The folks over at The Coalition are mixing things up with Gears 5, delivering unto players a new multiplayer Arcade mode that combines elements of a normal deathmatch with a game like, say, Overwatch. To that end, each playable hero will feature different loadouts and capabilities, as well as strengths and weaknesses, not unlike what Ubisoft has been doing with Rainbow Six Siege. The caveat, though, is that not all the heroes will be unlocked in the Gears 5 Arcade mode from the get go – they’ll need to be earned in-game, or purchased using the game’s “iron” currency.

The news comes by way of the folks over at Gamespot, who recently sat down with design director Ryan Cleven to discuss the monetary structure within Gears 5. One of the more drastic changes with the new system is the overall removal of loot boxes, swapped out instead with a more straightforward marketplace. “The new structure is built to respect player choice: earnable items are not purchasable, purchasable items are not earnable, and free items are only free,” Cleven said. “The player always knows what they get if they are earning or purchasing content.”

There is of course the exception of the heroes, all of whom can be obtained multiple ways. “As new Hero characters impact gameplay, they will be both earnable and purchasable to players to maintain an equal playing field.” As mentioned, this jives with what Ubisoft does with Rainbow Six Siege, where the player can either grind out the currency needed to purchase a new operator or simply spend real money on the in-game currency equivalent. The good news is that player choice is at the forefront here, so there are multiple ways to go about acquiring the same things.

Gears 5 releases on PC and Xbox One on September 10, 2019.

So, thoughts on the new monetary structure? What do you think of the game’s upcoming Arcade mode so far? Let us know in the comments section below, and as always, stay tuned to Don’t Feed the Gamers for all the latest gaming and entertainment news! Don’t forget to follow DFTG on Twitter for our 24/7 news feed!