Full patch notes
General
– Players leaving a Core/Competitive game early will now be suspended from matchmaking
– Players can rejoin a Core/Competitive match within 5 minutes of being dropped or quitting from an option in the main Versus menu
– Rejoining and completing a match will remove the matchmaking suspension time
– Added functionality to display matchmaking suspension time (including to your Squad Leader). You will not be able to matchmake if your Squad contains a suspended user until their suspension has completed.
Spectator Mode Improvements
As we enter 2017 to continue the huge season of Gears of War 4 eSports ahead, a small part of our team have been working on improvements to the Spectator Mode experience for viewers and casters.
This latest update brings far more information for viewers to follow the action, while reducing the real estate taken up by Player Cards to make them more viable for use when streaming tournaments. We’re excited to see what fans and casters think of these improvements over the coming months!
– Player Cards have been re-designed to take up less visual space
– Player ammo and reloads are now visible in the Spectator Mode UI
– Crosshairs are now visible to Spectators
– Respawn timers are now displayed on Player Cards
– Weapons holstered onto a player’s back can now be seen in Spectator Mode
– ‘K’ keyboard button now removes spectator inputs UI and/or the black bar altogether
– ‘L’ keyboard button toggles Player Cards to the far edges of the screen or normal positioning
– ‘V’, ‘B’ and ‘N’ keyboard buttons now jump to specific Escalation hill battle cameras
– Fixed an issue with X-Ray vision not rendering as intended
– Made X-Ray a ‘toggle’ rather than ‘Press-And-Hold’
– Fixed the ordering of players in Competitive UI to match the Lobby Order
– Pressing B while holding Jump Cam now cancels a pending Jump Cam
– Added new mapping for specific face buttons for specific camera modes, listed below:
- Gamepad ‘A’, Keyboard ‘Z’ -> Switches to Player or Follow Cam. If already in Player Cam, switch to Follow Cam and vice versa. Last used mode is saved as your preference when switching back to Player/Follow Cam from other modes and when using the Jump Cam
- Gamepad ‘X’, Keyboard ‘X’ -> Switch to Ghost Cam
- Gamepad ‘Y’, Keyboard ‘C’ -> Switch to Battle Cam
Other Fixes
– Skill ranking will now be visible again at the end of match scoreboard
– Added ‘Spawns Swapped’ UI when spawns flip in Versus
– Increased the Energy cost of the Hammer of Dawn Strike in Horde
– Increased Escalation Win and Loss bonuses
– Increased Escalation Win Bounty Rewards
– Tuned criteria and rewards for King of the Hill Bounties
– Fixed an exploit that allowed players to teleport Energy to their position in Horde
– Squad Members can immediately see when they have been removed from a Squad
– The ‘Horde Skills’ UI Notification alerting you to new skills now works correctly
– Horde Skill cards can now be equipped and unequipped in the Horde Skills inventory
– Added UI notification to show new Cards in your collection when opening Gear Packs
– Improved UI on Turret Heat bar
– Improved performance when switching tabs in Card view menus
– Added slider to control how long text chat remains visible after a message
– The Longshot can no longer shoot through walls if positioned through a 90 degree corner
– Added a Duplicates Only filter to the Inventory Menu
– Fixed an issue where audio slowly cut out in Horde
– Fixed an issue allowing grenade effects to continue into the next round in Versus
– Removed an exploit allowing users to break the map boundaries in Horde on Foundation
– Fixed an issue that allowed players to respawn out of the map boundaries in Horde
– Fixed an issue where offline customization would reset if user changed characters
– Miscellaneous fixes and improvements
Microsoft announced the newest title update for Gears of War 4 today, and it's a big one. Most of the content is available today for season pass holders, with everyone else having to wait until next week, January 17th. Two maps are added in Clocktower and Bloodrive, along with a number of skins and cards.
In fact, over 280 new cards are added and each one is earnable through scrap and regular Gear Packs. Thirteen new characters are up for grabs in Series 2, including the first delivery of Legacy Characters in Gears 4! Armored Anya and Armored Sam are back in their Gears 3 armor, and Zombie Minh rises from the dead (sporting Raam’s blade-sized hole in his chest!). Even though you can craft them, don't worry, as everyone can be earned through a standard pack.
There are some bonus items available only to season pass holders as well. Anyone who owns the pass will receive a total of 20 Gear Packs with 60 cards total in addition to the ones already added into the game. Weekly rewards are now claimable every Friday, and simply require you to log in for your free, weekly Gear Pack.
You can see flyovers of both new maps and a breakdown of the new content below, and the full list of patch notes (including quit penalties) can be seen on page two.
Clocktower – Re-imagined as the stunning Bank of Bronn as it’s slowly claimed by the Swarm. The imposing classic Gears architecture brings back memories of the battles you know and love, from the intense close-quarters combat in the lower streets to the Lancer-heavy crossfire at the Bank entrance.
Blooddrive – Blood Drive in Gears of War 4 brings back intense, center-map pillar fights with the improved flow of its refined sibling. Spawn at the Diner or the Morgue, then head to the city streets to battle it out over the Longshot and Overkill.
