In between all the kicking and screaming (not that we can blame you, our guys are eager to play Halo 3 too), the waiting is finally over. Microsoft has been hard at work to rectify this afternoon’s unexpected delay and have released a patch which was just launched approximately one hour ago (7:00 PDT). So you know what that means right? Yes… you can play unlock the beta via Crackdown in the Downloads section.

Microsoft also offered the following statement which hopefully will soften the woes for all of you who gave up time off work/school for this highly anticipated moment:

“We sincerely apologize for the delay. We know we have a lot of fans that have been waiting for the beta for months, and even took time off of work to start early today. We really appreciate their enthusiasm, and we hope the small delay wont dampen everyone’s enjoyment of the game. Given the circumstances, we will be extending the duration of the Halo 3 multiplayer beta from June 6 to June 10, 11:59 PM PDT.”

Now isn’t that sweet? Makes me wanna go out and grab a copy right now just to join in the fun. (No, I am serious).