The story takes place eighteen months after the events of Gears of War 2 and the loss of the human stronghold of Jacinto. Marcus, Baird, Dom and company continue their fight to save human civilization, as they battle the Locust and face new threats from within the planet throughout the campaign mode.

“Gears of War 3” surpassed one million worldwide pre-orders, making it the fastest pre-ordered Xbox exclusive title to reach this milestone in the history of the platform.

“Consumer demand for ‘Gears of War 3’ has been incredible,” said Bob McKenzie, Senior VP of Merchandising at GameStop. “It is one of the few times in our history that we’ve seen a title hit this level of pre-order numbers four months out from launch, putting ‘Gears of War 3’ on track to be one of the year’s biggest blockbuster gaming hits.”

Helping propel “Gears of War 3” pre-orders worldwide, 1.29 million fans from 145 countries answered the call to join the “Gears of War 3” public multiplayer beta. Featuring three distinct gameplay modes across four new maps while running on dedicated servers for the first time, the multiplayer beta concluded on Sunday, May 15 with fans collectively logging more than 249 years worth of gameplay over Xbox Live.

“An overwhelming success – we can’t thank the fans enough,” said Epic Games Design Director Cliff Bleszinski. “While the beta was a fun way to give players an early taste of our game, it also provided us with invaluable feedback to help us refine and polish ‘Gears of War 3’ to ensure it’s truly the culmination of the trilogy we promised to the fans.”

Over the course of four weeks, fans played more than 11 million multiplayer matches, earning ribbons and medals, unlocking weapon skins and finishing off enemies with countless new execution moves, among other incredible feats:

• 1.29 million people participated in the beta
• 145 different countries participated in the beta
• 249 years worth of matches played
• More than 11 million matches completed
• More than 927 million kills recorded
• More than 131 million executions performed
• More than 23 million deaths by chainsaw
• Nearly 23 BILLION bullets fired
• 4.9 billion ribbons and 291 million medals earned
• 435,000 people earned the beta-exclusive Thrashball Cole skin to use in the retail game when it launches in September
• 234,000 people earned the beta-exclusive Gold Retro Lancer to use in the retail game when it launches in September

• An enthralling cinematic story that captivates players in an intimately intense action game
• Five-on-five multiplayer experience as well as four player campaign co-op experience
• New multiplayer game modes including "Beast Mode" – offering a new twist to the game where you take on the role of the locust horde and their assorted variations!
• New maps including: Trenches which features an impressive sand storm that reduces your visibility, as well as Overpass, Mercy, Checkout, and Thrashball
• New weapons including: The Bayonet Charge, The Retro Lancer, The Sawed-off Shotgun, The OneShot – a heavy sniper rifle that shoots through shields or cover for a surprise one shot kill, The Incendiary Grenade, The Digger Launcher and a few subtle tweaks to old favorites Hammerburst and The Classic Lancer. Don't forget that each weapon now has its own execution move!
  Stay tuned for more updates, and keep your eyes peeled for more news on the Official Multiplayer Public Beta coming soon!