Gears of War 3 delayed

Developer Epic has confirmed that Xbox 360 shooter Gears of War 3 has been delayed.

Way back in April of this year the publisher cemented what seemed to be a firm April 2011 release for the game. However, this has now been changed to simply ‘fall 2011′

Gears of War 3 promises to be the biggest entertainment launch of 2011,” the press release reads. The teams at Microsoft Game Studios and Epic Games have done great work thus far readying the title for release in the spring of 2011.

However, we’ve elected to move the launch of Gears of War 3 until fall 2011 to make it the marquee title for the holiday season.”

Epic Games executive producer Rod Fergusson adds on the Gears of War site: I know fans are going to be disappointed with the new release date, but rest assured that this is a business decision between partners, and not a quality issue.

Gears 3 was on track to be the most polished Gears of War game ever when it released in April, and this additional time allows us to polish it that much more before it hits shelves next fall.

Next week we have a major multiplayer press visit at Epic HQ, and I’m really looking forward to the fans seeing and hearing about Gears 3 versus multiplayer for the first time.Lots more exciting news to come.”