Microsoft has confirmed that the sequel to Epic's 2006 blockbuster, Gears of War, will be coming to the Xbox 360 in November.

The news of Gears 2 came from Epic lead designer, Cliff Bleszinski, as he took the stage at the end of Microsoft’s Game Developers Conference keynote in San Francisco.

“To our team the original game was just a tease, the appetiser to the Gears of War characters and new style of gameplay. We were so amped to get to the next chapter, and dig deeper into the universe of this franchise”, Bleszinski uttered. “Gears of War 2 is an even bigger, better, and more badass experience than the first game, and we can’t wait to get it in the hands of eager gamers this November.”

Microsoft also took the opportunity to showcase Fable 2 and Ninja Gaiden II, as well drawing attention to some upcoming Xbox Live games in the following written announcement.

Also in the announcement is mention of Silicon Knights' upcoming shooter/all-round action romp Too Human. It looks suspiciously like Silicon Knights could or would not share a stage with Epic, however. Too Human was instead showcased during a separate event before the keynote.

Silicon Knights is embroiled in an ongoing spat with Epic over the licensing of its Unreal Engine 3. The fallout has gone as far as court, with Silicon Knights having recently subpoenaed other licensees of the engine to look at their paperwork.

To look at Microsoft’s rundown of the games shown in and around the keynote, click here.