Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6
The first Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6 beta is almost here, rounding out the month of August with gamers’ first chance to load into Treyarch’s upcoming shooter. This first Early Access Beta is open to anyone who pre-ordered the game on PC, PlayStation and Xbox and to Game Pass subscribers.
Read on to find out everything you need to know about the beta and some info on next weekend’s Open Beta which is open to all players.
When Does The Weekend 1 Beta Start And End?
The Weekend 1 beta kicks off Friday, August 30th at 10am PT / 1pm ET and will run until Wednesday September 4th at 10am PT / 1pm ET though these times are subject to change.
Read my Black Ops 6 impressions here.
What Are The Download Sizes And Can You Preload?
If you already have Call Of Duty HQ installed—which is required for Modern Warfare III and Warzone—the beta download size is a lot smaller and is simply included as a required update to your game. If you don’t have that installed, you’ll need to install it. You can see the size in GB in the below chart:
Black Ops 6 beta
What You’ll Play
The beta will feature a number of Operators, guns, lethals, tacticals, Scorestreaks and more when it launches this weekend, with a level cap of 20 to grind your way through. That level cap will go up to 30 in Weekend 2.
Six maps will be available in the first weekend, with two more and new game modes joining the fray in Weekend 2.
Core Maps
- Derelict
- Scud
- Skyline
- Rewind
Strike Maps
Game Modes
- Team Deathmatch
- Domination
- Hardpoint
- Kill Order
- Face Off Team Deathmatch
- Face Off Kill Confirmed
I have played on most of these maps and really enjoyed all of them, though I think Rewind and Skyline are my favorites in the Core 6v6 maps. There will be a total of 12 Core 6v6 maps at launch and 4 smaller Strike maps for Face Off and Gunfight. More maps, modes, etc. will release seasonally after launch, including the imminent return of Nuketown.
In terms of modes, the main core modes players know and love will be available this weekend including a slight variation on an old favorite. Kill Order is basically a Bounty mode where each team has a random High Value Target (HVT) to hunt down. The HVT is marked on the map but has some perks, like armor plates, and are downed rather than killed outright, giving teammates the ability to revive.
I have a separate piece on my impressions of the game’s multiplayer and Zombies content as well as my time on the new Area 99 Warzone Resurgence map as I have gotten to play several hours of the game prior to the beta’s launch. It’s really excellent so far. I don’t think I’ve been this upbeat about a new Call Of Duty in a long time at this stage, and you can really see the hard work and 4-year development cycle paying off.
Weekend 2 will add two more maps, Gunfight mode and more content to the beta and will run from September 6th – 9th. See the image below for the special beta rewards you can earn by playing over the next two weekends:
Beta rewards
Read more about the upcoming betas at the Call Of Duty website.