This is one of the best pieces of news for all the Gears of War II fans who didn't get the chance to play the first title: Microsoft has announced that a cheaper, two-disc version of the game would be released on the 24th of June in North America. The Xbox 360 version will retail for $39.99. So, as I've said, it is a good time for everybody who didn't play the first release to catch up with the story and get ready for the Gears of War II.

As expected, this two-disc version of the GoW will come with extra goodies and Epic probably hopes that some of the game's fans will buy it again: it will offer to them Gears of War - Map Packs 1 & 2, Gears of War - Theme - 'Emergence Day', Gears of War - Gamer Pics - 'Gears of War,' 'Emergence Day', Gears of War 2 - Trailers - 'Duel,' 'Assault', Gears of War 2 - Theme - 'Bare Your Teeth' and Gears of War 2 - Gamer Pics - 'Crimson Omen'. Also, the Annex Mode is included and that means that you'll also get extra 250 achievements points to fight for.

There is some bad news, too. One of the most appreciated things released for the original Gears of War game, the PC-exclusive Timgad bonus level (including the epic Brumak battle) will remain a PC exclusive. That's a pity for the Xbox 360 fans, but I'm sure they will get over it anyway.

Also, Microsoft has announced that together with this two-disc re-release, the original game discs still available for purchase would be cheaper, too. This will happen on the 4th of June, with the Xbox 360 version costing, strangely, exactly as much as the two-disc one ($39.99) and the PC version retailing for a cheaper price ($29.99) - a nice gift to get before GoW II.