Microsoft has announced details and a packshot of the limited edition version of Epic Games' upcoming shooter sequel Gears of War 2 (360).

The limited edition includes a 48-page hardbound book entitled "Beneath The Surface: An Inside Look at Gears of War 2," which contains character profiles, concept art, and a foreword by lead designer Cliff Bleszinski.

A bonus DVD packed with making-of video footage, design galleries with commentary by developer Epic Games and promotional videos including the E3 2008 trailer is also included, along with a code granting players a gold-plated Lancer rifle for the game's online multiplayer modes.

All the bonus content is packed in the standard SteelBook collectible DVD case, planned at a $69.99 price point--a $10 premium over the $59.99 standard version. Both the editions of Gears of War 2 will hit store shelves on November 7.

Some of my favorite multiplayer modes are those that pit a team of humans against "the computer," that ominously named adversary that even Kasparov couldn't best. I'm all for a competitive, expletive-laden deathmatch, but nothing spurns real hatred like a war of man vs. machine.

Gears of War 2's Horde mode is a continuation of that struggle. First, let's not get too carried away: at its core, this is simply a survival mode, something we've played in any number of other games. It's just not something we've seen in Gears, or with five online players. And after extensive hands-on time with the mode, I found Horde to be a very welcome addition to the Gears multiplayer lineup.

Each round of Horde challenges players with a wave of AI-controlled enemies, which naturally increase in difficulty. To the benefit of the mode, the variety of enemies in Gears 2 has been noticeably improved; players will face tiny suicide bombers ... Read more

In advance of our impressions from Gears of War 2's new Horde multiplayer mode--which allows five online players to face off against an ever-increasing horde of locusts--check out this campaign co-op footage from today's Microsoft press event. Shackvideo users can use the HD Stream.

An Xbox 360 exclusive, Epic's Gears of War 2 hits on November 7.

In accordance with today's outpouring of announcements, demonstrations and big reveals at Microsoft's E3 press conference, the company has released several new screenshots of the titles included in today's presentation.

Gears of War 2

New Xbox 360 3D Dashboard

Fable 2

More new images from titles including Geometry Wars Retro Evolved 2, Lips, and several others are viewable below... Read more

Epic design director Cliff Bleszinski today announced that Gears of War 2 hit Xbox 360 on November 7.

Bleszinski also revealed that the game will sport a new "Horde" mode, which will feature five players combining for online action against an ever-increasing wave of Locus foes.

Highlights:

• Excellent background effects, with the human home city shown crumbling in the distance.
• Strange crawling creature that ran along the ground on its two arms.
• An enemy that used a flamethrower. Cliff then picked up the flamethrower and used it himself.
• The floo fell out from underneath them at one point, giving way to a new section of the level.
• An enemy was shown diving left and right to avoid fire.
• Brumak battle was shown, with the giant monster firing on a building from outside, swarms of smaller enemies at its feet.
• At one point Dom jumped onto an elevator that moved sideways along a crumbled building.
• At the end, Dom and Macrus decided to ride the Brumak in order to move faster.

The 2008 Electronic Entertainment Expo officially starts this Tuesday, but a large portion of the exciting news will be hitting tomorrow.

Microsoft and Electronic Arts are both holding their lengthy press conferences, and Square Enix is putting together a last-minute event of their own. We'll also be getting hands-on time with Epic's Gears of War 2.

Inbetween iPhone lightsaber battles and trips to the local Wokcano, the Shacknews crew will be covering all of the events with up-to-the-minute postings. In preparation, we've put together a short list of our expectations and speculative nonsense for tomorrow's big events.

Microsoft Press Conference, 10:30 AM PST

Expectations:

• Release dates for:
  • Fable 2
  • Halo Wars
  • Banjo Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts
  • Gears of War 2.
• Motion controller announcement.
• Announcement of Lips, the karaoke/dancing Xbox 360 game by Elite Beat Agent creators iNiS.
• Xbox Live Arcade announcements of some kind. More details on the Xbox Live community games.
• New Games for Windows initiative--perhaps digital distribution, which the team has hinted at.

... Read more

Though developer Epic Games and publisher Microsoft have yet to announce an official release date for Gears of War 2 (360), a new splash image on the game's official site suggests it will arrive on or around November 6.

When translated to their corresponding ASCII text values, the numbers on the dog tags--033 116 117 126 071--reveal a hidden message of "ESC Nov 9."

As November 9 is a Sunday, it's possible that the game could arrive that day or continue in the tradition of the original Gears, which shipped and was available at retailers the Tuesday before its marketed Sunday launch--an event labeled "Emergence Day."

Both Epic and Microsoft have yet to formally confirm anything other than a vague November projection for the cover-heavy action sequel, though more details are expected to arrive amid next's week E3 Media & Business summit activities.

