PS4 gets first dibs on Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 multiplayer beta in August

By Danny Cowan July 22, 2015

black ops 3 multiplayer beta august bo3 header — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Activision announced recently that a multiplayer beta version of Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 will launch for the PlayStation 4 next month. Xbox One owners and PC players will get their shot at the global pre-release a week later.

The beta will run for five days on each available platform. Access is limited to players who have pre-ordered Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 at select retailers.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 will be the first entry in the long-running first-person shooter series to offer a worldwide multiplayer beta since 2008’s Call of Duty: World at War. The upcoming beta will feature a small selection of maps and modes included with the full version of the game launching in November.

“During the beta,” developer Treyarch notes, “fans will have an opportunity to try the new momentum-based, chained movement system, find the perfect Specialist to fit their play style, get a feel for the new multiplayer maps, and more.”

Sony announced at this year’s E3 that all Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 content will be available first on PlayStation platforms, ending the series’ long-standing Xbox exclusivity agreement. The past few entries in the Call of Duty series have featured DLC that launched first on Xbox platforms, with equivalent PlayStation and PC releases arriving a month later.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 3‘s multiplayer beta will kick off for PlayStation 4 owners on August 19, and will continue through August 23. Xbox One and PC players can join the action from August 26 through August 30.

Players can secure access to the upcoming beta by pre-ordering Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 at Amazon, Best Buy, or GameStop. Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 premieres on November 6 for the PlayStation 4, PS3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, and PC platforms.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Contributor

Danny’s passion for video games was ignited upon his first encounter with Nintendo’s Duck Hunt, and years later, he still…

Gaming

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III is official and it’s coming this November

call of duty modern warfare iii release date makarov mwiii

Activision has confirmed a November 10 release date for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III with a teaser trailer following a barrage of leaks.
The shooter, which is going to be a direct sequel to 2022's Modern Warfare II, was the subject of lots of reports and leaks prior to this announcement. Reports from Bloomberg revealed that this game was originally going to be a Modern Warfare II expansion, but it later got upgraded to a full game. Then, over the summer, more game details started to leak before some Monster Energy advertisements revealed the game's title prematurely. Activision coyly acknowledged this leak on Twitter at the time, but finally pulled the curtain back on the project today with a video titled "Modern Warfare III is Coming."
Modern Warfare III is Coming
It begins with some green soundwaves on-screen and a lot of radio chatter in the background. Then, the soundwaves turn from green to red before the perspective then pushes into them, creating a trippy red void. In there, we briefly see waveform images of a snake and Captain Price before he says, "Never bury your enemies alive" over the silhouette of a new character. This is believed to be Vladimir Makarov, the villain of the original Modern Warfare trilogy, who was teased in the post-credit scene for last year's campaign. After all of that, the title Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III is confirmed, as is the release date of November 10.

This date falls right in line with the late October to early November window in which Call of Duty games usually come out. It also places its launch after Microsoft's Activision Blizzard acquisition is expected to be complete, so it looks like this may be the first Call of Duty game released under Microsoft. Other than that date, official details on the game are fairly scarce. Thankfully, we shouldn't have to wait too much longer to learn more.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III launches on November 10.

Gaming

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III has seemingly leaked thanks to Monster

Five main characters from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II.

It looks like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III will be the title of this year's Call of Duty game. Following several leaks, including an undeniable one connected to Monster Energy, a joking tweet from the official Call of Duty Twitter account appears to confirm that this is true.
Leaks suggesting that 2023's Call of Duty game is Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III have existed for months, but ramped up recently. On July 17, the Call of Duty Twitter account put up tweets asking if Operators, weapons, and bundles from Modern Warfare II should carry over to this year's game and teasing that a big reveal would happen alongside the unveiling of Season 5. Later that day, Bloomberg's Jason Schreier stated that this is a Sledgehammer Games-led project that started as an expansion and morphed into a full game.
Then, Monday morning, images of Monster Energy promotional materials connected to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III emerged on Twitter, giving us confirmation of the name and our first look at the game's logo.

A leak like this is pretty difficult to deny, so Activision decided to play along with it. "Whew. Mondays," the official Call of Duty account tweeted. "Anyone have an energy drink they can spare?"
While not a traditional, explicit announcement, this tweet confirms the validity of the Monster Energy leak and affirms that this year's Call of Duty will be a direct follow-up to 2022's Modern Warfare II. Now, we'll just have to wait and see when Activision decides to officially reveal more about Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III itself.
Because it's not officially announced yet, we don't know what Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III's release date or launch platforms are. Still, it's likely that it will launch across PC, PlayStation, and Xbox sometime this October or November after Microsoft's Activision Blizzard acquisition closes.

Gaming

You can get Call of Duty and Alan Wake with PS Plus in July

Sony has confirmed the three PS4 and PS5 games PlayStation Plus Essential subscribers will receive this July, and it's actually the best lineup the service has seen in a while. It features one of the best Call of Duty games from recent years, a cult classic that needs to be played before its sequel launches next year, and an overlooked 2022 indie.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War was first released in 2020 and, as its title suggests, is set in the 1980s during the Cold War. It features one of the most creative Call of Duty campaigns since Modern Warfare 2 and makes excellent use of DualSense's haptic feedback and adaptive triggers. The multiplayer and zombie modes are good fun too. Next up is Alan Wake Remastered, a remaster of an excellent 2010 horror-thriller from Control developer Remedy Entertainment. It's an experience best played unspoiled, so I'll simply recommend you go and play this. Its PS Plus addition is timed well, too, as Alan Wake II is set to release and continue the story this October.
Finally, Endling - Extinction is Forever is available this month. This 2022 indie game follows a mother fox as she tries to protect her cubs in a forest continuously getting ravaged by humans. It's a chilling, staunchly harrowing adventure that clearly displays the negative effects of deforestation, pollution, and environmental exploitation. You might have missed this game last year, as it came out on the same day as Stray, so definitely give it a shot now if you haven't yet.
This lineup of Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War Cross-Gen Bundle, Alan Wake Remastered, and Endling - Extinction is Forever is one of the best lineups PS Plus Essential has seen in months, so definitely pick up these games when they are available between July 4 and July 31. Make sure you download June's titles before July 4 as well.