Everyone pretty much was over the moon when developers at Blizzard opened the doors to its Overwatch beta back on May 5th. Originally slated for those who pre-ordered the game, Blizzard also allowed players to gain access through online clients, for free. The Open Beta was also originally intended to only last until May 9th, however, overwhelmed with the positive feedback from fans and reviewers, Blizzard decided to extend the Open Beta by one whole day, meaning the Beta lasted until May 10th.
During this time, players were able to experience the first-person team shooter on their Playstation 4, Xbox One, or their PC–literally making it a matter of preference. Players showed off their creativity in gameplay, and were treated to a sneak peek at a small selection of maps, characters, and weapons, and were able to give feedback directly to Blizzard.
The game is scheduled for a worldwide launch of May 24th–just a few days!–and things are looking up as far as meeting the high bar set by the hype, as not only are reviews favorable, but a record number of players logged into the Open Beta online.
A reported 9.7 million players participated in taking Overwatch for a test drive!
When asked for a statement, Mike Morhaime, the chief executive officer and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment was quoted:
We’re thrilled that such an incredible number of players from around the globe got a chance to check out Overwatch during the open beta. Our mission was to make sure as many console and PC gamers as possible could experience the full game ahead of its launch — the response was overwhelming, and we hope that everyone had a blast.
For reference, to make sense of the large scale of this massive headcount, Tom Clancy’s shooter-action-adventure The Division–which was so popular, its servers crashed within the first few hours–had a meaty 6.4 million players. Overwatch, meanwhile, blows them our of the water at nearly 10 million!
Looks like we only have great things to expect when Overwatch comes out for PS4, Xbox One, and PC on May 24th!