Gears 5 adds a few new wrinkles to the Gears of War formula. You’ll find massive open-world levels, and get help from Jack, an upgradable robot helper with abilities that aid your team in combat. Whether he’s deploying shock traps, flashing enemies, shielding you with an energy barrier, or applying stims to revive you and your friends, Jack is way more useful this time around.
Not only can Jack be upgraded with components, each special power has an ‘ultimate’ upgrade you can unlock. These ultimate upgrades are incredibly powerful, making your standard abilities suddenly completely unstoppable. They’re all worth unlocking, and some of them feel game-breaking they’re so useful. If you want to dominate any battlefield and become an all-powerful demigod, these Ultimate Upgrades are what you need.
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All Jack Ultimate Upgrades | Locations Guide
There are 7 Ultimate Upgrades you can earn in Gears 5. You’ll be able to find one for each Support and Combat skill on Jack. Some are unlocked by completing side-objectives, while others can just be found in the environment. Most are found in the open-world areas, but one is found in a linear level.
Flash Ultimate Upgrade: Flash Freeze – Freezes enemies, incapacitating them for longer.
- Location: Act 2: Chapter 4 – Visit all three Old Derrick Sites and collect the items in the skiff. Get all three to unlock the cryo upgrade for Flash.
Shock Trap Ultimate Upgrade: Seeker – Shock-Bots chase targets and do double damage.
- Location: Act 2: Chapter 4 – Go to the East Tower Substation and grab the collectible to find the code to the North Tower Substation. Travel to the North Tower Substation, and you’ll find the Shock Trap Ultimate Upgrade inside.
Stim Ultimate Upgrade: Brawler – Melee damage is tripled while Stimmed.
- Location: Act 2: Chapter 4 – Found in the Condor Crash Site side-objective in the far northeast corner of the map. Drive around and you’ll find it.
Pulse Ultimate Upgrade: Marked For Death – Attacks against Pulsed enemies deal 20% more damage.
- Location: Act 2: Chapter 4 – Found in the Condor Crash Site side-objective in the center-east part of the map. You can’t miss it with a little exploration.
Cloak Ultimate Upgrade: Slayer – Remain cloaked for the full duration, even while shooting.
- Location: Act 3: Chapter 1/3 – Complete the ‘Water Works’ side-objectives. Complete the Pump Station, Water Tower, and Harbor Docks side-objectives to earn this reward.
Hijack Ultimate Upgrade: Detonator Implant – Hijacked enemy explodes on death.
- Location: Act 3: Chapter 1/3 – Complete the ‘Scavengers’ side-objectives. Complete the Artillery Battery, Cargo Shipwreck, and City Ruins side-objectives to earn this reward.
Barrier Ultimate Upgrade: Deadly Overload – Jack’s Barrier explodes outward when it expires.
- Location: Act 4: Chapter 1 – When the Swarmak appears, you’re on the bottom floor of a battlefield. Go to the corner directly to your right to find this easy-to-miss upgrade.