World Of Tanks Xbox 360 Beta Begins

Xbox 360 has officially become the home of massive vehicular battle as World of Tanks finally moves into beta in North America, Canada and Europe.

Announced during the Microsoft E3 press conference, World of Tanks is ready to roll onto the games console with several dozen tanks, huge battlefields, massive armies and plenty of lovely scenery just waiting to be destroyed.

Already a smash hit on the PC, Wargaming announced today that its leading free-to-play MMO, World of Tanks, is nearly ready for prime time on Microsoft's console as beta servers are now live and fully operational. As an added bonus, the beta will also prove as a launching point for, you guessed it, even more tanks. Brand new US and German tier VII and VIII heavy tanks are being added during the beta, giving players old and new plenty of firepower to put the console servers to the test.

“From our early technical beta testing we've seen tremendous numbers of players get into the game and experience first-hand what's made World of Tanks such a global phenomenon,” said Wargaming West GM Denny Thorley. “We're extremely thankful for their input on how the game is coming along and can't wait to get even more players from North America, Canada and Europe into the game.”

For those of you looking to get in on the action nice and early, all you have to do is drop by the official website and register. More and more participants will be invited in on a weekly basis leading up to the final launch of the game.

Like its PC sibling, World of Tanks for the 360 is a massively multiplayer battle “dedicated to armored warfare in the mid-20th century,” according to a statement from Wargaming. The PC version of World of Tanks already has more than 70 million registered players, and Wargaming is hoping to see that number continue to grow with their first ever console-developed game.

“World of Tanks Xbox 360 Edition will deliver an exciting, tactical warfare experience where team-based coordination is the key to victory, all built exclusively from the ground up for the Xbox 360,” reads the statement. “Taking full advantage of Xbox Live, the title will support a rich and deep progression and customization system, including features such as Achivements and Live matchmaking.”

Still no word yet on when we might see an official launch of the game but, with betas getting up and running as of today, it can't be too far off now. Now my question is this: Will World of Tanks make the jump to the Xbox One. It seems a shame to think that one of the first major MMOs on the console this generation could just be getting rolling as another generation is gearing up to begin.