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Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent hands-on — Inferior in every way
It may look the part, but something's certainly missing
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Square Enix's latest gacha game is Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent, styled after the Nintendo Switch game, but now offering all of the free-to-play mechanics most gamers hate. That's right; Square thought it wise to cash in on the popularity of Ocotpath Traveler with a monetarily abusive gacha game on mobile, offering a familiar amalgamation of its popular HD-2D art style, but it's severely lacking in polish, almost as if the bare minimum is a perfectly sound business strategy when developing and launching free-to-play mobile games, clueing everyone into precisely what Square Enix thinks of its fans.
Marvel Snap officially launches in its first region, bringing a new season to the collectible card game
If you were in the closed beta, your progress will carry over
Marvel Snap was revealed in May, a collectible card game from Hearthstone's former director Ben Brode. The game entered into closed beta testing at the time of its announcement across a handful of regions, and it would appear that the Philippines is the first region to see an official launch, rolling out today to everyone in the country on both Android and iOS (the game is even coming to PC, but at a later date). Today's launch also ushers in a new season, Atlantis Beach Club, offering an appropriate summer theme where you'll explore Atlantis with heroes like Wave, Cosmo, and of course, Sub-Mariner. There's even a new video to accompany the launch and new season, which you can watch below.
Torchlight Infinite hands-on: Beating Diablo Immortal to the punch
There's another popular ARPG coming to mobile, and it ain't from Blizzard
Last week XD Inc. announced that its upcoming action RPG Torchlight: Infinite would be entering closed beta on January 18th (hey, that's today). Of course, this is an ARPG similar to the Diablo series, and since Diablo Immortal still isn't officially out despite being announced four years ago, the developer behind Torchlight: Infinite has a chance to beat Blizzard at its own game, but that all comes down to how well this action RPG plays. Will Torchlight: Infinite be one of Android's best games, or is this yet another cynically-lazy ARPG designed to make some quick cash on mobile?
The Torchlight: Infinite closed beta starts soon, here's how to register
Unlike the failed Torchlight Mobile, Torchlight: Infinite may actually make it beyond soft-launch
The Torchlight ARPG series has had a varied history. The original game was developed by ex-Blizzard employees who worked on the Diablo series, and it was well-received. Then the sequel propelled the series into popularity and is still a fan-favorite to this day, with an excellent port on the Nintendo Switch. This is where things went wrong. Torchlight 3 had a lengthy and troubled development cycle, eventually entering maintenance mode after the dev gave up. And this doesn't even cover the failed Torchlight Mobile game initially announced in 2015 that made it to soft-launch before being canceled. But it would seem the series isn't dead yet, as XD Inc. has announced a closed beta scheduled for Torchlight: Infinite next week, a brand-new Torchlight game for mobile that's currently available for pre-registration on the TapTap.io store.
Dragon Quest The Adventure of Dai: A Hero's Bonds launches on Android today
Servers set to go live later today
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Square Enix revealed Dragon Quest The Adventure of Dai: A Hero's Bonds last year, but at the time, the game was only slated for a Japanese release. As of this morning, we now know the game is coming to the West with an English translation in tow. It's already listed on the Play Store for pre-registration, and a closed beta will kick off on April 7th, which you can sign up for on the official website.
Live on the bleeding by joining the Closed Beta program for your OnePlus 9 or 9 Pro
Become one of 200 people testing stuff before anyone else
If you're a OnePlus user, you might be aware of two release channels. There's the stable one, where releases meant for the general public go, and the Open Betas, where you can have a taste of new releases earlier than usual and help spot bugs before one actually hits the stable branch. But in addition to those there's also a Closed Beta program — a more exclusive group that gets bleeding-edge releases before anyone else does. Sound good? Well, if you have a OnePlus 9 or 9 Pro, then OnePlus wants you to join.
There really is a Final Fantasy battle royale coming, and I played it for 20 minutes
It's PUBG with a Final Fantasy skin, and I recorded my first drop
At the beginning of the year, Square Enix announced two mobile games themed around Final Fantasy VII, more than likely a reaction to the Remake's success on PS4. Of course, since Square is often reactionary to its successes, these two mobile offshoots didn't have any release dates. Of the two games, Final Fantasy VII The First Soldier has recently entered into a closed beta test, and since I got in, I've recorded a 20-minute gameplay video of my first jump in what is clearly a PUBG clone. So if you're eager to see Final Fantasy VII The First Soldier's battle royale gameplay in action, I indeed show off what the closed beta currently has to offer.
Final Fantasy VII The First Soldier opens pre-registration for closed beta testing
The CBT starts on June 1st
Final Fantasy VII The First Soldier is one of two Final Fantasy VII mobile games Square had announced back in February. This particular game is a battle royale, and it just entered into pre-registration on the Play Store. Those who chose to pre-reg are throwing their hat in the ring for access to an upcoming closed beta test planned for June 1st. So if you're eager to see how Square can capitalize on the battle royale trend, then you'll probably want to check out today's fresh pre-reg listing.
Apex Legends is finally coming to Android
The closed beta starts this month, but there's no cross-play with consoles or PC
Electronic Arts has finally revealed that it's bringing the hit battle royale game Apex Legends to mobile. As a matter of fact, this mobile version will enter into a closed beta test later this month on Android. Sadly only a few thousand players in India and the Philippines will be able to take part in this newly-announced testing phase, though there are plans to roll the game out to further regions as the year progresses. Much like the PC and console versions of the game, this mobile adaptation will be free-to-play.
