It’s almost that time of year again: the time when Call of Duty regulars and anyone curious about the yearly entry into the shooter series gather up to check out the beta. Yes, the Black Ops 7 beta is nearly upon us, and it’s one that’s packed with content.
The beta is the public’s first opportunity to go hands-on with the upcoming game, which is part evolution of Black Ops 6, and part sequel to Black Ops 2. In this guide, we’re going to go over every detail we know about the content, how to get early access, when the beta will be going live and more.
Black Ops 7 beta schedule and start times
If you’ve played any Call of Duty beta from the last several years, you’re going to be very familiar with the structure of the Black Ops 7 beta. This year’s beta takes place over a single weekend, but that period is split into two sections.
The initial stage is Early Access only, which is not available to everyone. We’ll explain how you can get access further down the page. The beta goes fully open for the rest of its runtime, available for anyone to play. There’s thankfully no platform exclusivity to worry about with the Black Ops 7 beta.
The Black Ops 7 beta will be available from Thursday, October 2 until Wednesday, October 8.
Black Ops 7 Early Access beta
The Early Access beta is a limited, three-day event that won’t be available for everyone. It kicks off Thursday, October 2, and ends Sunday, October 5. Here are the exact start times:
- 10am PT
- 1pm ET
- 6pm UK
- 7pm CEST
Black Ops 7 Open beta
The open portion of the Black Ops 7 beta goes live just as the closed portion is winding down. It’ll be available from Sunday, October 5 until the beta’s end on Wednesday, October 8. Here are the exact start times:
- 10am PT
- 1pm ET
- 6pm UK
- 7pm CEST
Black Ops 7 Beta end times
The Black Ops 7 beta will end for everyone on Wednesday, October 8. The beta will no longer be available to play beyond the times listed below, regardless of how you got access. Here’s when servers go offline:
- 10am PT
- 1pm ET
- 6pm UK
- 7pm CEST
How to play the Black Ops 7 beta early
In order to play the Black Ops 7 beta early, you’ll need to get access to the Early Access portion of the beta. There are a couple of ways to secure access, and some require a bit more luck than others.
The most guaranteed way of getting into to the Early Access portion of the beta is pre-ordering a copy of Black Ops 7. If you did so digitally – on Steam, Battlenet, the PlayStation Store, or Microsoft Store, your account will automatically have access to the beta, and you’ll be able to play once the download becomes available.
If you pre-ordered through an online retailer, such as Amazon, you should receive an email with a code that you’ll need in order to generate your actual beta token (more on that below). If you pre-ordered at a physical store, that code should be printed on your receipt.
Another way of getting into the Early Access portion of the beta is having an active Game Pass subscription. For PC, PC Game Pass will work. For Xbox, you’ll need either Game Pass Ultimate or Game Pass Standard (Console).
Outside of those options, your next best bet is winning a key from some giveaway. Major Call of Duty influencers and content creators often distribute batches of codes through their Twitter and other social media platforms, so keep an eye out for one.
Where to redeem your Black Ops 7 beta code
Regardless of where you got your code for the Early Access portion of the Black Ops 7 beta, the code itself needs to be redeemed first before you can get the actual beta token that you’ll be able to enter into your console/PC.
If you get a 13-character code that looks like this: XXXX-XXXXX-XXXX, that code needs to be entered on the beta code redemption page. Once there, log into your Activision Account, and enter the 13-character code you have. The website will then email you your beta token, which you can then use on your platform of choice.
In some cases, the website will display the beta code directly after you enter the 13-character code, so stick with it. We also recommend doing that as early as you can, because servers always get hammered in the early hours of the beta’s launch, and those emails may be delayed.
Black Ops 7 beta pre-load times
While Activision has yet to announce the pre-load schedule for the Black Ops 7 beta, we know it will be available to download ahead of time. We expect the pre-load to go live this week, or alongside the Call of Duty: Next multiplayer reveal event.
We’ll update this story as soon as we learn more.
Black Ops 7 beta download size
We’re still waiting to get the final download sizes for the Black Ops 7 beta, but judging by last year’s Black Ops 6 beta, we expect it to be between 20 and 35GB, depending on your platform.
Black Ops 7 beta content
The Black Ops 7 beta is going to offer a healthy dose of maps and modes for players try out. Content is very likely to grow from one portion of the beta to the other, so don’t expect everything to be available immediately. Five modes, and six maps have been confirmed so far for the beta. Here they are:
Black Ops 7 beta modes
- Team Deathmatch
- Domination
- Kill Confirmed
- Hardpoint
- Overload (new for Black Ops 7)
Black Ops 7 beta maps
All the maps below are for core, 6v6 multiplayer.
- Blackheart
- Cortex
- Exposure
- Imprint
- The Forge
- Toshin
- Scout Pulse
- RC-XD
- UAV
- Skewer
- Counter UAV
- Gravemaker
- D.A.W.G
- Watchdog Helo
- HKDs
- Rhino
- VTOL Warship
Black Ops 7 beta Scorestreaks
Black Ops 7 beta weapons
- Assault Rifles: M15 Mod 0, MXR-17, Peacekeeper Mk1
- SMGs: Graz 45k, Dravec 45, Razor 9mm
- Shotguns: M10 Breacher, Echo 12
- LMGs: MK.78
- Marksman Rifles: M8A1
- Sniper Rifles: VS Recon, XR-3 Ion
- Pistols: Jager 45, CODA 9
- Launchers: A.R.C. M1
- Melee Weapons: Flatline MK.II
Black Ops 7 beta tacticals, lethals and Field Upgrades
- Lethals: Frag, Sticky Grenade, Cluster Grenade, Combat Axe, Point Turret, Needle Drone.
- Tacticals: Stun Grenade, EMP Grenade, Flashbang, Stim Shot, Pinpoint Grenade, Psych Grenade.
- Field Upgrades: Assault Pack, Drone Pod, Trophy System, Active Camo, Echo Unit, Squad Link.
Black Ops 7 beta perks
- Perk Slot 1: Gung Ho (Enforcer), Dexterity (Enforcer), Lightweight (Enforcer), Cold-Blooded (Recon), Ghost (Recon), Ninja (Recon), Tech Mask (Strategist), Flak Jacket (Strategist), Shadow (Strategist).
- Perk Slot 2: Scavenger (Enforcer), Assassin (Enforcer), Close Shave (Enforcer), Hunter’s Instinct (Enforcer), Vigilance (Recon), Blast Link (Recon), Engineer (Recon), Fast Hands (Strategist), Gearhead (Strategist).
- Perk Slot 3: Tac Sprinter (Enforcer), Bankroll (Enforcer), Bruiser (Enforcer), Looper (Enforcer), Vendetta (Recon), Tracker (Recon), Quartermaster (Strategist), Charge Link (Strategist), Guardian (Strategist).
Black Ops 7 beta Wildcards
- Gunfighter
- Overkill
- Perk Greed
Black Ops 7 beta operators
Eight operators will be available to choose from during the beta, split between the game’s two factions JSOC, and The Guild.
- 50/50
- Falkner
- Jurado
- Kagan
- Mason
- Vermaak
- Wei Lin
- Zaver
Beyond that, you’ll also have access to the Training Course, which is an area designed to teach you the basics, as well as the new movement mechanics (including wall jumps) in Black Ops 7.
Of course, you can also look forward to the new loadout system. The new Overclock feature, which lets you modify the effects and properties of Field Upgrades, Scorestreaks, lethals and tacticals will also be available to try on all the above mentioned gear.