KEY POINTS

  • "Back 4 Blood" will have two open betas this August
  • The first beta is exclusive for those who pre-ordered the game
  • Players can join the early access beta even without pre-ordering the game

A fully-public open beta for “Left 4 Dead’s” spiritual successor “Back 4 Blood” is coming soon, offering all players a taste of its gameplay for free for a limited time.

There will be two four-day betas for “Back 4 Blood” in August. The first will run from Aug. 5 to 9 and access will be exclusive to those who pre-ordered the game. The second test will run from Aug. 12 to 16 and it will be available for everyone, including those who played the first beta.

Eager fans who want to play as much of the game before its official release in October can pre-order the game now for an extra four days’ worth of early access and the rest of “Back 4 Blood’s” pre-order bonuses.

All players will be able to join the second public beta without any strings attached. This beta version can be accessed directly via Steam or the Epic Games Store for PC and the respective game stores for PlayStation and Xbox consoles.

Those who want to access the first open beta without pre-ordering can try registering at the official website. However, this will not guarantee access to the first beta.

Back 4 Blood is the spiritual successor of the four-player coop classic Left 4 Dead
Back 4 Blood is the spiritual successor of the four-player coop classic Left 4 Dead Turtle Rock Studios

Turtle Rock Studios has been steadily improving “Back 4 Blood” with the feedback they received from the early alpha test, which was met with mixed responses from among those who got to try it. The game was criticized for its difficulty and complicated mechanics when compared to “Left 4 Dead.”

YouTuber Wow Such Gaming noted in his review that supplies were incredibly hard to come by due to the new copper/currency system and the game’s overall difficulty was much higher compared to “Left 4 Dead” because of numerous factors like the Corruption Card system and the ruthless AI Director.

On the other hand, the “Back 4 Blood” alpha also received praise for being mostly faithful to its predecessor and for providing a very familiar yet fresh experience to loyal players and those who are new to the genre.

The upcoming open betas will serve as a second pass for the developers to gather even more feedback and test out if the changes they made based on the alpha’s reception is more palatable to a broader range of players.

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