Overwatch 2’s closed beta in April 2022: How to sign up? Is it free?

Developers are “uncoupling” the sequel’s PvE and PvP elements to get players into highly-anticipated content a bit faster. For two long years, Overwatch fans have waited for concrete information about Overwatch 2, weathering nearly infinite delays, company scandals, and a prominent content drought. But now, the end of that wait is finally on the horizon.

Overwatch 2’s closed beta will begin in late April 2022

Overwatch game director Aaron Keller revealed in a March 10 Developer Update that official testing of the sequel is now in process. Closed alpha testing will begin soon and a closed beta for Overwatch 2 will begin in late April on PC, according to Keller.

To get parts of the game into players’ hands faster, the developers decided to change the game’s release strategy, “uncoupling” the PvP and PvE elements of Overwatch 2. Keller revealed that the beta testing will revolve around the PvP portion of the game and the developers will continue working on the sequel’s extensive PvE elements behind the scenes.

PvP elements of Overwatch 2 will be the focus of these alpha and beta tests. This includes four new maps, the new Push game mode, and five-vs-five gameplay. Hero reworks are a key feature of Overwatch 2. With these beta opportunities, players can finally test major changes to heroes like Reinhardt, Bastion, and Sombra.

A new hero in Overwatch

It’s been nearly two years since Overwatch has added a new hero to the game, but the closed beta will include Overwatch agent Sojourn. She’s already been revealed as a DPS hero who packs a powerful energy rifle with railgun capabilities.

The closed alpha is only available to select groups, including Blizzard employees and Overwatch League players, who will be playing an early build of Overwatch 2 when the fifth season of the league kicks off on May 5.

Regular players will have their chance after the alpha is over. For the late-April closed beta, a “larger group of testers” will be included. Players can sign up to potentially be chosen for beta testing at PlayOverwatch.com.

How to Sign Up to the Overwatch 2 Closed Beta

The Overwatch 2 closed beta is set to start next month. Here’s how you can sign up to play.

After a long wait, Activision Blizzard finally revealed that the Overwatch 2 closed beta would be coming soon. There’ll be a number of closed betas rolled out, with the first one set to kick off in late April.

Those who take part will be able to get the first hands-on glimpse at all of the features the developers have been working on, including new hero Sojourn. Players have so far been left in the dark regarding Sojourns abilities, knowing only that she appears to wield a railgun.

Players will also be able to get stuck into some of Overwatch 2’s new maps: Circuit Royale (Escort Map), Midtown (Hybrid Map), New Queen Street (Push Map), and Colloseo (Push Map). Some of the new hero reworks will also be available to test out, these are for Orisa, Doomfist, Bastion, and Sombra.

Will Overwatch 2 be free to play for Overwatch players?

It’s safe to say that Overwatch 2 is a game that feels like it’s never coming out – it’s in the same realms as League of Legends 2 and Minecraft 2 for a lot of people, too. It’s a sequel that doesn’t need to be made when continual content updates to the existing title would suffice.

However, Blizzard is still pressing ahead with a sequel to Overwatch and Overwatch 2 is still in the works. There are going to be some changes to the basic design of the heroes and how abilities work, but a lot of the content is going to be quite similar. This has us asking an interesting question… Is Overwatch 2 going to be free for Overwatch players and people who already own Overwatch?

Here’s everything we know so far and why we’re not so sure that it is…

Will Overwatch 2 be free for Overwatch players?

It’s hard to say anything with certainty regarding Overwatch 2‘s development – it seems as troubled as ever with sporadic updates from Blizzard and no official release date announcement coming anytime soon. The content on show all looks like it should be a free update – new maps and modes have been in the past – however, there are some changes that could warrant a paid update.

Overwatch 2 is reportedly going to overhaul the way Overwatch’s heroes work – introducing a new levelling system with more options for each character. Furthermore, there’s going to be a shift from 6v6 games to 5v5 games and more of a focus on PvE content – which we’ve seen from Overwatch events in the past.

It all sounds good, but it all also sounds like changes that could be made to Overwatch for free – we don’t need Overwatch 2 when Overwatch offers such a good base for expansion. In addition to this, when you consider the way Blizzard handles World of Warcraft expansions, it would make sense to integrate the Overwatch 2 content into Overwatch – as opposed to releasing it as a completely separate title.

At the moment, though, we’re under the impression that Overwatch 2 WILL be a separate release and it WON’T be a free one at that. There is still time for this to change, but at the moment, Overwatch 2 can be pre-ordered at certain retailers for around £60. There isn’t any sign of it on Blizzard’s own site though – so there could be a change between now and whenever Overwatch 2 eventually sees the light of day and releases. That could be a while though…

How to play Overwatch 2 beta?

Fortunately, Signing up for the Overwatch 2 beta is very straightforward: just click on the Overwatch 2 beta opt-in link, make sure you’re logged into your Battle.net account, and the hamsters that run the internet will do the rest.

Will Overwatch 2 be free?

Is the Overwatch 2 beta on console?

The beta is PC-only, unfortunately, so console players won’t be able to participate. Still, if you’re a PC player, I hope to see you in the beta.

Is Overwatch 2 beta PC only?

Overwatch 2 closed Beta plans to launch in late April, and it will only be available for PC users.