Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 multiplayer beta details revealed

The Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 multiplayer beta goes live on the PlayStation 4 next week, and that's not us! The week after that, however, it will come to the sunlit uplands of the PC as well, and so Treyarch's recent breakdown of what's in store is still relevant to our interests.

The multiplayer beta will include three maps, "each one having been built from the ground-up specifically for our new momentum-based chained-movement system," Treyarch Director of Communication John Rafacz explained. There will also be seven game modes—Team Deathmatch, Deathmatch, Domination, Demolition, Kill Confirmed, Hardpoint, Capture the Flag, and Search & Destroy—and eight Specialists to choose from, each with his or her own unique weapon, ability, and machismo-soaked callsign.

Apart from running around and shooting freedom's haters in the face, players will also be able to try their hand at the new Weapon Paintshop, which enables the creation of custom graphics that can be applied to the sides of weapons. The Weapon Paintshop supports as many as 64 layers applied to three sides of each firearm, allowing for a virtually infinite number of possible variants, which I predict will somehow translate into a veritable cornucopia of gun dicks.

"Since this is a Beta—and because it’s important that we stress test the game in particular ways—we will have gated progression caps along the way," Rafacz wrote. "Also, note that Arena won’t be available in the Beta; however, we suspect that won’t take the competitive edge off of the games being played."

Access to the Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 multiplayer beta can be had by preordering the game. As Phil noted last month, we generally don't encourage that sort of thing, but by now you probably already know whether or not you're going to buy it, so if you're on board anyway you might as well enjoy the beta too. It goes live on the PC on August 26.

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.