Gears of War 3 beta 'Never Fight Alone' promotion detailed

The ongoing Gears of War 3 beta is currently available to those who preordered the title from GameStop and for owners of the Bulletstorm Epic Edition. Soon, however, Microsoft will let many more gamers in via a new promotion.

Today Microsoft announced the "Never Fight Alone" promotion, whereby gamers currently curb-stomping their way through the beta can earn up to five "buddy" tokens to distribute to friends.

Players can earn the five tokens by completing a range of Gears of War-specific activities. First, all gamers who have played at least one game in the beta will earn a token. Other ways to grab tokens include purchasing any Gears of War content from the Xbox Live Marketplace, playing 20 or more hours of the Gears of War 3 beta, adding a 12-month Xbox Live subscription to an account, or playing more than 100 hours in any Gears of War title.

Gamers have until this Wednesday, May 4, to complete any of the above activities and earn their token(s). Further, Microsoft will handle all tracking of accomplishments, so players will not need to do anything additional. Buddy tokens will be e-mailed out on May 8, giving gamers a week to play with friends before the beta ends on May 15.

Gears of War 3 is due out in full worldwide on September 20. It will be available in a standard edition ($60), a limited edition ($80), and an epic edition ($150).