beta test
Latest
ArcheAge gears up for its fourth closed beta test
Eager sandbox fans have been waiting -- some without showers or nutrition -- for word of the next phase of ArcheAge's beta testing for a while now. Happily, they can go spruce up their hygiene and eat a Big Mac now that XL Games has revealed the details about the upcoming closed beta test 4. The good folks over on the ArcheAge blog have translated the news for us. If you've already been a part of the third beta test, you'll automatically be rolled over into this next one. If you haven't gotten into the beta yet, you can apply for CBT4 from today through Sunday, December 4th. Of course, you might need to brush up on your Korean if you do. Lucky beta testers will be informed of their status by December 7th, with the beta test kicking off on the 8th of next month. ArcheAge's closed beta test 4 will have approximately 5,000 players when all is said and done.
More Dota 2 beta invites going out this week
If you haven't already thrown your name in the ring for the Dota 2 beta test, you might want to do so in the next couple ... seconds. Valve has announced that a new wave of beta invites would be sent out this week to select participants who have filled out this Steam survey. Don't forget: If you get picked to test the game, you'll get two extra downloads of the beta to distribute to your friends. As it stands, your best bet isn't to apply for the beta yourself, but just, you know, be really popular.
Jagged Alliance Online closed beta registration now open
In a press release today, gamigo announced that its MMO resurrection of the Jagged Alliance franchise, Jagged Alliance Online, will be beginning its closed beta test sometime before the end of this year. For those who can't wait to get in on the action, beta sign-ups are now available over at the game's official site. Until the beta begins, though, check out the gallery below for four new screenshots from the title. [Source: gamigo press release] %Gallery-136999%
The Soapbox: Bad beta
Disclaimer: The Soapbox column is entirely the opinion of this week's writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Massively as a whole. If you're afraid of opinions other than your own, you might want to skip this column. So the beta for Star Wars: The Old Republic is currently taking place. And while you may be under an NDA and not allowed to say anything, I can freely say that I am not under an NDA without fear of reprisal. I can tell you that despite the fact that almost every other writer on staff seems to be in the beta -- I'm not in it. And truth be told, I'm not sure if I would be logging in even if I were part of the beta. Not because I don't want to play the game -- no, I preordered as soon as the option was available; I've been watching the news and looking forward to release for quite some time now. I've liked what I've played, and I know I'm going to buy it. But the fact of the matter is that betas are just plain terrible, for several reasons.
More SWTOR 'Beta Test Weekend' invites sent out
That disturbance in the Force you feel isn't an exploding planet, it's a horde of Star Wars fans rushing to their computers to see if they've made it into the Star Wars: The Old Republic beta. BioWare has announced that the second SWTOR "Beta Testing Weekend" will begin on October 7 and run through October 11. Invites for this weekend have already been sent, and new testers have been pulled from the US, Canada and European launch countries. In other words, Sith and Republic hopefuls may want to check their inboxes. Anyone feeling left out can sign up for future beta tests right here.
Star Wars: The Old Republic increases invitations to this weekend's beta test
While Star Wars: The Old Republic's beta test weekends thus far have been small and intermittent, BioWare hopes to make it up to anxious fans by kicking off a much larger beta event. The studio posted that it is in the process of inviting "more players into testing than [it's] ever invited before in a single weekend" over the course of today in preparation for this weekend's test. This next beta weekend will take place from October 7th through the 11th and is separate from the ongoing closed beta. BioWare also asserts that players who aren't accepted into this test will have future opportunities in the additional beta test weekends before the launch. SWTOR beta test invitations will come straight to players' emails and can be verified by logging into your account to see whether the beta client is available for download. [Thanks to everyone who sent in this tip!]
DirecTV's new HD UI revealed to testers, is prettier and faster than the current one
While DirecTV may tossing an old standard def look on the new DirecTiVo, beta testers got a treat tonight (even better than news AMC HD is on the way) when their boxes downloaded a brand new user interface. It's the HD UI that was mentioned during the last earnings call, and brings not only fully 16x9 formatted graphics but also, according to testers, a serious performance boost to satellite receivers. If you're in the test group restart your box and punch 0,2,4,6,8 to snag the new software and have a look for yourself, but if you're on the outside looking in hit the source link for one of DBSTalk's typical thorough walkthrough PDFs. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
iOS 5 Beta 7 now available
The iOS 5 beta 7 SDK is now available for download by paid devs at the iOS developer site. As with previous betas, you'll also find all the other items that continue to be synchronously updated to support the beta. Sign in with your developer credentials to gain access to the updated SDK. Because it cannot be said too often, make sure you read any release notes on-site. For everyone intoxicated by new technologies that might allow you to update using other means, I cannot strongly encourage you enough to go to the site and read the release notes. This hint goes out especially to those of you who are not primarily developers but how have purchased dev accounts to stay current on the technology. Installation alerts usually appear in a big yellow box on the main iOS dev page. Important update notices also appear on the developer forums. If you run into troubles installing updates, please check the dev site and forums first. Seriously. If you don't have access to the dev site and forums, please don't e-mail us for technical support about the iOS 5 beta. You do so at your own risk; we have been known to point and laugh. As a final note, don't forget to register your device at the developer portal and prepare it for development before installing the new beta onto pre-beta equipment. The beta is, as always, released under the terms of Apple's NDA. For that reason, enhancements, APIs and features are not listed within this post. TUAW's iOS 5 coverage -- researched and written by our non-NDA staffers -- is available here. Happy developing everyone! Thanks, everyone who tipped us.
