Gears of War joins list of games getting a Netflix adaptation

Become a member of GB MAX to gain exclusive access to the industry and to the most influential global B2B leadership community in the business of gaming, entertainment, and tech. Join now and also get a VIP ticket to GamesBeat Next (Nov 2-3, SF).

Netflix announced its latest game-to-show/movie adaptation: Gears of War. The streaming service partnered with The Coalition to make a live-action movie and an “adult animation series” with potential for more. At the moment, it’s given no details on the release date of either property.

There’s no word yet on the storyline the movie will follow. In its description of the series, Netflix mentions “Delta Squad, a ragtag fireteam led by disgraced sergeant Marcus Fenix, [charged] with leading humanity’s last stand,” which implies it’s going to follow Fenix’s story. The series has also had several sequels and spin-offs that follow other characters, with 2019’s Gears 5 starring Kait Diaz.

Netflix has had much recent success with its video game adaptations, including Arcane: A League of Legends Story and Cyberpunk: Edgerunners. According to Netflix, viewers watched over 72 million hours of Arcane within weeks of its launch. Likewise, Edgerunners has some of the highest audience scores on the platform.

Netflix is also working on several other franchises, including live-action Bioshock movie, a Horizon Forbidden West show and an Assassin’s Creed series. A Gears of War movie has been on the figurative drawing board for some time — Variety reports a the franchise has been in some state of development since 2007.