Earlier this month,Call of Duty: Vanguardwas shown to the world with its reveal trailer. This didn’t come as too much of a surprise, asCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold Warwas also revealed in Augustof last year, with the series establishing itself as one of the most consistent franchises in gaming.Call of Dutyis consistently on the minds of the gaming community due to its yearly releases, and it doesn’t look as though it’s a trend that will be slowing down any time soon.
A slightly more recent trend has emerged over the past few years with fans receiving early access to the latestCoDgame. This trend looks set to continue withCall of Duty: Vanguard, as it has since been announced that there will be an alpha for the game available soon. In previous years, the early access afforded to fans has served primarily as a way to get them interested in the nextCall of Duty, with a secondary goal being to stress test the game ahead of its full launch. This year looks as though it could be different, however, as gamers will be receiving their first look at an all-new game mode.
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Who Can Play the Call of Duty: Vanguard Alpha and What Does it Include?
TheCall of Duty: VanguardAlphais only available to PlayStation owners, which will come as disappointing news toCall of Dutyfans on Xbox or PC. However, the Alpha is available to owners of the PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5 alike, opening up the alpha to gamers across generations. PlayStation was the marketing partner forCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, too, which meant that the game’s open beta appeared first on PlayStation. A partnership was also notable in the case ofModern Warfare, as PlayStation owners had a whole year’s exclusivity of the game’s survival mode, and it seems as though this partnership is being carried forward intoVanguard.
TheCall of Duty: Vanguardalpha will not provide fans a free run at the entire game, as it will instead center around one game mode, Champion Hill. This is a brand newCall of Dutygame mode debuting inVanguard, however, it may seem familiar to fans ofModern Warfare’sGunfight. Champion Hill is a 2v2 or 3v3 deathmatch mode, but it contains battle royale elements. These being that players all start with the same loadout, but can upgrade their weaponry by collecting cash from downed enemies, or flocking to drops scattered across the map. Players can upgrade perks, weapons, armor, equipment, and buy killstreaks between rounds. As is the case withWarzone,Champion Hill has one huge map, with multiple different sections in which combat can take place. All told, Champion Hill looks like an interesting innovation of the battle royale genre.
How to Gain Access to the Call of Duty: Vanguard Alpha
For lovers of both PlayStation and modernCall of Dutygames, downloading theCall of Duty: Vanguardalpha shouldn’t prove to be too much of an issue. A pre-order ofVanguardis not required at this stage. Instead, players need only navigate to the PlayStation Store, search ‘Call of Duty: VanguardAlpha’, select theVanguardalpha, and download. Despite theCall of Duty: Vanguardalpha centering around multiplayer content, a subscription to PS Plus is not required to play in this case. TheVanguardalpha is available to preload to PlayStationsystems now, to be able to boot up the game the moment it goes live.
TheCall of Duty: Vanguardalpha is being made as accessible as possible in a bid to get fans on board. Of course, the exclusivity agreement with PlayStation precludes involvement from Xbox or PC gamers, but anybody with a PlayStation and an internet connection can hop on and try the game out. Activision may face a tougher challenge than usual in winning overCall of Dutyfans this year giventhe ongoing Activision Blizzard situation, however. The controversy centers around a toxic workplace for female employees, as well as a ‘frat boy’ culture. It’s yet to be seen how this may impact sales, but manyCall of Dutyfans are perhaps ready to turn their backs on the long-running franchise, makingVanguard’salpha of particular importance.
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What Time Does the Call of Duty: Vanguard Alpha Release
ForCall of Dutyfans interested and able to play theCall of Duty: Vanguardalpha, there isn’t long to wait. TheCall of Duty: Vanguardalpha will be releasedon Friday, August 27, at 6 pm BST, 1 pm ET, or 10 am PDT. The alpha will conclude at the same time on Sunday, August 29. There is a chance this time could vary if there are any setbacks, though this is the time that the alpha is scheduled to be released. Unfortunately, forCall of Dutyfans with other plans for their weekend, the August 27 to August 29 window is the only time the alpha will be available, and it will not be available on other platforms later down the line. There will, however, be further opportunities to experienceCall of Duty: Vanguardprior to its full release date on November 5.
Is There a Call of Duty: Vanguard Open-Beta?
Following theCall of Duty: Vanguardalpha, there will be anbeta beforeVanguard’sfull release. This beta will take place in September between the 18th and 19th. Prior to this beta, though, there will be two rounds of early access, the first taking place from September 10 to September 13 which is once again exclusive to PlayStation, and the second which will be available to all platforms from the 16th to the 17th. All in all, this comes out to nine days of access to PlayStation owners, and five days for Xbox and PC owners.Call of Dutyfans will have plenty of time to gather a feel for the game and report back with any issues.
to gain access to the beta, gamers will need to pre-orderCall of Duty: Vanguardon their preferred system. Little is known in terms of specific details about the beta at this time. However, early access begins three days following the worldwide multiplayer reveal, so it’s likely to be similar to previous years in which players will be given access to more general multiplayer. Still, the first peek atwhatCall of Duty: Vanguardhas to offerwill be seen this Friday via the PlayStation alpha.
Call of Duty: Vanguardwill be released November 5th, 2021 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Series X/S.
