The Mortal Shell II open beta: how to get in, what it contains, and what nobody has said
By DayOneFix Editorial · August 17, 2026
The beta is free, open to everyone, and live right now on all three platforms. No keys, no sign-ups, no wishlisting requirement — that is the developer’s own description of access.
With the full game launching 20 August (and Devout Edition players starting 17 August), the beta’s main job has changed: it is now the free demo you run before deciding on a $49.99 pre-order.
How to get in
- Steam: the beta is its own entry — search “Mortal Shell II Beta” or find it via the main store page. Live since 5 June.
- PS5 / Xbox Series X|S: live since 31 July. The official instruction is as simple as it sounds: “head to the respective page on either PlayStation or Xbox and download the beta. Then just open it up, follow the steps, and you should be good to go.”
No PS Plus / Game Pass Core requirement has been mentioned — but a single-player beta would not normally need one anyway.
What is actually in it
From the official beta announcement, the build contains:
- The opening Prologue of the main game
- An early section of the open world
- “Many challenges, including dungeons, mini-bosses, and one truly formidable foe” — the developer’s phrasing; beta players identify that foe as the boss Magdalena, which is why her name dominates beta-era searches
- Early Shells to claim — the reveal showcased three: Tiel, the Acolyte; Eredrim, the Venerable; Proxima, the Broodseeker
- Disciples to discover and lost Ova to recover for your Mether — the sequel’s new progression vocabulary
For spec-checking purposes: the full game’s minimum is a Core i7-10700K / Ryzen 5 3600, 16 GB RAM and an RTX 2060 SUPER, with 70 GB on a required SSD. If the beta struggles on your machine, the launch build has no announced reason to behave differently.
What nobody has said — the honest gaps
- Does beta progress carry into the full game? Not addressed in any announcement. Soulslike betas usually wipe, but there is no statement either way — plan on a wipe, be pleasantly surprised otherwise.
- When does the beta close? No end date has been announced. It may well close at launch; that is inference, not information.
- Is the beta build current? The 11 August news described a new difficulty option (easier executions) — whether that is in the current beta build or launch-only is not stated.
Quick answers
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Is the beta free? | Yes — open to everyone |
| Platforms | Steam (since 5 Jun) · PS5 · Xbox Series X|S (since 31 Jul) |
| Contents | Prologue + early open-world slice, dungeons, mini-bosses |
| Progress carryover? | Not announced — assume no |
| Beta end date? | Not announced |
| Full release | 20 August · Devout Edition from 17 August |
Related
Sources
Access instructions and platform dates are quoted from the official announcements Now Available: The Mortal Shell II Beta (5 June 2026) and Mortal Shell 2’s Open Beta Starts Today, Here’s How to Get In (31 July 2026), both on the official Steam news hub. Beta contents and the three Shells are from the same posts and the April gameplay reveal. System requirements from the Steam store page, checked 17 August 2026. Items marked “not announced” were checked against every news post on that hub — the absence is the answer we found.