Blizzard’s Overwatch enters closed beta on October 27

Correction: This story originally stated that Overwatch is entering an open beta. It’s entering a closed one.

Some of us won’t have to wait long to play Blizzard’s newest game.

The developer announced today that the closed beta for Overwatch will begin on October 27. Overwatch is a team-based shooter for PC. The game is a departure for Blizzard, which has never released a shooter before.

Blizzard notes on Battle.net that the closed beta will include a small amount of testers. Beta Test Weekends, however, will invite more players in order to stress-test the game’s servers. Blizzard also noted that the beta will work on Windows PCs.

Overwatch is Blizzard’s first new IP in a long time. For decades, the company has relied on its Warcraft, StarCraft, and Diablo franchises. Overwatch introduces a new universe with new characters.

We don’t currently know what kind of payment plan Overwatch will have, but Blizzard has had success lately with free-to-play models for Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft and Heroes of the Storm, a multiplayer online battle arena. Both games have become popular on livestreaming site Twitch and have growing esports communities — a goal the publisher likely has for Overwatch as well.