The March of Giants playtest is called the Pioneer Playtest, and it is open now on Steam from October 7 to October 18, 2026. It is free, it covers North America and supported European countries, and Ubisoft has confirmed there is no NDA, so you can stream, record and write about anything you see. This page covers exactly how to get in and what the test includes.
How to join the Pioneer Playtest
Access is granted by request, not by purchase. Go to the March of Giants Steam store page and click "Request Access" in the section labelled "Join March of Giants Playtest." Steam then notifies you when access is granted, and the build appears directly in your Steam library.
Ubisoft has said invitations will stay open for the duration of the playtest rather than closing after day one. That means late sign-ups are still worth doing, although the test ends on October 18, 2026, so the window shrinks every day.
Before you play, sort out your Ubisoft account and install Ubisoft Connect. The download comes through Steam, but the game requires a third-party Ubisoft Connect account and supports linking it to your Steam account. This is the step that most often blocks people on the first evening.
When it opens and closes
The playtest opened on October 7 at 4 PM Paris time, which is 10 AM Eastern, and runs until October 18, 2026. It is the second public test phase, following the Closed Alpha that began on September 2, 2025.
Ubisoft marked the opening with a YouTube premiere that walked through gameplay, the basics of the game and the Giants available during the test, including a new addition to the character list. If you missed it, the recorded premiere is the fastest way to see the build in motion.
Because the playtest is a live build, expect it to change during the window. The studio published a 2026 to 2027 roadmap on October 9, 2026 that sets out what comes next.
Who can join
The test is open to players in North America and supported European countries, with servers available in both regions. If you are outside those regions, the Steam page may not offer an invitation option, and that is a regional restriction rather than a fault on your account.
The playtest is currently localised in English, French, German and Spanish. Ubisoft has said additional languages and server regions will be added in future tests, so players outside that set are not permanently excluded.
There is no purchase and no code involved. That is why our codes page lists nothing to redeem: access is handled by Steam invitations, not by redeem codes.
What you need before you start
Two accounts matter: Steam for the download, and Ubisoft Connect for the game itself. Install Ubisoft Connect first and link it to Steam, then confirm the build has appeared in your library before the test closes.
Your PC needs to meet the published specification. The minimum is an Intel Core i5-11600 or AMD Ryzen 3 3100, 8 GB of RAM and a GTX 1650 or RX 6400, targeting 1080p at 75 percent render scale and 60 FPS on low settings. The recommended profile is an i5-12400 or Ryzen 5 5600X with 16 GB of RAM and an RTX 2060 Super or RX 5700 XT.
You will need roughly 15 GB of free storage, Windows 10 or 11 in 64-bit, and a persistent internet connection. The Steam page notes that specifications will evolve over time, so treat these as the playtest numbers rather than final launch requirements.
What is actually in the test
The Pioneer Playtest contains the core 4v4 mode: four Giants per side, Soldier waves you rally and command, Battleworks you deploy into lanes, and a win condition of destroying two of the opponent's three Bastions. Merits earned in a match are spent at the Arsenal to upgrade your Warshell.
The playable Giants confirmed by Ubisoft include Victoria, Wolfgang, Voidmaster, Strykka, Kragg, Oriane, Iron Sister, Trench Maw and Ossuary, with community coverage adding Elaris, Solace, Flint and Goliath. Elaris was specifically confirmed as available to all players during the playtest.
Rewards are part of the pitch. The official site states that you can unlock exclusive rewards during the Pioneer Playtest that you keep at launch, which is the main reason to play now rather than waiting for Early Access.
Community channels around the test
Ubisoft has said the developers are active on Discord and on the March of Giants subreddit daily during the test. That makes both a reasonable place to report issues and a good source for patch notes, which appear on the official news feed.
There is also a weekly email write-up run through the official newsletter if you prefer a digest to live channels. For patch history, the official site has carried posts such as Closed Alpha patch notes on match length, which shows the studio does publish targeted balance notes.
Because the playtest is under no NDA, community impressions are unusually reliable right now. The main caveat is that balance is still moving, so tier opinions formed on day one may not survive to day twelve.
What is not confirmed
The exact launch date is not confirmed. Early Access is planned for Summer 2027, and Steam still lists the game as coming soon, so any specific date is 待确认.
Whether playtest progress carries into Early Access is also not stated. Only the exclusive cosmetic and reward items are described as carrying over, and even that should be treated as 待确认 at the item level.
Finally, the exact number of matches, maps or ranked modes available during the test is not published. Anything beyond the confirmed 4v4 format and the Bastion win condition is 待确认.
Where to go next
Read the March of Giants guide for the full new-player walkthrough, the release date page for the Early Access window, and the Steam page summary for store and requirement details.
What the first days of the test looked like
The opening days were dominated by access logistics. A developer post on the subreddit confirmed that everyone in a supported region who had already signed up would be let in, that September 2025 Closed Alpha players needed to do nothing, and that new sign-ups were limited to North America and Europe.
Once players were in, the subreddit filled with impressions rather than bug reports. One thread asked how people were enjoying the test, another described it as something the player had no idea they needed, praising the trenches, bunkers and the flow of troop movement, and a third asked whether item icons were placeholders.
The developers stayed visible through the window. Beyond the access post, the team pointed players to a bug reporter and Ubisoft Support, and the studio's stated plan was to read feedback daily on Discord and the subreddit.
If you want a written summary rather than live channels, the newsletter offers a weekly write-up by email, which the official site lists alongside the Discord and subreddit links.
Sources
- Ubisoft News (FR), Pioneer Playtest begins on October 7: https://www.ubisoft.com/fr-fr/news/ignt.63884/march-of-giants-pioneer-playtest-begins-on-october-7
- Steam store page, March of Giants: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1924600/March_of_Giants/
- Official site, marchofgiants.com: https://marchofgiants.com/en-gb/