Similar to Halo-both series are shells of what they once were. Whereas Halo's changes are more visible-art, gameplay, tone, missing modes, etc Gears' changes are more difficult to spot. Subtle gameplay changes that had a ripple effect, new bloated modes, and a focus on micros. I'm someone that defends micros-I think there are plenty of games out there that are doing them really well right now but Gears is not one of them. Horde mode was restructured around micros and Gears 5 added Arcade and Escape to provide additional micro opportunity. Micros should be adjusted to fit the game, not the other way around. Gears is not a hero shooter so those sort of micros do not work in Gears. There is no "one size fits all" micro model, each game must find its own monetization strategy.