The Battlefield 2042 technical test will offer players a chance to get their virtual boots on the near-future ground before the game's official launch.
EA and DICE plan to host a Battlefield 2042 technical playtest sometime in early July. It will not be an open event, and every participant will be required to agree to an NDA (non-disclosure agreement) before they can give the game a try. This is distinct from a standard closed beta, because EA and DICE don't plan to solicit applicants for trying it out.
Instead, EA plans to invite "players identified as Battlefield veterans" from the US and European regions to participate in the test. In other words, it sounds like whatever you could have done to increase your odds of getting picked has already been done - EA will likely do a sweep of accounts that have put a good amount of time into recent Battlefield games, select a small sampling of them, then send invites out to the email addresses associated with those accounts.
But what will these lucky test subjects get to play once they've agreed to the NDA, installed the game, and the event begins? EA's keeping tight-lipped about that too, but it does say this particular test will use a "grey box environment" to focus on "validating technical performance and stability in preparation for launch." In this case, "grey box" likely refers to the testing strategy rather than the level design: testers will likely only experience a carefully prepared slice of the game, and there will only be minimal documentation for getting started.
Fortunately, the technical test won't be your only opportunity to try out Battlefield 2042 ahead of time. EA and DICE are also planning to host an open beta test for the game before the proper launch, with early access guaranteed for folks who put in a pre-order of the full game. Battlefield betas are typically pretty generous, so curious players should have a lot to look forward to this fall.
The Battlefield 2042 release date has been confirmed for October 22, and will launch on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, and PC.
See what else is up next with our guide to video game release dates.
