Hoping to turn the Gears franchise into the next Halo, Microsoft has announced that over 20,000 retailers in the US will open at midnight on November 7 for the release of Gears of War 2.

Those who attend these midnight events will receive a token for a limited-edition in-game item; they will also be able to take on the development team at Epic over Xbox Live over the release weekend.

Additionally, those who buy the game will be able to download a free map pack and gain free access to Xbox Live Gold for 48 hours.