Early Access Codes, Multiplayer Reveal And More

Activision and Infinity Ward revealed the dates of the upcoming Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare II Open Beta and Early Access Beta today.

As with past Call Of Duty betas, this one is carved into several chunks depending on which platform you play on and whether or not you pre-ordered the game.

Spread out over two weekends this coming September, the Modern Warfare II beta should give players a good taste of what’s to come in the multiplayer portion of the game.

Kicking things off before the beta is the big multiplayer and Warzone 2 reveal which Activision is branding as Call Of Duty: Next. Read more about the event right here.

Open Beta Dates

As noted previously, the Modern Warfare 2 open beta is divided into different sections, with PlayStation players getting the first crack at the game. PC and Xbox players will gain access the following weekend. Here are all the dates and start-times.

Weekend 1 Sept. 16th – 20th (PS4 & PS5 Only)

Early Access is for pre-orders and anyone who gets a free Early Access code. More on how to get a code below.

• PlayStation Early Access starts Friday, September 16th at 10am PT

• PlayStation Open Beta starts Sunday, September 18th at 10am PT

• Weekend 1 beta ends on Tuesday, September 20th (likely at 10am PT but this is not specified so there may be some wiggle room)

Weekend 2 Sept 22nd – 26th (All platforms crossplay)

This beta has an Early Access period also but that period is open to all PlayStation gamers regardless of whether or not they pre-ordered the game.

• Early Access starts Thursday, September 22nd at 10am PT

• Open Beta (all platforms) begins on Saturday, September 24th at 10am PT

• Open Beta ends on Monday, September 26th at an unspecified time

What To Expect In The Modern Warfare II Beta

At this point we don’t know many details on what will be available to play at the beta but Activision is describing it as “a robust multiplayer experience going beyond the Core 6v6 experience with a variety of meticulously designed maps of various sizes, and an equally impressive set of Modes, Progression experiences, and other aspects” all of which will be revealed at the Call Of Duty: Next event on September 15th. (Read more about the event here).

My guess is that the beta will have several 6v6 maps and one or two of the big maps that Infinity Ward has planned. Those big maps are taken from the new Warzone 2 map, so playing big team modes will help familiarize players with that map ahead of the battle royale sequel’s launch.

If past Call Of Duty betas are anything to go by, we’ll likely see shifting modes throughout the two weekends, with a number of playlist updates over the course of the beta.

In many ways, this is more of a demo than a beta, though certainly player feedback will help the devs fine-tune the game before its October 28th launch. This is a win-win for players and the studio, giving gamers a chance to test out the game before buying it and Infinity Ward a bit of extra playtesting to help prep early patches (many updates won’t occur by launch but post-launch patches can be informed by beta feedback).

You can check out one of the maps—Marina Bay Grand Prix—that will be available during the beta and at launch in the video below:

Free Early Access Codes

Many influencers, streamers, YouTubers and others will be handing out free Early Access codes for the multiplayer beta. I am one of them. Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel and stay tuned for code updates!

Stay tuned for lots more Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare II and Warzone 2 updates by following me here on this blog as well as on my Twitter and Facebook.