The open beta for highly anticipated shooter Overwatch was launched on May 5 for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC.
Gamers are allowed to join the open beta for free, with 21 heroes, four game modes and 12 maps available to provide a glimpse of what the new Blizzard title has in store.
The open beta is supposed to last until May 9, but Blizzard said that it is extending its run by another day. With the news, gamers will be able to play the Overwatch open beta until May 10 on all three platforms.
Lyrilla, the community manager for the Overwatch official forums, announced the extension through a post online, noting that the open beta has allowed Blizzard to listen to the opinions and thoughts of players and improve the game based on these feedback.
"We couldn't be more grateful," Lyrilla wrote, adding that as a small way to say "thank you" to the millions of players who have participated in the Overwatch open beta, it will be extended to end on May 10, 10:00 a.m. PDT.
The time between the end of the open beta until the official launch date of the game, which is set at May 24, will allow Blizzard to make further adjustments to the characters of the title to maintain a good balance between all of them.
According to Cinema Blend's William Usher, the most overpowered character who will probably get nerfed before the May 24 launch of Overwatch is Reaper. The character, with his ability to float into advantageous positions to take out opponents using his special, allows players to score kills quickly.
Overall though, there was a good balance between all the characters in the game. There will likely be only minor adjustments and bug fixes to be applied to the title before its official launch, with Overwatch Director Jeff Kaplan previously stating that the open beta features the same version of the title that will be released on May 24.
The success of the open beta validates the immense hype surrounding Overwatch, with Activision COO Thomas Tippl saying that he expects the game to be the biggest launch of Blizzard since Diablo III, which garnered sales of more than 12 million copies in its first year.
