Summary
- The Gears 5: Hivebusters Expansion is available Tuesday, December 15, 2020 at 6:00am PT and is available with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate on Console, PC and Android devices the same day as global release.
- The Gears 5: Hivebusters Expansion ($19.99) is available separately for pre-purchase or included with the Gears 5: Game of the Year Edition ($59.99) beginning December 15.
- The expansion adds 16 New Achievements for a total of 210 available Gamerscore.
In the past month, Gears 5 released the Xbox Series X|S update, which relaunched the game with next-gen technical optimizations for new consoles and new campaign features, and followed up with the largest multiplayer update ever, Operation 5: Hollow Storm. Today, to cap off this holiday’s re-release, we’re announcing the Gears 5: Hivebusters campaign expansion, coming Tuesday, December 15, 2020 to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate or available for $19.99 pre-purchase from the Microsoft digital store.
Gears 5: Hivebusters Expansion
In the new expansion, play as Lahni, Keegan and Mac – the heroes introduced in Gears 5’s Escape mode – in their first mission as part of the secretive Hivebuster program. Thrown together and dubbed “Scorpio Squad,” their suicide mission to destroy a Swarm hive may hold the key to saving Sera and their own redemption.
- Enjoy a new, 3-hour campaign set on the volcanic Galangi islands. The island lava flows and sandy beaches are crawling with Swarm and a deadly new predator.
- Use and upgrade Ultimate Abilities in a campaign story setting for the first time.
- Up to 3-player co-op, split-screen or online.
- 16 new achievements to unlock for 210 Gamerscore
- The expansion supports Gears 5 Xbox Series X|S optimizations, including reduced load times, quick resume, variable refresh rates and 4K HDR Ultra visuals on Series X.
Gears 5: Hivebusters was written by Kurtis Wiebe, creator of the Rat Queens comic book series, and author of the Gears of War: Hivebusters comics on which the expansions characters are based. Gears of War: Hivebusters, which originally appeared as a five-part series in 2019, is now available for print purchase as a single collected volume and includes the Mechanic Mac Character Skin and the Hivebusters Comic Cover Banner as bonus digital items for immediate use in multiplayer.
Availability
Gears 5: Hivebusters is the first Xbox Game Studios campaign expansion to join Xbox Game Pass Ultimate day-and-date with release. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members can play as a part of their existing membership when the expansion is live on December 15. Simply update the game and launch the expansion from the Gears 5 main menu.
Other players can pre-purchase the expansion for $19.99 starting today via the Microsoft digital store or the Steam store.
New Achievements
Gears 5: Hivebusters is complete with a new set of Achievements worth 210 Gamerscore.
| Name | Description | Gamerscore |
| Designation: Scorpio | Unlock during the DLC Campaign | 5 |
| Out of the Frying Pan | Unlock during the DLC Campaign | 5 |
| New Island, New Mission | Unlock during the DLC Campaign | 5 |
| A Breath of Fresh Air | Unlock during the DLC Campaign | 5 |
| The Spirit Walk | Unlock during the DLC Campaign | 5 |
| Face the Creature | Unlock during the DLC Campaign | 5 |
| The Awakening | Activate Keegan, Lahni and Mac’s Abilities in the Hivebuster Campaign Expansion | 5 |
| Electroblade | Kill 50 enemies using Lahni’s Electroblade Ability as Lahni in the Hivebuster Campaign Expansion | 5 |
| Ready to Frontline | Kill 50 enemies as Mac through your Barrier Ability in the Hivebuster Campaign Expansion | 5 |
| Supplies for the Effort | As Keegan, activate Resupply ability 25 times in the Hivebuster Campaign Expansion | 5 |
| Enter Hivebusters | Complete all Chapters of the Hivebusters DLC (any difficulty) | 5 |
| Rite of passage | Complete all Chapters of the Hivebusters DLC on Insane | 15 |
| Renewed, not consumed | Find all Character Ability upgrades in the Hivebusters DLC | 5 |
| Operation: Ride the Snatcher | Complete the Hivebusters DLC in 3-Player Co-Op (Scorpio squad, dupes not allowed) | 10 |
| Searching for answers | Collect all Campaign Collectibles in the Hivebusters DLC | 5 |
| Class Act | Reach level five on any one Assault, one Tank and one Support | 5 |
| The Centaur Set | Max out each of the Anchor, Gunner, Pilot, Veteran, Brawler classes | 10 |
| A Gear of many talents | Complete a Versus match in each of Regency, River, Nexus, Clocktower, and Gridlock | 5 |
Hivebusters Graphic Novel
For more background and lore around the Lahni, Keegan and Mac, check out the Gears of War: Hivebusters graphic novel, also written by Kurtis Wiebe. It’s available now and includes the Mechanic Mac character skin and Hivebusters banner for use in Gears 5 multiplayer.
Gears 5: Game of the Year Edition
Also available next week is the Gears 5: Game of the Year Edition, which includes the Hivebusters campaign expansion, Halo: Reach Character Pack, plus 30 days of boost, and is available as a digital exclusive from the Microsoft digital store ($59.99) or included on day one with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.
Cloud Gaming (Beta) Support
Additionally, the Gears 5: Hivebusters campaign expansion will be available to play via cloud gaming (beta) with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate upon launch on December 15. The expansion joins Gears 5 and over 100 other titles now available to play from Android mobile devices.
For the latest on Gears 5, including the multiplayer relaunch as part of Operation 5 and our latest team up with WWE Superstars The New Day, stay tuned to Xbox Wire and Gears5.com.
