The success of the game has led to the development of the Gears of War franchise , including the 2008 sequel Gears of War 2 and its follow-up, Gears of War 3 , which was released on September 20, 2011, after having initially been set to have been released on April 5, 2011, the date upon which Epic Games ' Cliff Bleszinski was a guest on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon .