The Diablo III Beta [http://testing.com test ] began in early September, 2011, and is currently in limited "Friends & Family" [http://testing.com test]ing, with the full beta [http://testing.com test ] expected to begin any day now. Blizzard has not said how long the [http://testing.com test ] will run, but they are still aiming to release Diablo III in 2011, which means the beta [http://testing.com test ] needs to conclude by early-November, at the absolute latestla[http://testing.com test].

The Diablo III beta [http://testing.com test ] consists of the first half of Act One, with some story elements and game features removed. The beta [http://testing.com test ] is largely a tech demo, with little game content open to fan feedback; it is not intended to be a full game balance playtestplay[http://testing.com test], like many MMORPGs.

* Follow the news updates on [http://diablo.incgamers.com Diablo.IncGamers.com] for multiple daily updates on the progress of the Beta [http://testing.com test].

==Diablo 3 Beta Test [http://testing.com test] History==

It was universally-expected that there would be a public beta [http://testing.com test ] for Diablo III, and while Blizzard regularly hinted at it, the [http://testing.com test ] was not actually confirmed[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/diablo-on-skills-party-help-and-beta-confirmation/], with a release window of "third quarter 2011," until [[Mike Morhaime]] did so during an Activision/Blizzard conference call in May 2011.[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/diablo-3-beta-details-announced/]

The beta [http://testing.com test ] got underway in early September 2011. It's unclear exactly when the [http://testing.com test ] started; the Battle.net beta forums went online[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/official-diablo-iii-beta-forums-but-still-no-beta] on September 2nd, and visuals leaked around that time[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/diablo-3-beta-character-creation-movie][http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/the-first-diablo-3-beta-interface-shots][http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/the-first-diablo-3-beta-screenshots][http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/diablo-3-beta-leaks-explained], and the Beta FAQ was posted on September 3rd[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/official-diablo-iii-beta-faq]. The first posts showed up in the Beta Support forum on September 4th[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/the-first-post-in-the-beta-feedback-forum-got-deleted], and got deleted while the Blizzard CMs continued to insist[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/battle-net-diablo-3-beta-avatar-revealed] that the Friends and Family beta had not yet begun.[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/no-beta-invites-this-weekend] The Beta download client was available during this time, enabling anyone who had it to post screenshots of the client install[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/diablo-3-beta-install-client-screenshots] and the options menus[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/diablo-3-beta-options-menus], but those people could not play the game without Diablo 3 Beta access on their Battle.net account. Blizzard finally confirmed that the F&F [http://testing.com test ] underway and the full [http://testing.com test ] would begin soon, on September 6th.[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/blizzard-confirms-ff-beta-underway-closed-public-beta-soon][http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/blue-beta-comments-and-replies]

==Will there be a closed Diablo III beta [http://testing.com test]?==

Prior to this, [[Jay Wilson]] spoke about the benefits of beta [http://testing.com test]ing. [http://www.ausgamers.com/features/read/2662371]

==How do I register for the Diablo III Beta Test[http://testing.com test]?==

::In order to be eligible to participate in future beta tests[http://testing.com test]s, you must create a beta profile. A beta profile is a snapshot of your current system specifications. It includes such information as how much RAM you have, available hard drive space, your graphics card and driver, and other information about your system. We gather this information to ensure that we are able to [http://testing.com test ] our games on a wide range and distribution of systems.

The Diablo III beta [http://testing.com test ] is roughly the first half of Act One, taking a brand new character from the start of the game up though the battle with [[King Leoric]]. All five character [[classes]], all of their [[skills]], and almost all of the game features are included. [[Followers]], [[Artisans]], and the full [[item]] system is in the beta, though only the [[Templar]] and [[Blacksmith]] are encountered that early in the game.

'''Not in the beta:''' Some [[story]] elements were removed to preserve surprises, and there are no [[cinematics]]. [[Runestones]] are not included as they're undergoing further development, and the [[Arena]] is not available either. The [[Auction House]] was not available at the start of the beta, though the developers plan to enable it at some point during the beta [http://testing.com test].

The D2 beta took place in early 2000, and like all Blizzard betas in those days, there were only about 1000 testers[http://testing.com test]ers, all of whom had a beta CD mailed to them. Modern betas start small and ramp up with more testers [http://testing.com test]ers added over time, until far more than 1000 people are enabled to [http://testing.com test].

==How long will the Diablo III Beta [http://testing.com test ] run?==

==Will there be an open beta [http://testing.com test]?==

==How many Diablo III Beta testers [http://testing.com test]ers will there be?==Early Blizzard beta tests [http://testing.com test]s were limited to just the 1000 beta CDs they pressed and mailed out. More recent tests [http://testing.com test]s with downloadable clients have grown far larger, and there will likely tens of thousands of testers [http://testing.com test]ers for Diablo III. Not everyone starts on the first day, of course. Beta tests [http://testing.com test]s start small and scale up, with more testers [http://testing.com test]ers added over time as the server stability improves.

The Starcraft 2 beta [http://testing.com test ] generally had more than 20,000 concurrent users, and many, many additional beta keys were distributed over the course of the [http://testing.com test ] to keep the [http://testing .com test]ing numbers up. It's widely expected that the Diablo III beta will follow a similar course, though the [http://testing.com test ] itself should last much less time than the 4.5 months that the SC2 beta ran for.

==Are Previous Blizzard Testers [http://testing.com test]ers invited to Diablo III Beta Test[http://testing.com test]?==Only if you are already on the Blizzard's friends list. They do keep a list of good testers [http://testing.com test]ers from past games, and add people to it when they reliably report numerous bugs, but the names on this list are kept private.

==How are Beta Testers [http://testing.com test]ers Selected?==Blizzard passes out beta keys to their friends and family, to media, and to others in the industry. They also give out beta slots to various fansites, media sites, business partners, and often conduct "invite a friend" events during beta tests[http://testing.com test]s. There are generally numerous ways to gain access, including with game pre-orders, and more promotions appear during the course of each beta [http://testing.com test].

Blizzard sometimes includes a slot for upcoming beta tests [http://testing.com test]s in the goodie bags they give out at Blizzcon or at World Wide Invitational events. (Though beta keys were not included in the Blizzcon 2009 or 2010 goodie bags, 1000 attendees from Blizzcon 2010 were randomly-selected to enter the beta [http://testing.com test].[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/1000-beta-key-winners-selected-from-blizzcon-2010-ticket-buyers/]

=General Beta Test [http://testing.com test] Information=

The remainder of this page covers basic alpha and beta [http://testing.com test ] questions, and is applicable to all types of video games.

==What's an Alpha Test[http://testing.com test]?==An Alpha [http://testing.com test ] is run before the beta [http://testing.com test], and is usually much smaller. The Alpha client is less finalized than the beta client, and is usually the first game build that's semi-complete and playable. Alpha tests [http://testing.com test]s are almost always private, and limited to employees, friends, and family.

==What's a Beta Test[http://testing.com test]?==Beta tests [http://testing.com test]s are large scale tests [http://testing.com test]s of a near-finished video game. To date, all Blizzard beta tests [http://testing.com test]s have been semi-public, with website signups drawing in thousands of public testers[http://testing.com test]ers, who join Blizzard employees, their friends and family, fansite invitees, members of the media, employees at other gaming companies, and others. Beta tests [http://testing.com test]s generally scale up in size as they progress; starting with a few dozen testers[http://testing.com test]ers, then gradually expanding to hundreds and then thousands of testers[http://testing.com test]ers. In the old days this meant physically mailing out beta CDs; these days with the beta clients being shared via bit torrent, it means passing out more valid beta CD keys.

==What's the purpose of a Beta Test[http://testing.com test]?==

Beta tests [http://testing.com test]s serve multiple purposes, depending on the game.