SWTOR beta test weekends to begin September 2nd
There you were, thinking this upcoming weekend was going to be another one when you sat around in your underwear, trying to beat that last Challenge level in Peggle, but we're here to tell you to cancel those plans. Starting September 2nd, Star Wars: The Old Republic will begin its beta test weekends for a select few who registered on the game's website. This news was announced earlier today at PAX Prime, including the fact that even those who didn't pre-order can have an equal chance to participate. So get those registrations in if you still haven't, and for Obi Wan's sake, put some pants on.
Google Fiber beta test goes live, bathes Stanford in high-speed regularity
When we last checked in on the Google Fiber project, engineers were busy laying the groundwork for a 1Gbps network across both Kansas Cities, while preparing to launch a beta test near Stanford. Now, it looks like the beta service has gone live in the Palo Alto area, according to a lucky Reddit user who claims to be using it. The ISP is available free of charge to students and faculty members within the area, at pretty mouth-watering speeds. No word yet on when the Kansas City communities will receive similar treatment, but you can gaze in awe at the Stanford Speedtest result, after the break.
That's no moon, it's The Old Republic's Guild Testing program!
Give yourself to the Dark Side... and bring your friends, because it's gonna be a party! BioWare announced today that Star Wars: The Old Republic's Guild Testing program has begun, with the first wave of guilds having been invited to begin testing today. Any active guild with at least 10 members can register to join the Guild Testing program, and guilds will be periodically chosen at random to test the game. Whether you're a small or large guild is irrelevant, as both varieties are needed to adequately test The Old Republic's guild systems. So sign your guild up, and then prepare yourselves for the internal debate over whether or not your guild belongs with the Republic or the Empire. BioWare is not responsible for any guild schisms that occur as a result.
Apple offers Find My Mac for beta testing, wants to play Cops and Robbers
Ever misplaced your hard earned MacBook Air or had an entire project vanish at the hands of a dirty thief, only to be gone forever? Well friends, the time is coming soon for the Find My Mac feature to provide a highly sought after sigh of relief, Find My iPhone-style. Apple has released the software into the wild for registered iOS devs, with the only other requirements being OS X Lion and an iCloud subscription. Using WiFi networks to locate your missing appendage via a web browser or iOS device, the location tool offers you a number of anti-theft options -- send a threatening message, lock down the machine remotely, or even wipe the machine's drive clean. Perhaps we will see this security detail launch with iCloud in fall, which was also released in beta form earlier this week.
Open beta starts tomorrow for Asda 2
Open betas are a magical time, a time when players can all take part in a new game before release without having to actually pay to get in. Of course, potential players of Asda 2 are already in the boat of not having to pay, as the game is an upcoming free-to-play title. But the game's open beta begins tomorrow regardless, and to help entice more players into the testing phase, the staff is running a number of promotions. Players who log in throughout the open beta or advance their Soul Mate bonds the fastest will be eligible to win some Campus Cash (the microtransaction currency for the game). Lucky Monster tokens can also be collected throughout the beta, giving players a chance to win iPods, a 3DS, and other prizes. If Asda 2's anime-style artwork and relationship system seem like the sort of thing you'd enjoy, be sure to check out the beta starting tomorrow.
NCsoft: Guild Wars 2 beta coming later this year, will probably release in 2012
Do you want the good news or the bad news? The good news is that Guild Wars 2 fans hoping to get their hands on this title this year may get their wish -- but the bad news is that it looks as though the release is still a while away. According to Eurogamer, Guild Wars 2 will enter beta testing in the second half of this year. The news came out in a conference call with NCsoft's Jaeho Lee, who also indicated that the title wouldn't release until 2012: "Starting from year 2012, we believe substantial growth will be driven by new blockbuster titles like [Blade & Soul] and Guild Wars 2. Also, Guild Wars 2 will go into beta testing stage in the second half of this year." However, until we hear a definite release date, we'll take this with a pinch of salt, especially considering that ArenaNet's mantra is "When it's ready" -- and this isn't the first time Lee has said something similar. Hopefully, "ready" will come quickly.
