Gears of War: E-Day launched on October 6 and topped the Xbox Top 40 Most Popular Games chart for the week ending October 11. According to the chart's methodology, its first-week Xbox player count was 16.6% higher than that of Minecraft, which ranked second.
In terms of initial launch scale for Game Pass titles in 2026, Gears of War: E-Day ranked second, only behind Forza Horizon 6, and surpassed Minecraft Dungeons 2, Halo: Combat Evolved, and Subnautica 2.
Specifically, Gears of War: E-Day had 164.6% more Xbox players than Minecraft Dungeons 2, and its launch performance was 8.6% higher than Halo: Combat Evolved; its player count amounted to 67.3% of Forza Horizon 6's initial Xbox player count.
The percentages above compare player counts, not sales or revenue. Since some titles available through EA Play and Ubisoft channels are not included in the PC player data, initial launch rankings may also be affected by the scope of statistics.