Mike Rayner, the Technical Director of Gears of War 4, revealed to PC Gamer at a preview event last week that the PC version of the newest Gears of War title will receive local split-screen co-op functionality.
Calling the addition of the feature a "labor of love," Rayner stated that the feature was added to the title after the feedback they was received from the release of Gears of War: Ultimate Edition this past March.
“From a development standpoint, it is quite difficult to support,” Rayner said. “We have to deal with multiple inputs, we have to deal with focus, we have to deal with UI placement.” That extra work—especially when having to also consider all the resolutions and aspect ratios a PC can have—may be why most big games nowadays don’t typically support split-screen co-op.In another pleasant surprise, Gears of War 4 will also allow cross-platform online play between "Windows 10 and Xbox One for co-op, Horde mode, multiplayer versus mode against AI, and multiplayer versus mode in private and LAN games."
Thanks, PC Gamer.
Quick Take:
It appears Microsoft's initiative at taking PC gamers seriously is finally starting to bear fruit. While this may be a grudging and unspoken admission, I'm certainly not going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Maybe they finally chanced a peek at the overwhelming amount of information that states that PC gaming is worth the investment—$32 billion will do that to corporations, I guess. Now just port The Master Chief Collection and the rest of your Xbox One and Xbox 360 "exclusives," and we can start with a moderately fresh slate ... Although now that I mention it, a certain strategy franchise could also use a forth entry as well.What do you think of this news? Are you interested in purchasing Gears of War 4? Is there any Microsoft-owned franchise you would like to see remade? Let us know in the comments!
