It's Midnight in New York City.  That means, today retailers begin selling Gears of War.  GOW is exected to hit 1 million copies sold faster than any new IP on Xbox. 

I just heard that  OXM gave it a perfect 10 out of 10 score, and G4 TV's X-Play gave it a perfect 5 out of 5 score (watch it Tuesday, 8 p.m. EST). 

Next week, on Emergence Day (when it's widely available), Nov. 12, we'll have a full slate of activities scheduled on Xbox Live, including a 24-hour leader board tournament, hourly sweepstakes drawings, Game with Fame sessions with “Gears of War” fans Megadeth and members of the Epic development team, and more. A full list of scheduled events can be found by visiting www.xbox.com.

GOW is available now at some retailers and available widely by Nov. 12, 2006 in the U.S. for MSRP of $59.99 or $69.99 for a special Limited Collector’s Edition, which will include a collectible embossed metal box, the “Destroyed Beauty” hard-bound art book, and a bonus DVD that features the making of “Gears of War,” the “Art of Gears of War” trailer, and the MTV program “Gears of War: The Race to E3.”