Gears 5 Operation 3 Balance Changes Are Coming For The Lancer And Gnasher

As Gears 5 heats up with Operation 3, changes are being made to two of the game's most popular weapons following fan feedback. The new update, detailed by developer The Coalition on the official Gears 5 website, focuses on the Lancer rifle and the Gnasher shotgun, which have been series staples since the first Gears of War.

The update, which is live now, nerfs the power of the Lancer a bit and looks to improve how using the Gnasher feels. The Lancer is slightly less powerful now--its accuracy bloom (which dictates how much accuracy is lost per-shot when firing a round) has been increased to 28%. This is roughly what it was in Gears of War 3 and 4, too, and it takes 0.84 seconds to reach maximum inaccuracy if you hold down the trigger (or faster after an active reload). It's in your best interest to shoot the Lancer in controlled bursts when possible, and that's even more true now than it was before.

The Lancer in Gears 5 had a smaller clip than before, but it was increased in Operation 3 so that it could be used more effectively to finish off downed enemies. However, this ultimately made the weapon a little too powerful.

The Gnasher, on the other hand, has seen an increase in its bullet magnetism range from 6m to 8m. The weapon was feeling inconsistent in Operation 3, The Coalition said, so it's reverted back to how it was before. The gib-range calculation system has also been temporarily disabled, as a bug was making it a little too easy to gib opponents with the gun.

As the update points out, testing is more difficult now as developers work from home, so it's more likely that errors will slip through.

Gears 5 recently lost its multiplayer director, who exited The Coalition citing the toll that working on the last two Gears games has taken on him.