Ubisoft announced on Tuesday that Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Mobile Closed Alpha testing period will begin on May 3 in Canada, USA and Mexico. An Android device is the eligible device for participants who receive an email invitation following their registration for the event. Rainbow Six Mobile has been in development for 3 years, though its existence was first announced earlier this month. Considering its Closed Alpha is beginning now means the game is not likely to release anytime this year.

The Closed Alpha will include a small sample of content from 2 iconic maps; Border & Bank which will be played through the Secure Area and Bomb game modes. The test will be purely technical, therefore players will not have the opportunity to progress or customize the 16 operators as a part of Closed Alpha. Other details are still yet to be seen (such as an official release date), though as Creative Director Justin Swan reassures fans: 

“In the coming months, we will continue to do tests, continue to be open and transparent with our community and continue to share all the exciting things going on with Rainbow Six Mobile.” 

Rainbow Six Mobile was first announced on April 5 under the development of Ubisoft’s Montreal division. The independent team of veteran developers with AAA console and prior mobile game experience are solely focused on developing Rainbow Six Mobile. Similar to its console predecessor, Rainbow Six Mobile may look similar to Rainbow Six Siege but is rebuilt from the ground up to adapt to the mobile gameplay experience.

For a free download through the App Store or Google Play Store, the best of Siege will come straight to longtime fans’ fingertips on the go or attract a new community of gamers who are new to the series. The mobile version will make the 5 on 5 (Attack vs. Defender) action optimized for mobile devices with an entirely new gameplay control system and extensive optimization of the UI and in-game visual presentation. Gameplay trailers have been released to give a glimpse into the upcoming mobile first-person shooter, as well as the first Dev Diary offering current details into where the progress for Rainbow Six Mobile lies.