The original Diablo beta [http://testing.com test ] was called the "Battle.net Beta Test[http://testing.com test]" since it was largely made to [http://testing.com test ] Blizzard's new online gaming service. That the software contained the beta client of Diablo I was almost beside the point, since the game was small enough to be tested [http://testing.com test]ed internally. The hard part was getting the online matchmaking of Battle.net functional.

All computer game beta tests [http://testing.com test]s are chiefly used to fix technical problems. Public beta testers [http://testing.com test]ers have an enormously wide variety of computer systems, and ironing out all of the hardware and software issues keeps Blizzard's technical crew very busy. Numerous game bugs are fixed as well, as the influx of new players invariably find ways to break the game that the company's QA department didn't discover.

Beta tests [http://testing.com test]s are very useful to companies as they work to streamline the early player experience as well. Beta tests [http://testing.com test]s seldom include the entire game, but they always have the early portions of the game, including character creation and other opening content, since it's essential (especially for Blizzard games) that their games are immediately involving and enjoyable. This is one reason companies like to pull in a wide variety of testers[http://testing.com test]ers; noobs and dedicated fans alike. Experienced players will skip past minor glitches.

How much actual game [http://testing .com test]ing goes on in a beta [http://testing.com test ] varies from title to title. RTS games like Starcraft 2 generally feature the entire game, but only the multiplayer portion. They can run for many months, as countless tweaks and changes are made to the unit stats as players find new ways to exploit units, and one race or another seems too powerful, or grows too weak as new techniques are developed.

RPGs sometimes include the entire game client, but are usually more limited. Diablo II's beta only included Act One, and only the character skills up to level 18. The D2 team knew they'd need to make changes and tweaks and balances to items and character skills and monsters post-release, but they knew players would need longer than they wanted the beta [http://testing.com test ] to run to get deeply enough into the game to offer valuable input on overall game/item/spell balance. The D2 beta was chiefly used to [http://testing.com test ] out the new Battle.net features, and to [http://testing.com test ] the early aspects of D2 itself. They wanted to perfect the fun factor, leveling speed, early items, skills, monsters and quests. Larger game balance changes were made in post-release patches and were based on the input and play choices of hundreds of thousands of players, rather than just a few hundred beta testers[http://testing.com test]ers.

==What makes a good beta tester[http://testing.com test]er?==It depends on what the [http://testing.com test ] is trying to measure.

Many would-be testers [http://testing.com test]ers like to stress (in hotly-debated forum posts) that they would be great testers [http://testing.com test]ers since they play a ton, are very experienced gamers, etc. That may be true, but the mistake such players make is thinking beta tests [http://testing.com test]s are primarily about game balance. That's an aspect of such tests[http://testing.com test]s, but far from the only one. Blizzard wants a wide variety of testers[http://testing.com test]ers: varied computer systems, varied locations, varied play experience, and varied game interest. They know rabid D3 fans will play endless hours, and probably find some bugs. They also know that such players will learn how to control the game very quickly, and will not be slowed by unclear help guides, cumbersome controls, and other such minor difficulties that can stymie new players.

Beta tests[http://testing.com test]s, especially those that do not include the entire game (like D2's) are largely about optimizing the early game experience. Seeing what players find helpful or confusing about character creation, early game quests, NPC interactions, using the interface, etc. And for that, total noobs are as or more useful than experienced players. In fact, since Blizzard usually distributes hundreds of beta slots through their fansites, slots that will go chiefly to rabid fans, getting lots of casual fans from Blizzcon attendees, other gaming promotions, and people selected via their B.net beta opt in service is essential.

==What countries are included in the Beta Test[http://testing.com test]?==Blizzard beta tests [http://testing.com test]s are generally done internationally, though they often start with just North America for their [http://testing.com test ] servers and most of the first testers[http://testing.com test]ers. Blizzard has also been known to run beta servers in other countries where they expect a lot of players. They had extensive Battle.net servers in Korea for the Stacraft 2 beta, for instance.