Snag an Age of Empires Online beta key!
If you're an old school Age of Empires player, then you have fond memories of harvesting bushes for berries, scooting your peasants inside the town hall during an attack, and spreading your civilized society by the pointy end of your swords. Those good ol' memories are being made new in Gas Powered Games' Age of Empires Online, which is heading our way good and fast. Assuming that the thought of creating a civilization from scratch to dominate your enemies pleases your sensibilities, you can now grab a free beta key from Curse. Simply nab a key while they last, then head on over to the Age of Empires Online site to redeem it and download the beta client. We're looking forward to hearing how this MMORTS plays, so if you get in, make sure to give us your fair assessment!
Motorola bringing Froyo to Bravo, seeks guinea pigs to test it
Have you spent one too many sleepless nights clinging to your Motorola Bravo, fantasizing about Flash Player and mobile hotspots? There may not be an app (nor a pill) for that, but it seems that the devs over at Motorola's Owners' Forum are anxious to make those bouts of insomnia a part of your past. And as if that wasn't enough to take the excitement level up a notch, a pre-release version -- the final firmware check -- will be doled out to a thousand hopeful participants willing to give the Froyo update a test drive. Successful candidates will be chosen on a first-come, first-served basis and selected through "valid registration responses," so we'd encourage all the dreamers out there to hustle down to the source link and follow the sign-up directions. [Thanks, Josh]
Bleszinski: Gears 3 multiplayer has to be good, or 'the franchise is dead'
Not only are we excited about the prospect of joining the Gears of War 3 beta next month because, you know, of all the dude-sawing -- we're also hopeful that the tests will prevent a rough start-up for the full game's multiplayer experience. In an interview with IGN, Epic Games design director Cliff Bleszinski acknowledged (the beta test-less) Gears of War 2's less-than-optimal online offerings at launch, saying the developer "can't afford to make that mistake twice." The outspoken developer explained, "if we release Gears 3 and it has the same launch as Gears 2 online then the franchise is dead." He later added, "to be fair, over the course of the six title updates, we got Gears 2 in a very good position. And we need to take it to great. And that's what this will help do." We've got another suggestion for making the game "great" -- two chainsaws. One on your gun, and another one on your chainsaw. Chainsawsaw.
Snowballs piling up in Hell: Faxion Online enters its second closed beta test
"Free to pray, free to prey, free to play," the tagline goes. While Faxion Online continues to milk all of the religious-themed puns the team can think of (and it's hard not to add your own!), this afterlife MMO continues to charge ahead with the second phase of its beta process. UTV True Games announced that Faxion Online has entered its second closed beta test, which has been expanded to include new players and a number of improvements implemented after the first test. Faxion now has an improved starter tutorial that invites players to learn about heavenly living or hellish confluct, depending on the class chosen. Other improvements include class reballancing, new areas and teleportation stones that help warriors get to the conflicts even faster than before. UTV's Frank Lucero credits the players for shaping the game's development: "The responses to the first closed beta have been incredible in helping us determine updates for this second phase." You can check out this tongue-in-cheek PvP MMO by signing up for the beta test or by vicariously experiencing the spiritual planes in our Faxion Online first impressions.
Enter at Your Own Rift: A tour guide to beta four
It was once again a busy weekend in RIFT, and I eagerly rolled up my sleeves to get to work exploring. This beta event contained a lot of great game changes and new content. First, the level cap was increased to 27, and two new hunting areas were made available: Gloamwood for the Guardians and Stonefield for the Defiants. In addition, two new dungeons were open for play: Darkening Deeps and Deepstrike Mines. But one of the most exciting additions was PvP instancing, as players finally got to try out two new Warfronts -- The Black Garden and The Codex. In this week's column, I'll give a wrap-up of my beta experience. Read on to hear more about Gloamwood, Warfronts, Darkening Deeps, and a lightbulb moment that I'll never forget.
Mythos starts closed beta just in time for the new year
It's almost time to grab those Gadgeteers, prep the Pyromancers, and brace the Bloodletters as the carnage in Mythos' closed beta will soon begin! The word from Frogster is that the game is entering an early stress test and that gamers who sign up for the beta between now and December 26th will get a chance to land in the first round of testing. That said, that first intrepid group will face many bugs, hardships, and yes, probably even the server crashing. As such, if you're more interested in getting a taste of the game before launch, we'd suggest you hold off until open beta. However, for those who really want to get their Mythos beta bug-reporting test on and think that getting the server to scream like a little girl is fun, then this stage of beta (affectionately titled "hack-n-crash" by Frogster) is for you! Those who get in will start up on December 28th at 10:00 a.m. GMT until things fall over and crash enough times for useful data collection or Frogster shuts the servers down: whichever comes first!
