Defiance beta event begins Jan. 18 for PC players

Defiance, the upcoming online open world shooter from developer Trion Worlds, receives its first beta event for PC players starting at 8 a.m. PST on Jan. 18 and ending at 9 p.m. PST on Jan. 20., the studio announced today.

Hopeful players can sign up for the Advanced Mission Beta 1 here. Beta participants take on the role of an ark hunter, a genetically altered operative described as part treasure hunter and part mercenary. The goal of the ark hunters is to track and recover alien technology to be sold to the highest bidder.

A full player tutorial is available in the beta, in addition to the Waterfront competitive multiplayer map, the Shadow War open world multiplayer map, Arkfall co-op boss battles and the terraformed Mt. Tam.

Defiance is scheduled to hit in April 2013, with releases on PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The game will attempt to stand out from the pack of MMO titles by combining its narrative with an original television series planned to air on SyFy.Take a look at Polygon's interview with Defiance lead designer Bill Trost on the development of this action-centric MMO.