Gears of War 2 voice actor Carlos Ferro has claimed that Epic's cover-heavy sequel will be "more emotionally affecting" than 2K's narrative-driven shooter BioShock. Left, Gears of War 2. Right, BioShock.

Ferro lends his voice to Dominic Santiago, the partner of main character Marcus Fenix. During the sequel, Dominic is said to be searching for his long-lost wife while continuing to battle the legions of underground monsters that threaten humanity.

"[Gears of War 2 is] going to be more emotionally affecting than Bioshock," he told Official Xbox Magazine UK, as relayed by Kotaku and Team Xbox. "Beyond it."

Detailing the human tragedies and morally-questionable experiments of a failed underwater utopia, BioShock was released on PC and Xbox 360 last August. A PlayStation 3 version is due in October.

"A lot happens," Ferro teased. The specifics of how the sequel will top BioShock's guilt-inducing Big Daddy battles and option to kill little girls remain unclear, though more information is expected before Gears of War 2 hits Xbox 360 this November.

A leaked video showing Epic Games' Gears of War 2 (360) multiplayer beta has appeared on Korean gaming site This Is Game, as spotted by AnalogHype.

Slated to hit retailers this November, the Xbox 360-exclusive shooter comes packed with numerous improvements and new features over its 2006 predecessor, including a photo mode, new finishing moves, multiplayer AI bots and a slew of new weapons.

For more on the Gears of War 2, check out today's massive screenshot bonanza and our wealth of previous coverage.

Eager for some new Gears of War 2 media? Developer Epic and publisher Microsoft have you covered with a number of new screenshots from the cover-heavy sequel.

Gears of War 2 is currently scheduled for a November release this year. You can also have a look at Cliffy walking through Gears of War 2 technology and graphics at Shackvideo.

Gears of War 2 Campaign Mode.

Microsoft also released a new set of screenshots detailing the game's multiplayer.

Gears of War 2 Multiplayer Mode.

Along with the above two galleries, a number of shots comparing the multiplayer environments of Gears of War 1 and 2 were provided, viewable below... Read more

The late-arriving Xbox 360 edition of Unreal Tournament 3 will head to North American retailers on July 7, publisher Midway and developer Epic Games announced today.

Along with five new maps, two new characters, a new splitscreen mode and all of the downloadable content for the PS3 and PC versions--but no mod support--the disc includes exclusive Gears of War 2 (360) footage.

Hosted by Gears of War 2 design director Cliff Bleszinski and producer Rod Fergusson, the video is said to offer a never-before-seen glimpse of the "the game's multiplayer modes featuring new maps, new modes, new weapons and new gameplay elements."

An article published in this month's edition of print magazine Electronic Gaming Monthly details a slew of new features in Epic Games' upcoming shooter sequel Gears of War 2.

According to Xbox360Fanboy, the feature says that the game will incorporate a photo mode similar to Capcom's Dead Rising, in which snapshots are graded based on the amount of in-game action and carnage unfolding in the photograph. How these scores will factor into the game proper, however, was not detailed.

EGM also says that Epic is considering computer-controlled bots for use in the game's 10-player multiplayer matches. Designer Cliff Bleszinski would not confirm the game's oft-rumored four-player cooperative play, instead simply... Read more

Update:

Microsoft has told IGN that Bleszinski says "co-op's drop-in, drop-out, multiple difficulty settings for co-op players" instead of "multiple difficulty settings, four co-op players."

The Shacknews staff believes that the pause between "multiple difficulty settings" and "co-op" indicates Bleszinki meant four, not for, especially given his past teases. However, the official stance from Microsoft is that four-player co-op is unconfirmed as of this time.

Original Story: Gears of War creator Cliff "CliffyB" Bleszinski has confirmed that the much-anticipated sequel will feature four-person cooperative play.

During a video interview with GameSpot, he revealed that the game will feature "four co-op players," which he further specified to be "drop in, drop out."

The original, which hit Xbox 360 in 2006 and PC in 2007, featured local and online two-person co-op play along with an eight-player online deathmatch ... Read more

Earlier today at the Microsoft Spring Showcase in San Francisco, I got a chance to check out an entire early level of Gears of War 2. The shorthand? It's Gears, but louder.

First the setup, courtesy series creator Cliff "CliffyB" Bleszinski: "It's six months after the events of Gears 1, and the Locusts have actually returned. We're right at the onset of winter, it's the last day of fall as we open the game. Basically the Locusts have returned with a force that's capable of sinking entire cities."

Faced with utter destruction, the last bastion of humanity suits up to take the fight into the underground home of the Locusts.

"The way that we do this is with a massive assault scenario, in which the humans have these devices called grind lifts," continued Bleszinski. "These are essentially express elevators to hell, in which two guys get in, and it tunnels down into the depths of the underground, and then they go into the Locust cities and kick their ass."

