If you’re not one of the lucky few that has been invited to beta test Overwatch on an extended basis, don’t give up hope. Blizzard is casting a wider net for 36 hours, and you might have your chance to play.
Starting today, April 15, at 9 a.m. Pacific / 12 p.m. Eastern, a larger number of players will be invited to put the game through its paces. If selected for this, you’ve got until tomorrow, April 16, at 9 p.m. Pacific / 12 a.m. Eastern, to give it a go.
Three maps are in rotation for the invitational beta test: Hanamura, Route 66, and Nepal. You won’t receive notification if you’re selected and there are no codes (despite what some scammers would have you believe).
Simply check your Battle.net installer during the test period. If you see an “install” button, you’re in. Note that if you are invited as part of the wider pool, your access will be revoked after the end of the period.
Don’t worry, though. An open beta is running on all platforms starting May 5 (if you pre-order, you'll get in on May 3). From there, it’s just a short wait for the full release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC on May 24.
Our Take
With Overwatch in wider beta and Battleborn in open beta this weekend, it’s a good time to check out the hero-shooter sub-genre. The two games are wildly different, so if you keep getting them confused, you can start getting that sorted.