Gears 5: Hivebusters
Hivebusters is a stand-alone story expansion for Gears 5, featuring six new missions that can be played single-player or co-op. The campaign expanded the lore of the COG’s fight against the Swarm, blending fresh narrative beats with classic Gears action. Praised by fans for its strong storytelling, new environments, and replayability, many players described it as a must-play addition to the main game.
Role
Lead Narrative Designer
Release
December 15, 2020
Responsibilities
Narrative Design
Mission Design
Writing
Editing
Dialogue & Audio Design
Leadership & Contributions
On Gears 5: Hivebusters, led the narrative implementation team. My focus was on ensuring that dialogue felt dynamic and well-paced in-game, reviewing work in-engine and coaching team members not only on timing and rhythm, but also on keeping their setups airtight. I guided designers to build dialogue Blueprints that could handle unexpected player behavior gracefully, so story beats wouldn’t break immersion even in edge cases. This was especially important because the campaign blended scripted sequences (deterministic) with systemic dialogue (semi-random, event-driven), which required extra care (and lots of playtesting!) to keep line reads cohesive and natural across different contexts.
I also worked extensively on editing and adapting the campaign script to fit the realities of level design and combat pacing. This meant paring down and reshaping dialogue so that story moments landed clearly without overwhelming the gameplay. Because Hivebusters introduced a new squad of characters, I prioritized strong introductions and distinct voices to help players connect with them in the campaign and feel excited to continue playing them in multiplayer.
I collaborated closely with our Narrative Director (also acting as Voice Director) to prepare scripts for recording sessions, ensuring our talent had the context they needed to bring each line to life. During the pandemic, all recording shifted to a new remote setup, and I supported sessions directly over Zoom to provide additional context and continuity as needed.
You can watch a playthrough of the Hivebusters mission here: