It’s been a great year to be a skateboard gamer in 2025. Not only did we get the return of the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater franchise with Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 in July, but now we are about to have access to the latest game in the Skate franchise in the form of skate., a free-to-play relaunch of the popular EA series.
Are you tired of waiting and ready to get your hands on skate. and want to know when it releases and how long you can play when it does? Good news, because we’ve got answers, and they provide plenty of reasons to be excited.
Skate Early Access Release Date
The skate. early access period begins on September 16th, releasing to players around the world to get onto their virtual skateboards completely free. Like other free-to-play games, the game will also feature add-on purchases for things such as custom looks and gear. The game is set to unlock for players across both consoles and PC at the same time, at 1:00 PM EDT, 10:00 AM PDT, and the corresponding times elsewhere around the globe. For some nations in Eastern Asia and Oceania, this actually means that the game will be released early in the morning on September 17, instead.
The skate. early access period will also be both cross-platform and cross-progression. The former allows you to play skate. with others, regardless of which platform each of you is using. The latter means that if you install skate. across multiple platforms, such as playing on a console at home and a Steam Deck on the go, you can sync your accounts rather than needing to advance each during the early access gameplay.
Can You Use The “New Zealand Trick” To Access Skate Early?
The New Zealand Trick is a method of accessing games earlier than planned in your home region. This works for games where developers set the content to release at a set time in each region. By then setting your region on your console to be in New Zealand, you can gain access when the appropriate time arrives there, as opposed to when it arrives where you live, offering anywhere from a few hours to nearly an entire day of access before you would otherwise have it.
skate. is not using a locally-timed release. Instead, the game is releasing with a single global release, meaning the game will be available at different times in each timezone to allow for simultaneous access to players regardless of where they live. As a result, there is no need to try the New Zealand trick. Whatever time zone you are in, you already have access to the game as soon as it’s available to players anywhere.
The wait for skate. is nearly over for players around the globe. Are you so excited for skate. that you can’t wait and will be jumping in on the early release access as soon as it goes live?
