Publisher Electronic Arts announced today that Titanfall, the highly anticipated hybrid first-person shooter and mech-combat game from Respawn Entertainment, will be available in North America on March 11, 2014 with a European launch two days later. That date fits in with the vague "spring 2014" release window announced when Titanfall was first revealed in a June Game Informer cover story.

The multiplayer-focused game seeks to set itself apart from other first-person shooters through the introduction of Titans: multistory mechs that players can call down and take control of to turn the tide of a firefight. Titanfall also makes heavy use of parkour-style wall-running and climbing as well as a jet-pack-powered double jump to create more focus on vertical movement and pathfinding.

Though Titanfall will miss the next-generation console launch window this holiday season, the title still serves as a big differentiator for Microsoft's Xbox One as it prepares to fight for market share with Sony's upcoming PlayStation 4. The Xbox One version of the game reportedly makes heavy use of the Xbox One's dedicated cloud servers to offload physics and AI computations. The game will also be available on March 11 for PC and the Xbox 360, though the 360 port is being handled by an outside developer.

Titanfall is the first game from Respawn Entertainment, which was formed after Jason West and Vince Zampella, cofounders of Call of Duty creator Infinity Ward, split off from Activision amid an acrimonious battle over bonus pay. Many other Infinity Ward staffers followed the pair to the new development house.

Following standard blockbuster gaming procedure these days, EA also announced a $250 Collector's Edition of Titanfall that will include a 190-page art book, a schematic poster, and an 18-inch, LED-lit titan statue.