==Are there age limits for beta testers[http://testing.com test]ers?==

Each Battle.net account entered in the Beta Opt-In is eligible to be selected for a given beta [http://testing.com test]. So if you have multiple accounts, yes. You can't submit the same account more than once, though.

This can differ for expansion pack beta tests[http://testing.com test]s, since an account must have valid access to the current game in order to [http://testing.com test ] the expansion. The D3 beta did not require any other games on the Blizzard account, but it's likely the Diablo 3 Beta expansion beta will require a valid copy of Diablo III.

==Are there minimum system specs for Beta Tests[http://testing.com test]s?==There has to be some level of minimum machine to run a beta [http://testing.com test], but developers try to include as wide a variety of tester [http://testing.com test]er equipment as possible. See the [[system requirements]] article for more details on Diablo III's requirements.

==How are Selected Testers [http://testing.com test]ers Notified?==Blizzard beta tests [http://testing.com test]s are conducted digitally, all through Battle.net. Most of the testers [http://testing.com test]ers are semi-randomly selected by Blizzard, by their Battle.net accounts. Selected accounts are given beta access, and players can do so by logging on and downloading the beta client. Notification emails[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/friends-and-family-beta-invite-email] are sent to the email address associated with each account.

In addition to those selected testers[http://testing.com test]ers, Blizzard generally gives out thousands of additional beta invites via contest con[http://testing.com test] winners, with pre-orders, via "invite a friend"

==Will I have to pay for the beta [http://testing.com test]?==Blizzard does not charge for beta [http://testing.com test ] slots, though you might need an active subscription to another game in order to play. For instance, you can't beta [http://testing.com test ] a World of Warcraft expansion without an active WoW account.

Beta [http://testing.com test ] slots are sometimes sold, but not officially, and eBay and other online auction services do not permit the sale of beta slots.

Yes. The days of mailed out CDs are long past, since Blizzard runs such large tests [http://testing.com test]s and the game clients are huge. Beta [http://testing.com test ] clients these days are usually several gigs in size, and can take quite a while to download via torrent, even for fast connections.

==What's a Beta Test [http://testing.com test] like?==

Constantly. Beta tests [http://testing.com test]s usually have a new patch almost every day, with minor and major changes, bug fixes, and more.

==Will I be able to talk about the beta [http://testing.com test]?==While previous Blizzard betas tests [http://testing.com test]s all had a Non-Disclosure Agreement ([[NDA]]), their more recent betas have not. [[Bashiok]] spoke on this in January 2011.[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/no-nda-for-the-diablo-iii-beta/]

<blue>Bashiok: I don’t believe we’re planning to impose NDA’s on future beta tests [http://testing.com test]s for any of our franchises. That’s of course subject to change.</blue>

The Diablo III Beta Test [http://testing.com test] launched in early September 2011 without an NDA[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/blizzard-confirms-ff-beta-underway-closed-public-beta-soon], and players were free to talk about the [http://testing.com test], to post videos and screenshots, etc.

==Does Blizzard Expect Testers [http://testing.com test]ers to Play a Minimum Number of Hours?==

==Will beta testers [http://testing.com test]ers be given notice before the [http://testing .com test]ing ends?==Usually the end of a [http://testing.com test ] is announced some weeks in advance.

This also depends. Some beta tests [http://testing.com test]s run right up until the release date, with the information from them being used for post-release patches. Others end weeks earlier, or are replaced by open beta/stress tests[http://testing.com test]s.

==Rewards for Being Beta Tester[http://testing.com test]er==No free game. Sometimes top testers [http://testing.com test]ers are credited in the game manual or online credits, and you might earn your way onto Blizzard's beta tester [http://testing.com test]er friends/family list, but the sneak peek at the game is the reward for most.

No, characters in all Blizzard beta tests [http://testing.com test]s are wiped from the servers before the final game. (There are frequent character wipes during tests [http://testing.com test]s as well, as patches are implemented.) Carrying characters over from the beta to the final game would give beta testers [http://testing.com test]ers an unfair advantage, and besides, there are numerous technical issues as the beta client is not the same as the final game version.