Guild Wars 2 begins Chinese open beta

Guild Wars 2 has made in-roads with a significant MMO audience this week, as it has kicked off its open beta in China.

While local publisher KongZhong is calling this a launch, it's technically the beginning of a two-week head start period before the full open beta commences in the region on May 15th. Guild Wars 2 is the first major MMO to use a buy-to-play business model in China, selling 500,000 copies during its pre-order period. Interestingly, the official press release admits to regional "doubts" as to the effectiveness of this model.

All pre-order players are now able to check out the game during this head start period, with any future purchasers required to wait until the 15th to try it out.