Diablo 4 to hold open beta next month

Blizzard has revealed that Diablo fans can play an early version of the latest entry in the series next month, and players who preordered get an extra week.

Blizzard, the developer behind the Diablo series as well as World of Warcraft and Overwatch 2, has announced that Diablo fans will get to play an early version of Diablo 4 next month.

The Diablo 4 open beta is set to take place in March, and will be available on PC, Xbox Series, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, and PlayStation 4. This will be an early version of the game, so fans likely won’t be able to carry their save data over to the main game, but they will be able to try it out nonetheless.

The open beta was revealed alongside the game’s opening cinematic trailer, and the game itself is scheduled to be released on June 6, 2023.

Fans who join the beta test will get to test it out almost three months earlier though, and those who preorder the game will get even more time with the upcoming game.

Blizzard says that the first beta gameplay test will take place from March 18 to March 20, and is only open to players who preordered the game. The company says that players who preordered can redeem their early access codes now.

The second beta will be open to everyone, and will take place the following weekend, from March 25 to March 27. More details for both beta tests are said to be available on March 1, during a developer livestream.

Players who partake in the beta will be able to play the game’s prologue and the entirety of Act 1, but will be capped at level 25 throughout the experience. Previous closed beta experiences focused more on the endgame player experience, while this beta is supposed to introduce players to the early game.

Diablo 4 players will get to explore a large open world, but the beta will be limited to the game’s opening area. Picture: Blizzard

GLHF has played roughly the same section as will be available to players, and found that Diablo 4 is shaping up well for its June launch. Its open-world, nonlinear approach to world design means that it’s an easy game to get lost in, and even with the limited area available for players, there’s plenty on offer.

It comes after controversy around the series’ mobile entry, Diablo Immortal, after a gamer spent $140,000 in the game and found they couldn’t match with other players. Players hope that Diablo 4 is a return to form for Blizzard, and early impressions are positive so far.

Written by Oliver Brandt on behalf of GLHF.