How to access the Black Ops 7 beta

If you want to play the Black Ops 7 beta in Early Access then you still have a few days to place your pre-order for the game, as that is the main route for getting in as soon as possible – though digital and physical orders have different processes to activate that. You can skip this pre-order requirement if you have a subscription to one of the main Game Pass tiers, as you already have Early Access secured as part of your membership, meaning you can be first through the gates to sample Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 once the servers go live.

If none of that applies to you then don't worry, as everyone can access the Black Ops 7 Open Beta period that follows directly afterwards, meaning you can try out the multiplayer component including six of the Black Ops 7 maps and a wide selection of Black Ops 7 guns without making any sort of commitment to buying the full game first. For the lowdown on all of the available options, here's how to access the Black Ops 7 beta.

If you're planning to play on PC, be aware that you'll also need to enable Black Ops 7 Secure Boot before you can access the beta.

How to play the Black Ops 7 beta

While there will be an Open Beta period that is available to everyone, to play the Black Ops 7 Early Access beta you need to do one of the following:

• Pre-order Black Ops 7 digitally through the Microsoft Store, PlayStation Store, Battle.net, or Steam
• Pre-order Black Ops 7 physically via a participating retailer
• Subscribe to Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass PC, or Game Pass Console

If you pre-order digitally then you will qualify for Early Access to the Black Ops 7 beta on that platform, and you don't need to take any further action as you'll be automatically registered to play during the Black Ops 7 beta times.

For those who pre-order physically, you should receive an Early Access beta code either printed on the retail receipt or emailed to you with your online receipt. This will be a 13-character code in the format XXXX-XXXXX-XXXX, and we've got details on how to redeem this below. If you don't receive this code, then contact the retailer you purchased from for assistance.

Finally, if you have an active subscription to Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass PC, or Game Pass Console then you will be automatically registered for the Early Access beta as part of the Black Ops 7 on Game Pass package, so again no action is needed to access it.

For more details on any of the Black Ops 7 rewards for pre-ordering, we've got a complete breakdown of the benefits in our separate guide.

How to redeem a Black Ops 7 Early Access code

To redeem a Black Ops 7 Early Access code from a physical pre-order, you need to register it on callofduty.com/betaredeem. During this redemption process on your Call of Duty account you'll need to select which platform you want to use to participate in the beta, so make sure you choose this carefully as it can't be changed once the code has been redeemed.

Don't forget that you only need to redeem an Early Access code if you pre-ordered a physical edition of the game from select retailers, as digital pre-orders and Game Pass are automatically enrolled in the Black Ops 7 Early Access beta.

How to preload the Black Ops 7 beta

According to the official FAQ, "more information about pre-loading [the Black Ops 7 beta] will be available soon" so we currently don't know when it will be available, and if it will be included as part of the Call of Duty HQ hub or available as a standalone. It's likely that a preload option will be available several days before the Early Access beta is due to launch, to give players enough time to download and install it ready for when the servers come online.

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