugging my older brother to let me play Zelda on the Super Nintendo. I've previously been a news intern for GameSpot, a news writer for CVG, and now I'm a staff writer here at GamesRadar.

Latest in Action
Assassin's Creed Shadows review gameplay showing Yasuke overlooking the sea and lush green scenery
Assassin's Creed Shadows has already "surpassed the launches of AC Origins and Odyssey" with 2 million players and counting
God of War 3
God of War PSP's seamless loading was only possible because a Jak & Daxter game was also running in the background
MindsEye
GTA veteran's new open-world game will belong to everyone – almost like a wild mix of Roblox and Minecraft servers: "It won't just be ours"
Bill getting teary-eyed in The Last of Us
A potential The Last of Us season 1 plot hole has sparked a lot of debate among the fans
Assassin's Creed Shadows Naoe "justice must be served" or "killing them isn't justice" Yaya and Mistumune choice
Should you side with Mitsumune or Yaya in Assassin's Creed Shadows?
Assassin's Creed Shadows money naoe and merchant
How to get money in Assassin’s Creed Shadows
Latest in News
Adam Scott as Mark S and Britt Lower as Helly R in Severance season 2
There might have been another reason for Mark's decision in the Severance season 2 finale
Silent Hill f art showing a person covered in plants
Silent Hill f has been pre-emptively banned in Australia, with no reason given for the 'refused classification' rating
Assassin's Creed Shadows review gameplay showing Yasuke overlooking the sea and lush green scenery
Assassin's Creed Shadows has already "surpassed the launches of AC Origins and Odyssey" with 2 million players and counting
Helldivers 2 screenshot showing someone using a big gun
Helldivers 2 boss says "death and rebirth" is a natural part of the games industry, but it's "unnecessarily brutal" right now "because we don't diversify enough"
A Dragon Age character stares out against a blue background.
BioWare makes a return to Dragon Age: The Veilguard with a surprise PC update, months after layoffs and a seemingly final patch
God of War 3
God of War PSP's seamless loading was only possible because a Jak & Daxter game was also running in the background