Konami has confirmed that Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots will be released in North America on the 12th of June.

Earlier in the week Sony announced that Metal Gear Solid 4 would be launched in late quarter 2 of 2008. They also took the wraps off a MGS4 PS3 bundle (including an 80GB PS3, a copy of the game as well as a rumbling DualShock controller) and revealed that the Metal Gear Online multiplayer beta test would begin in April.

Beta test begins 21 April, extra content if you pre-order

In a MGS4 FAQ posted on SCEA’s PlayStation blog, Konami Director of Public Relations, Michael Shelling, addressed numerous questions surrounding the release of the game.

Shelling confirmed that the Metal Gear Online Starter Pack, which is included with the game, is “a squad-based, online multiplayer tactical shooter that supports up to 16 players and takes place in the Metal Gear Solid universe.”

He also confirmed that the beta test will begin on the 21st of April and will run for “approximately two weeks.” You can qualify for the best test in the US by pre-ordering the game from all major retailers in April.

If you pre-order MGS4 you will also receive the Metal Gear Saga 2.0 DVD (with a Prologue recapping the Metal Gear franchise), a 20th Anniversary retrospective, character biographies for Big Boss, Liquid Snake, Solidus Snake and Solid Snake as well as a collection of international trailers of MGS4.

Details on how to join the beta test

In the pre-order package gamers will find an insert with a download code as well as special instructions as to how to access the Metal Gear Online beta test when it goes live in April. The special pre-order package will “only be available while supplies last.”

Should Konami find additional promotional partners, the beta access might be available for those who don’t pre-order the game, however, this has yet to be confirmed.

“Blockbuster events and premieres are a tradition of the summer,” said Kazumi Kitaue, Konami Digital Entertainment Inc. Chairman and CEO. “We anticipate that Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots fits that bill perfectly, and consumers will be waiting in line to get their copy of the game just like it’s a hit Hollywood movie.”

MGS4 has yet to be dated for Europe.

[UPDATE] Konami has announced that MGS4 will also be launched across Europe on the 12th of June.