The Wasteland 3 backer beta begins on March 17

(Image credit: InXile)

Wasteland 3 was a massive crowdfunding success, and those who backed it will be able to give it whirl later this month as inXile launches beta testing for the game.

Announcing the beta on the game's Fig page, inXile has said the beta will begin on March 17 at 9am PDT for all those who backed the game for $25 or more. Those in the alpha test held last August won't need to redeem a new key, while everyone else will be receiving their Steam code for it shortly.

The test will contain the first few hours of Wasteland 3, which includes character creation and a handful of early areas. Expect to see plenty of it when it launches, as there will be no NDA on the testing. You're allowed to stream, record and share your gameplay as much as you like.

InXile is keen to remind players that this really is a beta test, and that any of the content seen is subject to change. There are also going to be bugs abound, and the game has yet to be optimised, so it could be pretty choppy to play. To combat this, there will be a reporting tool in-game to let testers identify and report on any of the technical hitches they may encounter.

It hasn't been announced when, or even if, this beta testing period will end. However, the game itself is currently due to launch on May 19, meaning those who didn't get into this phase of testing won't have to wait long before being able to play the whole thing.

Latest in RPG
The heroes are attacked by monsters
Pillars of Eternity is getting turn-based combat to mark its 10th anniversary, and that means PC Gamer editors will soon be arguing about combat mechanics again
Junah beginning a battle in Metaphor: ReFantazio.
Today's RPG fans are 'very sensitive to feeling like they wasted time' when they die, says Metaphor: ReFantazio battle planner—but Atlus still made combat hard anyway
Image of Cersei Lanniser from Game of Thrones: Kingsroad Steam early access trailer
A new Game of Thrones RPG is coming to Steam today with a cast of 'familiar faces,' which is good because it's really the only way to tell it's a GoT game at all
A Viera looking confused in Final Fantasy 14.
Old armor continues to fall victim to Final Fantasy 14's bizarre two-channel dye system, unless you're super into changing the colour of teeny-tiny eyelets: 'Why even bother at this point?'
Starfield: Shattered Space
By the time Bethesda was on Starfield, you'd 'basically get in trouble' for breaking schedule, says former dev: 'A lot of the great stuff within Skyrim came from having the freedom to do what you want'
Sphene applauds in Final Fantasy 14's patch 7.2 story.
I'm not yelling 'we're so back!' yet, but Final Fantasy 14's patch 7.2 story could be the first sign the MMO is returning to what made it so critically-acclaimed
Latest in News
A mech awakens.
Mecha Break developer is considering unlocking all mechs following open beta feedback
Lara Croft Unified Art
Tomb Raider developer Crystal Dynamics lays off 17 employees 'to better align our current business needs and the studio's future success'
A long bendy arm stealing money from people in a subway car
'You're a very long arm. You steal things. It's a comedy game,' explains developer of comedy game where you steal things with a very long arm
The heroes are attacked by monsters
Pillars of Eternity is getting turn-based combat to mark its 10th anniversary, and that means PC Gamer editors will soon be arguing about combat mechanics again
Image of Ronaldo from Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves trailer
It doesn't really make sense that soccer star Ronaldo is now a Fatal Fury character, but if you follow the money you can see how it happened
Junah beginning a battle in Metaphor: ReFantazio.
Today's RPG fans are 'very sensitive to feeling like they wasted time' when they die, says Metaphor: ReFantazio battle planner—but Atlus still made combat hard anyway