The opening of the sequel sees Marcus hooking up with an armored column on its way toward Locust-held territory, as seen in the few minutes of footage released last week. The whole of the chapter consists of an on-rails sequence, the player... Read more

During Microsoft's Spring Showcase today, Epic Games employee and Gears of War creator Cliff Bleszinski teased that the much-anticipated cover-heavy sequel could include four-person cooperative play.

When asked directly if Gears of War 2 will feature four-player co-op, Bleszinski responded: "We're not announcing anything about co-op at this time, we'll probably get around to it around E3 time, but rest assured, it will be bigger and better."

"The multiplayer is incredibly robust," he continued. "We're not saying too much about it right now due to embargoes and whatnot, but lots of multiplayer maps, lots of modes. We'll have the multiplayer functionality that gamers have come to expect this day and age."

Gears of War 2 is slated to arrive on Xbox 360 this November. The original, which hit Xbox 360 in 2006 and PC in 2007, featured local and online two-person co-op play along with an eight-player online deathmatch mode.

Be sure to hit up our Microsoft Spring Showcase Roundup for all the news and media from today's event.

Microsoft and Epic Games have released new screenshots from Gears of War 2, apparently captured from the same session as the recently-released gamepay footage.

An Xbox 360 exclusive, the cover-heavy action sequel is slated to arrive in November. Much like the first Gears of War, Epic has no plans to for a downloadable demo.

Shacknews will be attending a Gears of War 2 demonstration later today. Check back with us then for any new details unveiled during the briefing.

As promised, Microsoft and Epic Games have delivered the first in-game footage of the cover-heavy action sequel Gears of War 2 (X360), which can be viewed below or downloaded from FileShack.

Introduced by series creator Cliff Bleszinski, the trailer is said to pack "chainsaw duels, large scale firefights with Locust Horde and stunning new visuals."

An Xbox 360 exclusive, Gears of War 2 is slated to arrive in November. Much like the first Gears of War, Epic has no plans to for a downloadable demo.

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Registered users can use the HD Stream.

Be sure to hit up our Spring Showcase Roundup for all the news and media from Microsoft's recent event, including our impressions of Gears of War 2.

The first in-game footage of Gears of War 2 (X360) will be released tonight at 2 AM EDT / 11 PM PDT, Microsoft and developer Epic Games have announced.

Introduced by series creator Cliff Bleszinski, the trailer of the cover-heavy action sequel is said to pack "chainsaw duels, large scale firefights with Locust Horde and stunning new visuals."

While the game was announced with a red-tinted teaser, this will mark the first availability of actual in-game media. A series of Unreal Engine 3 tech demos were shown alongside that teaser.

The footage will be available in streaming and downloadable formats here at Shacknews following its late-night release. It will also be obtainable through the Xbox 360's online Xbox Live Marketplace at that time.

An Xbox 360 exclusive, Gears of War 2 is slated to arrive in November. Much like the first Gears of War, Epic has no plans to release a downloadable demo in advance of the game's retail debut.

While attending Midway's recent Gamers Day event in Las Vegas, I had the opportunity to sit down with Epic associate producer Tanya Jessen and discuss a number of assorted topics.

Want to know if the upcoming Xbox 360 edition of Unreal Tournament 3 will include mod support? The possibility of an Epic game on XBLA or PSN? The studio's thoughts on complaints that the lead characters from Gears of War and UT3 look so much alike?

What about the possible effects of Portal on Gears of War 2? And just what does Epic think of the UE3-powered wet t-shirt contests in Surreal's This Is Vegas? Read on to find out.

Tanya Jessen: We've got a few secret projects that will be talked about I'm sure in the coming time. We love the Unreal franchise and I assure you there's more to come.

The guys are working really hard to continue to support it because this, I mean, Epic wouldn't be Epic without Unreal. This is definitely something that we're continuing to work on and continuing to improve. Read more...

Epic Games has confirmed to Shacknews that it is not planning to release a demo of the cover-heavy action title Gears of War 2 (X360) demo in advance of the title's November launch.

"[There are] no plans for a demo," associate producer Tanya Jessen told Shacknews. "The reason being that it's been such a fast turnaround. A two year production cycle, for a game of this caliber, is really short."

The lack of a demo continues the tradition Epic set forth with the original Gears of War, which debuted on Xbox 360 in November 2006. While many fans lamented their inability to get an advance look at the game, it still went on to sell over three million copies in its first ten weeks on store shelves. A PC edition followed in November 2007.

"Our focus is always on putting out the best possible game we can," she continued. "Whenever you do a demo, you have to basically ship a whole separate product. As far as our plans after we ship, I can't really speak to that."