At Gamescom 2014, Halo developer 343 Industries took the stage during Microsoft’s media briefing to drop brand new details on the upcoming Halo 5: Guardians beta, launching on December 29 and playing out for three weeks, ending on January 18.
According to the video presentation that you can watch above, the Halo 5: Guardians beta will highlight tight 4 versus 4 gameplay in 3 different game modes on 7 small, arena-based maps. All players will start matches out with similar loadouts, ensuring a competitive and fair gameplay experience. Players will get access to 11 sandbox weapons, 7 armor sets, and can look forward to some beta unlocks carrying over to the final game.
Halo multiplayer designer Quinn DelHoyo expressed the studio’s commitment to competitive arena combat on Twitter:
.@Halo 5: Guardians Beta = equal starts with maps tailored for 4v4 Arena combat. Best team wins. No excuses.
— Quinn DelHoyo (@quinndelhoyo) August 12, 2014
In addition, the studio teased the classic Halo 2 map, Midship, as a playable map in the Halo 5: Guardians beta.
UPDATE: Here are 21 work in progress screens of the Halo 5: Guardians beta:
Halo 5: Guardians launches next year. Get beta access by picking up Halo: The Master Chief Collection on Xbox One this November 11.