Are you ready for the Battlefield 1 beta? The World War I FPS will start testing the waters with fans starting noon EDT Aug. 31, and fans are ready to play on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and on PC. Of course, if you signed up through EA’s Battlefield Insider program you should have access to the game right now, but the rest of us will have to wait. And if you plan on playing on a console, there are more hoops than expected for some gamers.
On PlayStation 4 you can download and play the Battlefield 1 beta whether you subscribe to PlayStation Plus or not. However, the Xbox One version requires you to be a current member of Xbox Live to access the game. It’s a strange difference between the consoles and feels more like the old approach to Gold that used to put access to Netflix behind that subscription.
Neither EA nor Microsoft have explained why there’s a difference in availability of the beta. Perhaps it’s just red tape left over from some older agreement. The Gold restriction on the Battlefield 1 beta is similar to having to download EA Origin to play the same beta, so maybe it’s closer to that line of thinking?
Whatever the case, the Battlefield 1 beta will go live to the majority of gamers tomorrow morning. Neither EA nor developer DICE has said when the Battlefield 1 beta officially ends, but they did outline it’ll include 64-player Conquest and 24-player Domination. It’ll all take place on the map St. Quentin’s Scar, with vehicles like the Armored Car, FT-17 Light Tank, Mark V Landship, A7V Heavy Tank, along with multiple planes and an airship for the massive battles. If you played the alpha, you’ll find some familiar things and some new features.
Battlefield 1 goes on sale Oct. 18 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.