Microsoft Studios has purchased the right to any existing and future games in the Gears of War franchise from Epic Games, Microsoft has announced today. The publisher has trusted the series’ future in the hands of Black Tusk Studios, formerly known as Microsoft Vancouver.

So no, you should bother Epic Games anymore with questions about the future of the franchise.

 Gears of War franchise acquired by Microsoft Studios

Rod Fergusson, former Director of Production at Epic Games on the Gears of War franchise, will play a “key studio leadership role” at Black Tusk on the development of the franchise going forward.

Last we heard, Fergusson was leading a new studio for 2K Games. Guess that didn’t pan out.

“I’m extremely excited to be joining Black Tusk Studios to oversee development on the “Gears of War” franchise, said Fergusson. “I’ve been privileged to work on a lot of great games with a lot of great teams, but ‘Gears’ has had the most impact on me professionally and personally, so this really feels like a homecoming. I can’t wait to share more with you all soon.”

The latest game in the franchise, Gears of War Judgement, was released on the Xbox 360 in 2013.

We gave it a 4/5 review and said it is a “great action game that drowns the player in shooting, explosions and chainsaws, and leaves him glued to the sofa despite the uninteresting story.”


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