Two new “Gears of War” multiplayer maps, along with an introductory video from Cliff “CliffyB” Bleszinski, will be available to download for free on Xbox Live starting Jan. 10. A patch will also be released tomorrow (01/09/07) via Xbox Live correcting various online issues that have been plaguing the game since its launch in Nov. The new multiplayer maps will be dubbed “Raven Down” and “Old Bones.”

Epic Games Vice President Mark Rein unveiled in the game’s official forums a list of issues addressed by the patch, which are:

• Fixed aspect ratio distortion when using VGA cable with 4:3 displays at resolutions higher than 640×480
• Fixed voice issue with new players joining Player Match games in progress
• Players can now get the Achievement for “Dish Best Served Cold” when using Troika turret to kill RAAM
• Fixed rare situation where host could loop countdown and never start match
• Fixed rare situation where players could get stuck after chainsawing in multiplayer
• Reduced Grenade Tag melee distance
• Enabled “Strict” NAT check on host to prevent possible connection issues
• Optimized server browser queries to return results more quickly and prevent scroll bars from hiding quality of service icons
• Reduced number of possible revives in Execution to match Warzone
• Removed host name from Ranked match server browser
• Disabled security cameras in Ranked matches
• Ranked matches now require balanced teams (3v3 or 4v4)
• Increased penalty for quitting a Ranked match to -50 points
• Added additional cheat detection code
• Additional housekeeping updates

The patch, along the new maps, should make “Gears of War” a much more enjoyable title to play online with.

Tags: gears of war, xbox 360, xbox live, epic games