Darwin Project's Open Beta Is Live and Ongoing

Darwin Project is a survivalist battle royale set in the wintry north of Canada's rocky regions, where the weather is just as likely to kill you as a stray bullet. The open beta test is now ongoing. 

A series of matches will also be held on Mixer in oder to test the new "Live Spectator Interactions" feature that lets spectators wager on competitors. Meanwhile, a Show Director is a player who monitors the action from above and hands out bonuses and punishments to the combatants. 

"You haven't lived until you've seen a whole server of players stop what they're doing to hunt down the poor sap you just revealed on their minimaps," Scavenger Studio said. "Classic." It might seem punishing, but the studio said that ensuring that players stay focused on fighting rather than hiding is one of their design priorities. 

To that end, even though fires must be crafted in order to avoid freezing to death, they'll also alert anyone nearby to your presence.  Footprints in the snow can also make you easy to follow and track down, while crafting can leave behind a trail that serves as clues to other players. 

The Darwin Project client is downloadable now from Steam, and in case there's any question, it is free. The open beta weekend will run until 9 pm PT/12 am ET on January 21.  In Philippine time that's 1 am this morning to 1 pm Monday, January 22nd.