Gears 5 launched one year ago and was generally well-received both by fans of the franchise and new players. It stands as one of Microsoft's big first-party titles of the Xbox One generation, so it's somewhat surprising that the game hasn't received any single-player game in the 12 months since release. A new rumor may hint that developer The Coalition may be planning on changing that, however. But it's not the first time that Gears 5 fans have speculated as such.
The latest rumor about Gears 5 potentially receiving a substantial DLC release comes from a Steam database datamine. Steam's database is publically accessible, so users regularly scrape the information and share it online. A recent addition in Gears 5's Steam files popped up in a recent database scrape specifically in the "Gears 5 - DLC (1415070) Depot." The appearance of the change has led Gears fans to believe that a single-player DLC might be in the works.
Attentive Steam users note that the listing that the new DLC file is placed under is not the same listing that is used for other downloadable content like Gears 5's microtransactions. This could mean many things, but Gears players are speculating that it could mean this is for a single-player DLC release or at least something more substantive. There isn't any further evidence of that, unfortunately. Nevertheless, Gears 5 players do have a possible hint at future DLC.
This isn't the first time that Gears 5 DLC has been rumored. There was an official video released by Microsoft in March that leaked some Gears 5 footage that isn't found in the base game. The footage shows members of Gears 5's Hivebusters squad who are only seen in the game's Escape multiplayer mode. The leak and rumor never led to any major announcements. It's possible that the two leaks are related.
The bigger question at hand is why The Coalition would wait until over a year after launch to not just release new DLC, but to even announce it. That's assuming the DLC is real, of course. The simple answer would be that the DLC just hasn't been ready, which is especially understandable given the COVID-19 pandemic has taken up the bulk of 2020. Another reason could be that The Coalition is now planning to release its Gears 5 DLC to coincide with the Xbox Series X launch.
Ultimately, the leak doesn't get Gears 5 fans any closer to an announcement. It's possible that the new files could be completely unrelated to any Gears 5 DLC and fans are getting their hopes up for nothing. Still, Microsoft's bound to have some announcements left before the Xbox Series X launches this holiday season. There's still hope for Gears 5 fans hoping for DLC.
Gears 5 is available now on PC and Xbox One.