Even in its Early Access Open Beta phase, Battlefield 6 has already made history by breaking the all-time peak concurrent player record set by Battlefield 2042. The hype was evident even before launch, with thousands of players queuing up for servers days in advance.

On August 6, just one day before the Early Access Open Beta began, reports indicated that over 40,000 players were already waiting in Battlefield 6 server queues. Even earlier, tens of thousands had downloaded the beta client, which at the time only featured basic menus. These early indicators suggested that the Battlefield community—and FPS fans in general—were eager to dive into the new installment.

Data from SteamDB reveals that Battlefield 6's Early Access Open Beta on Steam peaked at over 330,000 concurrent players—a staggering 67% increase over Battlefield 2042's all-time high. Two years ago, Battlefield 2042 managed just over 107,000 concurrent players at its peak. Now, its successor has more than tripled that number before its official release. It's important to note that the Open Beta is also available on Xbox and PlayStation, meaning the actual player count across all platforms is likely much higher.

Players eager to join the Open Beta can download the client on their preferred platform. However, Early Access is currently restricted to select groups: those with Twitch Drop codes, EA Play Pro members, and Battlefield Labs registrants before July 31. Additionally, viewers can still earn access by watching Battlefield 6 streams on Twitch for at least 30 minutes.

For those who don't qualify for Early Access, the global Open Beta begins on August 9, running for 24 hours. A second phase starts on August 14 and lasts four days, ending on August 17. Due to overwhelming demand, developers are expanding server capacity to accommodate the influx of players. While it's unclear if more playtests will occur before launch, Battlefield 6 is confirmed for release on October 10.