PlayStation 5’s Closed Beta for Sea of Thieves is now live until April 15th at 9 am UTC. The limited-time event will offer players a chance to dive in and gain unique rewards. Oh, worry not, everything you do will be carried over to the full launch.
PlayStation 5 Closed Beta participants will receive exclusive access to Dauntless Adventurer Sails and a unique title on April 25th. These items will enhance the visual appeal of players’ ships and are exclusive to PlayStation 5, but will be visible to players on other platforms during gameplay.
In the Beta, players won’t have access to all game areas, purchase Ancient Coins, browse Pirate Emporium, create or sail for a Guild, or unlock any Trophies. However, progress towards unlocking them will be tracked.
More details about the closed beta, including notes, can be found below:
PlayStation 5 Closed Beta Notes
Exclusive Closed Beta Rewards
- Players logging in for the Closed Beta period will unlock access to the exclusive Dauntless Adventurer Sails and Title. These items will be distributed to players’ accounts on April 25th.
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These exclusive cosmetics are reserved for PlayStation®5 users, meaning they can only be equipped while playing on this platform. However, should you encounter players on non-PlayStation platforms in future, they will still be able to see the exclusive cosmetics you’ve equipped.
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Closed Beta players will also earn an exclusive boost when Season 12 launches on April 30th and will be fast-tracked to level 10 in Seasonal Renown, unlocking access to a range of rewards.
Saved Progression
- All progress made during the Closed Beta weekend will be carried over to both Early Access and launch later this month. This means that any new pirate created, gold hoarded, reputation earned, Commendations collected, Captained ships bought and items purchased will be brought along with you!
Restricted Features
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While players have access to a wealth of experiences during the PlayStation®5 Closed Beta, some areas of Sea of Thieves are not available during this exclusive weekend.
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Players will be unable to purchase Ancient Coins during the Closed Beta, or browse the Pirate Emporium.
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Players will be unable to create a Guild during the Closed Beta, and seasoned pirates joining with prior progress will find they are unable to sail on behalf of an existing Guild.
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Players will not unlock any Trophies during the Closed Beta, but progress towards the unlock criteria will still be tracked and rewarded at launch.
PlayStation®5 Features
Microsoft Account Linking
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All pirates will need to sign in with a Microsoft account to play Sea of Thieves. When launching the Closed Beta build, players will be guided through the account linking process.
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Be warned, account linking is a permanent decision, as players are only able to link a single Microsoft account to a single PlayStation™Network account. Only use the Microsoft account on which you intend to carry over your progress to launch!
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Experienced pirates from other platforms who are participating in the PlayStation®5 Closed Beta will have their pirate and all associated progress seamlessly transferred and accessible for play. Be sure to use the correct Microsoft account, as the two accounts chosen to be linked cannot be changed later.
Player Names and PlayStation Online IDs
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Once a Microsoft account is linked for Sea of Thieves play, all players will be displayed using their Microsoft account gamertag.
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Players on PlayStation®5 can utilise the Recent Players List feature located within the Game Options menu to view the Microsoft account and linked PlayStation Online ID of individuals they encounter, as well as directly opening their player profile.
Inviting Friends into a Crew
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When setting up a crew, players can use the PlayStation®5 Game Base to invite existing PlayStation friends using ‘Invite to Game’.
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Players are also able to use the new in-game friends list, which consolidates friends from the linked Microsoft account and the PlayStation™Network account into a single location for seamless crew management.
Cross-Platform Play
- The PlayStation®5 Closed Beta is exclusively available to players who have pre-ordered any edition of Sea of Thieves. Players will only encounter fellow PlayStation®5 pirates while sailing the seas during this period.
DualSense™ Wireless Controller Support
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Hungry for haptic feedback? Players can enjoy technology within the controller enhancing the experience of movement and interactions with the world.
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Adaptive triggers leveraging unique qualities of the DualSense™ wireless controller heighten the gunplay experience, allowing players to feel every bullet they fire.
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When a headset isn’t connected, the controller’s built-in microphone will serve as the default input device, granting all players access to the in-game voice chat.
Voice Chat Notifications
- When using in-game voice chat with crewmates or other players you meet in the world, the name of the broadcasting players will be shown within the HUD in a new indicator.
Player Moderation
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Players have access to a range of tools to keep their online experience safe while sailing the seas.
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The Report a Player tool in the game’s settings allows any player to be reported to Sea of Thieves Player Support for a variety of reasons, such as an inappropriate player name, pet name or ship name.
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Players also have the option to report instances of toxic behaviour encountered within the game, or individuals suspected of exploiting game mechanics.
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The Block a Player tool in the game’s settings allows a player to be blocked, resulting in them being restricted from communicating with you using in-game voice chat.
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Players can also access a range of options within the game’s Crew Management settings, allowing finer control over how they communicate with their crewmates and rival pirates such as muting voice chat, text chat and pirate phrases independently.
PlayStation®5 Performance
- Sea of Thieves on PlayStation®5 is optimised to run at 60 FPS in 4K resolution, ensuring complete parity with Xbox Series X players.
- Players can access an additional Performance Mode from the game settings for supported TVs, allowing for 120Hz refresh rates at 1080p resolution.
Known Issues
The known issues detailed in this section are specific to the PlayStation®5 Closed Beta. Should you encounter any bugs during your session, we encourage you to visit the dedicated Closed Beta section of the Sea of Thieves Forums to report your issue.
120Hz Performance Mode
- This Performance Mode is still being optimised ahead of PlayStation®5 launch and during Closed Beta will not be reflective of the game’s final optimised performance. Players may encounter scenarios of framerate drops below intended levels, especially during high-intensity scenarios.
Missing Captain’s Logbook
- Players who earn enough gold during the Closed Beta to purchase their own ship will find that when joining the game, the Captain’s Logbook is missing from the Captain’s Table on their ship.
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While players will be instructed to read this Logbook by the Pirate Lord himself, they are free to sail away from the Outpost, which will dismiss this notification.
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All progress earned while sailing on a Captained ship will continue to be tracked.
Unmuting Other Players
- Players using the Crew Management options to unmute another player may find that this does not take effect straight away, and may require a return to the Main Menu first.
