Xbox Beta Insiders get access to free multiplayer for free-to-play games


Members of the Xbox Insider Beta ring can now test out free free-to-play multiplayer gaming, the programme has announced.

This change means that Beta Insiders no longer need Xbox Live Gold membership to play free multiplayer titles, although some games such as Call of Duty: Warzone do not yet support the feature. Looking for Groups and Xbox Party Chat are now also available for free.

Of course, Xbox Insiders need an Xbox Live Gold subscription to play these games, meaning that it's likely that very few Insiders will make use of this feature.

This comes ahead of a full roll-out for this feature, expected to come later this year.

How to join Xbox Insider programme

If you're frustrated at missing out on these new Xbox features, you can easily sign up for the Xbox Insider programme by downloading the Xbox Insider app.

Unfortunately, accessing the new features isn't that simple. Xbox Insider runs on a five-tier system.

When you first sign up, you will be in the Omega tier. After a month, you can join the Delta tier so long as you reach Xbox Insider's Level 2 XP. The third tier - Beta - can be reached after three months, providing you reach Level 5.

The two tiers above Beta - Alpha and Alpha Skip-Ahead - are invite-only. These two tiers have already received the latest service changes.

To gain XP and rank up, you can complete surveys and tutorials on the Xbox Insider app.

Free Xbox multiplayer?

Following the backlash to the raising of Xbox Live Gold prices earlier this year (which was subsequently canned), Xbox announced it would remove the barriers to multiplayer in free-to-play games on its console.

This follows on from changes made by Sony and Nintendo, who removed the PS Plus and Nintendo Switch Online requirements for free-to-play games on their platforms.

We're still unsure as to when this feature will launch for all Xbox owners, but we'd expect it to launch within 2021.

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