Squad Is Coming to PS5 and Xbox – Free PS5 Alpha Starts Today

The Squad console version is official. Offworld Industries announced on 15 October that its 100-player military shooter is coming to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, ported with the help of Secret Mode. And you don't have to wait to try it: a free technical alpha for PS5 runs from today, Friday 16 October, to Sunday 25 October.

No release date has been set for the full console launch. Here's everything Offworld has confirmed in its announcement and FAQ: how to join the alpha, crossplay with PC, maps and factions, performance targets, and what it all means for PC players.

Squad console at a glance

How do you join the free Squad PS5 alpha?

The technical alpha preview is open to all PS5 owners from 16 October to 25 October 2026, but you must enlist first at alpha.joinsquad.com. During the alpha, players fight as the Armed Forces of Ukraine or the People's Liberation Army over the strategic rail line that runs through Gorodok. Offworld says a future beta may follow, but there's no Xbox test announced yet.

When is the Squad console release date?

Offworld hasn't announced one. It says it will share the exact date closer to launch, along with more ways to get into early builds. Squad on console will be a digital-only release.

Will Squad on console have crossplay with PC?

Yes, but it's opt-in and kept separate:

• PS5 and Xbox players can play together through opt-in crossplay on official console servers.
• PC players can create community-hosted servers that use the console ruleset. They sit in their own section of the PC server browser, so PC players only meet console players if they choose to.
• Console players with crossplay on can see and join those PC-hosted console-ruleset servers.
• Console will have official platform-specific servers, official crossplay servers and console community-hosted servers.

What maps, modes and factions are in Squad on console?

Offworld lists this launch line-up, with more planned later:

• Modes: AAS, RAAS, Invasion and Fireteam (PvE).
• Maps: Al Basrah, Fallujah, Mutaha, Narva, Yehorivka and Gorodok.
• Factions: US Army, US Marine Corps, People's Liberation Army, Armed Forces of Ukraine, Private Military Contractors, Middle Eastern Insurgents, Russian Ground Forces and British Armed Forces.

How will Squad play with a controller?

Offworld says simply mapping PC controls onto a pad "wasn't good enough", so it built a console-specific control scheme and interface for Squad's communication and command tools. Other confirmed details:

• Aim assist: yes. Otherwise the underlying gunplay is unchanged.
• Mouse and keyboard: no.
• Local and proximity voice chat: yes. A microphone isn't required, but Offworld says you'll have a much better time with one.
• Server browser: yes, and console players can host their own servers.
• Official dedicated servers in North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Oceania.
• Mods: not at launch.

What resolution and frame rate will Squad run at on PS5 and Xbox?

These are current targets, and there won't be separate performance and quality modes. Offworld will publish final figures after testing.

Do PC owners get Squad free on console?

No. Owning Squad on PC doesn't give you a console copy, there's no cross-progression, DLC is bought per platform and cosmetics don't carry over. Online play needs each platform's usual subscription. Offworld has nothing to announce about Game Pass or PlayStation Plus.

What does the console version mean for Squad on PC?

Offworld's answer is "One Squad": one game with a shared roadmap. After the console launch, major updates will arrive on all platforms at the same time, and the core gameplay stays the same. PC keeps its community-hosted servers and modding, and the studio says it now has more developers working on Squad than it has had for a long time. It adds that the console work, together with the move to Unreal Engine 5, has meant heavy investment in optimisation that should help PC performance too.

To mark the alpha, every Steam player can claim the Recon Team Pack for free until 25 October: five woodland weapon skins for the USMC faction.

What players are saying about Squad on console

The reaction on Steam has been mixed, with long-time PC players worried about how a game built on teamwork will translate. In the Steam discussion "COMING TO CONSOLE LOL":

• Infinity opened with "that's the game buried then".
• melta worries that console players won't use voice chat, saying "you can't play squad if you don't communicate".
• ShepherdOfCats asked whether it would be cross-play. Offworld's FAQ answers that: crossplay is opt-in, and PC players only meet console players on console-ruleset servers they choose to join.
• Not everyone is gloomy: Theyre Going To Decompile Me pointed out that "every update in the last 5 years has apparently been the death of the game".

Squad has a Very Positive rating on Steam from more than 245,000 reviews, with around 11,000 people playing on the day of the alpha.

Watch the Squad console announcement trailer

Offworld's official announcement trailer. For a quick run-through of the FAQ, watch SQUAD on Console: Top 5 Questions Answered.

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Squad console FAQ