8BitDo has announced Gears of War: E-Day editions of its Retro 87 mechanical keyboard and Retro R8 mouse, officially licensed by Xbox and timed to the upcoming game. The keyboard costs $119.99 and the mouse $59.99, both are sold separately, and both are listed on 8BitDo’s site to ship on October 30, 2026. They are themed versions of hardware 8BitDo already sells, with red and black styling, weapon-themed keys and the game’s Crimson Omen emblem. Under the theme, a few components have changed from the earlier Xbox Editions they are built on.
What the E-Day edition adds
The theme follows Gears of War: E-Day’s look, which 8BitDo sums up as “Fractured earth. Crimson energy. COG insignia.” The keyboard has a black case with translucent red, solid red and black keycaps, red cracked-earth graphics and a “Gears of War E-Day” nameplate. The number keys 1 to 4 carry icons for the Lancer, the Gnasher, the Boltok pistol and a frag grenade, and one keycap carries the Crimson Omen skull. The theme runs across the case, the keycaps and the nameplate.
The theme extends to the extras. The keyboard ships with 8BitDo’s Dual Super Buttons, a separate two-button pad that can be mapped to keys or macros, here styled with the Crimson Omen and a red cross emblem. The mouse pairs a matte black shell with translucent red side panels, and its charging dock carries the Crimson Omen and the E-Day logo. This follows 8BitDo’s earlier Gears of War: E-Day controller charging dock, which Xbox showed alongside its own E-Day controllers in August.
The Retro 87 keyboard
The Retro 87 is a tenkeyless keyboard, meaning it drops the number pad and keeps the other 87 keys. This edition uses 8BitDo Cloud Gray linear switches, developed with the switch maker HUANO, on a hot-swappable circuit board, so switches can be pulled and replaced without soldering. The switches sit on an aluminum plate in a top-mount design with sound-dampening layers, and the keycaps have a profile 8BitDo describes as similar to MDA, a rounded and moderately tall shape. RGB lighting offers eight modes.
Connections cover the three common options: Bluetooth 5.3, a 2.4 GHz wireless adapter and a wired USB-C cable. A 4,000 mAh battery is rated for up to 280 hours on 2.4 GHz and 300 hours on Bluetooth, according to 8BitDo. A control panel on the keyboard handles connection switching, volume and button mapping, and a dedicated button opens the Windows Game Bar. The keyboard measures 376.6 by 169.6 by 46.8 mm and weighs 1,100 g.
The Dual Super Buttons connect to the keyboard and can be mapped directly, without software. According to 8BitDo, up to four sets can be connected, with one set included. They are large, easy-to-hit buttons for a single key, a shortcut or a macro, useful for a push-to-talk key or a frequently used command. 8BitDo’s Ultimate Software V2 on Windows handles deeper customization for the keyboard as a whole.
The Retro R8 mouse
The Retro R8 is a lightweight wireless gaming mouse built around PixArt’s PAW3395 sensor, a common choice in current gaming mice. The Gears page lists six DPI levels, and the Xbox Edition it is based on is rated from 50 to 26,000 DPI. The polling rate, which sets how often the mouse reports its position, reaches 8,000 Hz wired and 4,000 Hz on the 2.4 GHz adapter, while Bluetooth is limited to 125 Hz. Those figures put it in line with enthusiast-level mice.
The mouse weighs 77 g and uses HUANO switches that 8BitDo rates for up to 100 million clicks. Four programmable side buttons and a left- or right-hand mode switch let it work for either hand. The 450 mAh battery is rated for up to 100 hours on Bluetooth and between 26 and 105 hours on 2.4 GHz, depending on the polling rate. The included charging dock also extends the wireless signal and stores the adapter, and a full charge takes about 2.5 hours.
| Specification | Retro 87 keyboard | Retro R8 mouse |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $119.99 | $59.99 |
| Switches or sensor | 8BitDo Cloud Gray linear (HUANO), hot-swappable | PixArt PAW3395, HUANO switches |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth 5.3, 2.4 GHz, USB-C | Bluetooth 5.3, 2.4 GHz, USB-C |
| Polling rate | Not listed | Up to 8,000 Hz wired, 4,000 Hz on 2.4 GHz |
| Battery | 4,000 mAh, up to 300 hours | 450 mAh, up to 105 hours |
| Weight | 1,100 g | 77 g |
| Included | Dual Super Buttons, 2.4 GHz adapter, cable | Charging dock, 2.4 GHz adapter |
| Official support | Windows 10 (1903) or later, Android 9 or later | Windows, Android |
Compatibility
Despite the Xbox license, neither product is listed as compatible with Xbox consoles, and the packaging carries Xbox’s “Designed for PC” badge. 8BitDo officially supports Windows 10 version 1903 or later and Android 9 or later. Mac is not on that list, but both connect over standard Bluetooth, the 2.4 GHz adapter or USB-C, and I use other 8BitDo keyboards with a Mac without problems. What a Mac misses is 8BitDo’s Ultimate Software, which runs on Windows, so deeper remapping needs a PC, while the Super Buttons can be mapped on the keyboard itself.
Price and availability
The keyboard costs $119.99 and the mouse $59.99 on 8BitDo’s store, and both are listed to ship on October 30, 2026. No bundle price has been announced, so buying both costs $179.98. Amazon US lists the keyboard for pre-order, while the mouse had no live Amazon listing at launch. 8BitDo has not announced UK or European pricing.
How they compare to the Xbox Editions
Both products share their dimensions, weight and battery with the Retro 87 and Retro R8 Xbox Editions that 8BitDo already sells. The differences are in the parts. The keyboard moves from Kailh Jellyfish X switches to the HUANO Cloud Gray linear switches, and its Bluetooth listing moves from 5.0 to 5.3. The mouse moves from Kailh switches to HUANO switches, according to 8BitDo’s product pages for the keyboard and the mouse.
Why I pre-ordered both
I have pre-ordered both the keyboard and the mouse myself, and I am looking forward to trying them when they ship at the end of October. Black and red has been my favourite colour scheme since I was about nine, and this set commits to it completely. Until they arrive, everything in this article comes from 8BitDo’s specifications and early coverage.
