Heroes of the Storm is now in open beta

Heroes of the Storm

Blizzard has released a new Heroes of the Storm trailer to mark the game's long-awaited entry into open beta.

Heroes of the Storm has been in closed beta since January, and in early June it will fling its doors open to the world, but in the meantime we'll have a couple of weeks to enjoy that hazy space in-between we call "open beta." What that means is that you may now pop over to Heroesofthestorm.com, grab the client, and play to your heart's content, without needing anyone's special say-so. But there are one or two caveats.

"Kindly keep in mind that Open Beta is still not final release, and we will be closely monitoring the game to ensure a positive play experience for everyone," Blizzard wrote. "Should one-too-many brawlers try to cram through the Nexus Portal at once, you may encounter a queue when attempting to log in to the client. Not to worry, however, as the wait should be brief, and you’ll be back to crushing opponents in no time."

Blizzard also announced that the launch of the game will be preceded by a live event held in London, UK, on June 1. The show will feature interviews with developers, appearances by "guests from the world of gaming," and live music, and will of course be livestreamed as well. Find out more about what's going on, and how you might be a part of it, at NexusCalling.com.

Andy Chalk

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.