In the grim darkness of the future, there is no more launch or beta or alpha testing, just early access for eternity. Fortunately, Eternal Crusade exists in the present, not the grim darkness of the future. It is in early access now, though, with a surprising new publisher in the form of Bandai-Namco. I think it can safely be said that none of us saw that one coming.
Other beta news? Just for you guys, because we’re such great friends.
- The beta testing for Gigantic has now gone live all of the time, 24/7, no matter what is happening outside of server maintenance. Of course, you’ll need to download Windows 10 to make that happen, so that’s kind of a double-edged sword.
- You could be forgiven for thinking that The Division would never start beta testing, but it has indeed started beta testing. The beta is going right now! But there is apparently a wait list for PC players, so… yeah.
- If you’re looking for Divergence Online on Steam, you won’t find it; lead developer Ethan Casner claims he had it removed from the service following harassment via the platform’s review section.
- Bless Online is in open beta testing in Korea now. You know how some titles go into beta and they feel as if they might as well be launch titles already? Apparently Bless Online didn’t go into open beta that way. Kind of the opposite.
- There’s another update live for Shroud of the Avatar. Bad news: it came with character wipes. Good news: everything else in the patch.
So those are all of the titles with any sort of beta testing going on, and by that I of course mean that there are a lot of other titles in testing. We can barely keep track of them all! We’ve got a list for you just past the break, but if you notice something that we missed or a title that swapped phases without telling us, let us know down in the comments.
As always, we consider an MMO to be in open testing if it features free, public signups and will server wipe prior to launch. An MMO is marked in closed testing if it’s running a private test phase that cannot freely be accessed by the general public; it’s usually under NDA as well. Early access and crowdfunded MMOs whose tests we deem legitimate will be included. So-called “open beta” soft-launch MMOs with cash shops, no sign of launch in the west, or limited interest for our readers will not be listed; we also do not list expansions.
Albion Online: Closed beta
Ascent: The Space Game: Steam early access
Auto Club Revolution: Closed beta
Beasts of Prey:Â Early access alpha
Black Desert:Â Korean and Japanese open beta, North American closed beta, release in early 2016
Boundless: Donor alpha
Camelot Unchained:Â Backer alpha
Chronicles: Runescape Legends: Closed beta
Crowfall: Backer pre-alpha
Das Tal: Alpha expected in April
DayZ: Early access
Divergence Online:Â Alpha
Dungeon Fighter Online: Open testing
Eleven:Â Closed alpha
Eternal Crusade: Early access play on Steam
EVE: Valkyrie: Pre-alpha registration for EVE and DUST players
Ever, Jane: Closed beta
Gloria Victis: Donor pre-alpha
H1Z1:Â Paid early access
HEX:Â Unofficial open beta
Kingdom Online: Closed beta
Landmark: Paid closed beta, cash shop active
Life is Feudal: Early access beta
Line of Defense: Early access
MyDream: Closed testing open to donors
Nosgoth: Open beta
Origins of Malu:Â Combat module in early access
Otherland: Early access
Overwatch: Closed beta
Paragon: Closed beta
Pathfinder Online: Subscription “early enrollment”
Project Genom: Closed alpha
Project Gorgon: Free, open testing
Shards Online: Pre-alpha
Shroud of the Avatar: Steam early access, backer testing
SkySaga: Ongoing NA and UK alpha events
Star Citizen: Backer pre-alpha
Starriser: Taking beta signups
Stash: Backer alpha
The Repopulation: Alpha offline, currently on development hiatus due to Hero Engine issues
Tree of Life: Paid early access
Tree of Savior: English beta testing events
Tribal Wars 2: Open testing
TUG: Steam early access alpha
Valiance Online: Pre-alpha testing
Venus Rising: Closed beta (adult/NSFW), currently on development hiatus due to Hero Engine issues