The Gears of War 3 beta is likely to launch "sometime around April", according to Epic Games president Mike Capps.

The exec told GameSpot that the online beta - which will be bundled with the Epic Edition of Bulletstorm - should ensure that the game doesn't encounter the same multiplayer stability issues as its predecessor.

"We've been saying spring," Capps said of the beta's launch date. "My guess is it will be sometime around April or so. It's going to be early enough so it really impacts Gears [of War 3's] development, but we want to make sure everyone has the chance to play Bulletstorm before they jump right into the beta.

"I think everybody knows we had some multiplayer stability issues with Gears 2 multiplayer out of the box," he added. "While we fixed those later, the opportunity to be really, really sure that our new dedicated server infrastructure is going to be operational on day one with Gears 3 was totally worth the time to make the beta."

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=281107

sounds good but i dont want bulletstorm so i will wait till late summer to play the beta

hmm thats ok. 3 weeks is plenty of time for me to enjoy it. hard to find the epic edition of the game? its the only version available i believe

hmmm...might switch my bulletstorm pre-order to the 360 version, looks like Gears 3 will ne getting the halo treatment! can't wait to see some live action trailers/commercials!!! O_O!!!

Wow this will probably be akin to the Crackdown/Halo 3 fiasco, which ended up good! Positive feedback allowed the beta to develop and made a game that would have otherwise been a flop sell reasonably well.