MAG golden, open beta due Jan. 4

Originally slated for a late 2009 release, Zipper Interactive's online military shooter MAG has been locked and loaded for a January 26 deployment on the PlayStation 3 since August. Today, Sony Computer Entertainment confirmed that MAG will only see the one release-date misfire, as the North American and Asian editions of the game have gone gold. Sony expects the European edition to pass certification in the next couple of weeks, though no release date was offered for the region.

Along with announcing that the game has been shipped to manufacturers for mass production, Sony also said that MAG's open beta test will commence on January 4. The open beta will be available in all regions and ends on January 10 at 11:59 p.m. PST. North American gamers can begin downloading the open beta client on December 22, though Sony reiterated that gamers won't be able to actually enter the game until the first week of 2010.

Developed by former SOCOM specialty studio Zipper Interactive, MAG is an ambitious online military shooter that will feature 256 players in a single game. Each player will assume a different rank on each side, viewing the battlefield according to his or her station. Commanders will see the action from a top-down view from which they can direct lower-level soldiers, who will see from a first-person point of view on the front lines.

For more information, check out GameSpot's previous coverage of MAG.