Hi-Rez Studios has announced that free to play shooter Tribes: Ascend will be entering open beta this Friday (Feb 24). Hi-Rez has also announced a significant patch for the game this week.

The new patch will be released before the open beta begins on Friday at 5PM GMT. The patch will include:

• New gametype, Arena Deathmatch, with two initial maps
• New Capture The Flag map, Temple Ruins
• New Team Deathmatch map, Inferno
• Two new unlockable items for the Soldier class: Proximity Grenade and Utility Pack
• New default suits for Doombringer and Brute
• Ability to view either Blood Eagle or Diamond Sword skins from Class menu
• Service supporting Name Change
• Large number of bug-fixes and balance adjustments.

Todd Harris, Hi-Rez Studios Chief Operating Officer in the open beta announcement press release revealed how many people have already taken part in the closed beta “Over 300,000 players participated in the closed beta and the game has improved greatly based on community feedback. We are now excited to launch Open Beta this Friday. We have expanded capacity in North America, Europe, and Australia and added new local servers to support growing communities in Brazil and Asia.”

From Friday 5pm GMT, anyone interested in trying Tribes: Ascend can create an account and download the game from http://www.tribesascend.com, without the need for a beta key.