Dawn of War 2 Beta Information
Down to the Last Save has blogged about Company of Heroes many times before and probably will for the near future. Now, since Dawn of War 2 will be using the same engine as Company of Heroes I figure there is no harm in talking about the upcoming Dawn of War 2 Beta.
The news has hit the various gaming related news sites, but none of them seem to have any info on HOW one can get into the beta on the 21st of January. The Dawn of War 2 beta will be distributed via Steam and all that is required is a valid Dawn of War: Soulstorm cd key. The Dawn of War: Soulstorm key can only be used once; and is permanently tied to that Steam account as well. That will prevent people from sharing a cd key for Dawn of War 2 beta access. From the Relic Forums:
The Dawn of War 2 beta will be hosted via Steam and offered exclusively to Warhammer® 40,000™: Dawn of War - Soulstorm owners on January 21, followed by a worldwide public release on January 28. The beta will feature all four playable races, five multiplayer maps, and Microsoft’s Games for Windows - LIVE TrueSkill Matchmaking.
Another reason to love Dawn of War 2 is the fact that it will not include ANY kind of DRM--digital rights management--in the game. DRM is only a pain in the ass for the paying customer and pirates either strip it out or work around it anyways.
If you liked the gameplay mechanics of Company of Heroes, be sure to check out the Dawn of War 2 beta coming to Steam on January 21st.
Edit: I was able to get a Soulstorm key from a friend and will get a Dawn of War 2 beta review as soon as I can get my hands on it. Stay tuned for a Dawn of War 2 Beta Review!