Gears of War 3 beta begins mid-April

Those who have scooped up the well-reviewed shooter Bulletstorm have a reason to block out a section of their calendars today. Microsoft has announced that the Gears of War 3 multiplayer beta will begin in mid-April. No specific date was given for the kickoff of the beta, an invite for which comes with each Epic Edition copy of the Xbox 360 edition of Bulletstorm. All preorders and many early orders of the game will be Epic Editions, although they are limited in number.

In a democratic move, Microsoft is allowing players to pick two multiplayer maps to be featured in the beta via the official Gears of War Facebook page. Besides two maps that have already been chosen, players can pick from the following: Overpass, which lets players hole up in an elevated position with heavy weapons; Old Town, a team-focused map with a large supply dump; Mercy, which features a large open square; and Trenches, which features a maze of locust positions caught in a sandstorm.

Exclusive to the Xbox 360, Gears of War 3 is the final chapter in the horror/sci-fi trilogy, which began back in 2006. Due out September 20 worldwide, the game once again follows series hero Marcus Fenix and his band of commandos as they try to save humanity on the planet Sera. Instead of just battling the underground-dwelling Locust horde, though, this time Fenix's group must also fight the Lambent, a fast-mutating race that can reach behind cover to attack the human resistance fighters.

To find out more about Gears of War 3, including the game's new Beast mode, read GameSpot's ongoing coverage of the game.