Sources tell The Verge that Gears of War: E-Day has sold over 400,000 copies across console and PC, and Game Pass is likely to blame.
The latest entry in the Gears franchise released to critical acclaim earlier this month, drawing high scores from reviewers and fans alike. (IGN scored the game a 9 out of 10, saying its “stellar story campaign is complemented by an excellent multiplayer suite.”)
However, it seems the title’s popularity isn’t translating to sales — at least, that’s according to a new figure reported by The Verge. Correspondent Tom Warren cited a source who estimated that 400,000 copies of the game have been sold in total across consoles and PC, which paints a grim figure considering the prestige of this particular release.
Many are pointing to Xbox Game Pass as the reason for this surprisingly low figure. The game was a day-one release on the service, and was available for early access five days before its official launch via a $30 Premium Edition Upgrade, meaning that total units sold are most certainly lower than those who accessed the title through Game Pass. (It’s also worth noting that most players were under the impression this would be a multiplatform release until Xbox revealed it as a console exclusive just four months before launch.)
Data from Alinea Analytics appears to corroborate this thought. As laid out in an October 9 post from the research firm’s head of market analysis, Rhys Elliott, an estimated 1.7 million players accessed E-Day using their Game Pass subscription, rather than buying a copy.
Elliott figured that of those 1.7 million players, likely 722,000 paid for the Premium upgrade, with the game prompting an additional 250,000 Premium upgrades between October 1 and the game’s full release on October 6.
As told by Elliott at the time of his post, “E-Day sold 62,000 copies on Xbox against 722,000 Premium upgrades, so for every one copy sold on Xbox, nearly 12 Game Pass upgrades were sold.” He surmised that Xbox accounted for nearly three-quarters of the game’s total revenue, but said that despite these seemingly low numbers, nearly 950K likely paid for the game in some way — just not by outright purchasing an actual copy.
These E-Day figures follow news that Xbox Game Pass might be receiving a major overhaul that could let subscribers pick which features they want to actually pay for. As told by Fortune, this would include “add-ons for console-only games, cloud gaming, and multiplayer, with the system operating on a tiered structure, according to people familiar with the strategy.”
It’s a turbulent time for Xbox, which is still in the midst of a massive restructuring. A total of 3,200 employees are expected to lose their jobs at the company, as told by CEO Asha Sharma this summer. This restructuring has also resulted in the divestment of several game studios, including Arkane Lyon, who now has until December 13, 2026 to find a buyer and save its highly-anticipated Blade game.
Virginia (she/her) is IGN’s News Editor. With ten years of experience reporting on games and entertainment, she’s got a storied background in the fighting game community, influencer news, and viral online trends. Find her on Twitter at @TheeMissGlaze.