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Microsoft just sent this announcement regarding the Halo 3 Beta,

Microsoft Game Studios and Bungie Studios today confirmed the multiplayer beta of “Halo^® 3” will debut to audiences worldwide via Xbox LIVE^® on May 16 at 5 a.m. PDT and run through June 6 at 11:59 p.m. PDT.

When gamers gather online to play the multiplayer beta via Xbox LIVE in May, they will be treated to three richly detailed, action-oriented maps: Snowbound, High Ground and Valhalla, which represent a mixture of large- and medium-scale combat environments and are brand-new to “Halo 3.” Each map will test gamers’ mettle as they are placed behind the controls of new “Halo 3” vehicles such as the agile Mongoose all-terrain vehicle, and armed with deadly weapons such as the new and improved Assault Rifle, the ferocious Brute Spiker, the devastating Spartan Laser and the treacherous new Spike Grenades. This is just a taste of what gamers will experience later this fall when “Halo 3” goes on sale.

In addition, gamers who can’t wait for the multiplayer beta this May can get an even earlier look at “Halo 3” with a new, behind-the-scenes video feature available at http://www.bungie.net and in high definition over Xbox LIVE Marketplace. The latest multiplayer video documentary, titled “Is Quisnam Protero Damno!,” will offer a glimpse at how “Halo 3” multiplayer maps are being designed, built and architected, and how these amazing spaces are converted into fun places in which to play. Gamers can also catch the first-ever glimpse of brand-new “Halo 3” multiplayer levels in their early stages of evolution and construction.

It looks like May is going to be a very entertaining month for 360 fans, with the Spring Update, and now the Halo 3 Beta… whats next I ask?

Technorati tags: Halo 3 Beta, Is Quisnam Protero Damno!, Microsoft Game Studios, Snowbound. Bungie Studios