Dragon Quest Tact is the latest gacha game from Square Enix, now available on Android
Square sure knows how to bleed its properties dry
Square Enix has announced that its free-to-play collection-based tactical RPG Dragon Quest Tact will be coming to the West on both Android and iOS. Back in February (2020), Square announced the game for Japan, and it would appear it was launched in July (2020) and has already racked up 500,000 installs. I suppose this success is the reason the game will soon come to new territories. While the English version isn't slated for a release until 2021, it's already available for pre-registration on the Google Play Store.
Here's how to apply for the OnePlus 8T Closed Beta
200 active OnePlus Community members have a chance to become part of the exclusive group
OnePlus has two pre-release software channels — a closed beta for loyal fans willing to sacrifice stability for a chance to shape the future of Oxygen OS and an open beta for everyone who's just curious what's coming next with no strings attached. The company has just started looking for people with a OnePlus 8T willing to join the exclusive beta group. If you own the phone and are an active member of the OnePlus Community, you can apply to become one of the 200 testers.
OnePlus Nord's super-limited closed beta is now open — apply now
Here's what you need to join the group of 200
OnePlus runs one of the more public-facing software-testing operations among the phone makers we cover at Android Police and it's little surprise to see another launch of beta testing groups — this time for its latest phone, the Nord.
Asus is now accepting sign-ups for its ZenFone 7 Android 11 closed beta program
A late bloomer in the ZenFone family
Asus released its first Android 11 beta build last week — not for the latest ZenFone 7 line but yesteryear’s ZenFone 6. It’s not typical for companies to treat their older models with latest Android updates before their current flagships, but nothing seems to be going straight in 2020, so what the heck. The ZenFone 7 and 7 Pro are at last catching up with their predecessor as they’re now getting their own Android 11 beta program, which you can sign up for right away.
Marvel Super War is a 5v5 MOBA from NetEase, now available in more regions
South Korea, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand can now play
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Marvel Super War is a newly-announced MOBA from NetEase and Marvel Entertainment that's coming to Android and iOS, and it just entered into its first closed beta. The title will feature everyone's favorite heroes and villains from the Marvel universe, and each character will offer a variety of powers that players will be able to utilize in combat.
Tencent reveals Don't Starve: Newhome, a new mobile game based on the original survival series
A closed beta will take place in July, and you can sign up right now if you live in the US or Canada
You can already find the first two titles in the Don't Starve survival series on the Google Play Store, and both of these ports were published by the original developer Klei Entertainment. Well, it would appear that Klei has granted Tencent access to the property to create a new mobile game built from the ground up for mobile. Currently, Tencent is offering a closed beta sign-up for the game, which will enter into testing this July. So if you'd like to take an early look at Don't Starve: Newhome, make sure to register for beta access on the official webpage.
You can now apply for the OnePlus 8 and 8 Pro closed beta program
Want to test new features before everyone else? Here's your chance
Each phone from OnePlus has three software tracks: the stable public builds that most people use, the experimental Open Betas, and finally the bleeding-edge Closed Beta program. If you love trying features before everyone else (and possibly running into serious bugs), OnePlus is now taking applications for joining the Closed Betas for the OnePlus 8 series.
OnePlus will release fewer Oxygen OS Betas going forward
Open and Closed Betas will be released once and twice a month, respectively
OnePlus has decided to slow down the pace at which it releases its Open and Closed Betas, switching to releasing them once and twice a month, respectively. This is down from the schedule the company has held since 2016, which pushed around two Open Betas per month and four Closed Betas per month. The company says these changes will give its development team more time to address feedback and bugs, and it should make future Beta releases more stable and reliable.
SEGA is working on a Total War CCG, and it's already in closed beta on Android
Just what we need, yet another F2P collectible card game
Today SEGA has revealed Total War: ELYSIUM, an upcoming collectible card game for mobile and PC, and it's clearly themed around Creative Assembly's Total War strategy series. Today also marks the unveiling of a closed beta test for Android users, as well as the release of a trailer that provides a first look at gameplay footage. As you would expect, Total War: ELYSIUM will offer tactical card-based gameplay, where players will strive to build decks out of the game's many cards, all so that they can rule with an iron fist over the battlefield.
Other than an Open Beta available to anyone, OnePlus also offers a Closed Beta program for its devices. In it, a small number of loyal fans communicate with OnePlus directly and give feedback on early builds of future software long before it's released to others. A few months after releasing the OnePlus 7T and 7T Pro, the company has now started a call for Closed Beta testers for the two phones, limited to a total of 250 slots.
ASUS’ ROG Phone 2 is an absolute beast of a phone owing to its 120Hz AMOLED display, 6000mAh battery, and of course the Snapdragon 855 Plus chip. The niche gaming phone now stands next in line to receive the newest flavor of Android, after its mainstream ZenFone-branded peers underwent a similar treatment not too long ago. ASUS has begun taking applications for Zen UI closed beta from anyone meeting a prescribed set of requirements. This will presumably be followed by a public beta before a stable version of Android 10 is released.