After years of waiting, it’s now just a matter of hours until Bethesda fans finally get to play Starfield. The studio’s latest open-world epic officially launches next week on Friday 6th September, but for those who have pre-ordered the Premium edition, they’ll get to jump into the Starfield Early Access from tomorrow – a full week before launch.
We’ve rounded up everything you need to know about early access below so that you can dive into Settled Systems as soon as possible. We’ve got details on how to play Starfield early access, the release date and unlock time, preload information and more.
How to play the Starfield Early Access
The official release date for the Standard Edition of Starfield is Wednesday, 6 September 2023. But if you pre-order the Premium Edition you’ll get to play it almost a week before then, thanks to an exclusive early access perk included with that version. Starfield early access launches on Friday, 1 September 2023, but in some parts of the world, that’s as early as tomorrow. You can pre-order the Premium Edition right now from Steam, the Xbox Store, and our own store.
If you already have a Game Pass subscription, you can instead purchase the Starfield Premium Edition Upgrade. This DLC usually costs £34.99, but Game Pass subscribers get an extra discount that brings the digital price down to £31.49. The DLC upgrades the Standard version you’d get with XGP to the Premium Edition, and lets you play Starfield in early access. You can purchase a digital version of this DLC or a physical version.
Besides early access, the Premium Edition of Starfield also includes the upcoming Shattered Space expansion, as well as the Constellation skin pack, and a digital art book and soundtrack. The physical version also comes with a snazzy steel book case and a Constellation patch you can sew onto your favourite piece of clothing to show your Starfield support.
You can also get Starfield early access if you pre-order the Constellation Edition. This is the Starfield equivalent of Fallout 4’s Pip-Boy Edition, which was sold at an eye-watering mark-up on eBay when it initially launched. This version has everything the Premium Edition does, as well as the Starfield Chronomark Watch and a case for it. It’s exclusively available to order from GAME in the UK and is priced at £249.99.
Starfield Early Access release times
Here are the exact times the Starfield Premium Edition unlocks and Early Access begins:
- West Coast US: August 31 at 5pm PDT
- Central US: August 31 at 7pm CDT
- East Coast US: August 31 at 8pm EDT
- UK: September 1 at 1am BST
- Europe: September 1 at 2am CEST
- Australia: September 1 at 10am AEST
- New Zealand: September 1 at 12pm NZST
Starfield Early Access preload and file size
Starfield is already available to preload on both Xbox and Steam. So if you’ve pre-ordered it, or you’re a Game Pass subscriber, you can get ready for the big release date by preloading Starfield right now.
On Xbox, the Starfield file size is 100GB at launch, while for PCs Starfield is a bit heftier – with the file size weighing it at around around 140GB. Starfield will only run on an SSD, so if your rig is in need of an upgrade then check out our guide to the best gaming SSDs, and find out what solid state drive is right for you.
Haven’t purchased Starfield yet? Then you can pick it up from our store, or directly from Xbox or Steam. Or, if you’re looking for more Starfield content ahead of launch make sure you check out our guides on if Starfield will be on Steam Deck, Starfield mods and how many planets are there in Starfield.