Company of Heroes 2 beta phases rolling out April 2

An early access beta of Relic Entertainment's strategy game, Company of Heroes 2, will go live April 2 for pre-order customers. A second beta phase for the public will roll out a few weeks afterwards.

The beta will feature 1v1, 2v2, 3v3 and 4v4 competitive multiplayer and skirmish gameplay across six maps. 40 levels of progression and customizable loadouts via the Army Customizer will be available to beta testers. Players will also have the option to play with teammates or play solo.

"We've added two brand new maps to the roster for this phase as well as the four already in the Alpha Stress Test," Quinn Duffy, game director. "Players can battle fiercely for control of the Oka River, or brave a close quarters skirmish on the outskirts of Moscow."

The Steam-hosted Company of Heroes 2 closed beta will use Steamworks match-making and friend lists, and the Steam client is a requirement to redeem closed beta access keys.

"We are excited to be able to launch the closed beta for Company of Heroes 2," said Greg Wilson, producer of Company of Heroes 2. "We invite our fans to help us test and balance the game prior to launch, as well as see the changes we've already made since the Alpha test in December."

Company of Heroes 2 — which is powered by the Essence 3.0 Engine, TrueSight line of sight system and the ColdTech weather system — is slated for launch on June, 2013 for Windows PC. The original Company of Heroes was released for Windows PC in 2006.