NHL 26 follows in the footsteps of other sports titles with exclusive early access. This special promotion lets you play the game sooner than most, and while it costs a pretty penny to do so, it’s worth it for hockey fans.
With 2K’s NHL series being on ice since 2014, EA continues to lead the charge for the simulated cycle of ice hockey. It remains unopposed, unchallenged, and NHL 26 is the latest shot at ice hockey glory. Cover athletes include stars such as Brady and Keith Tkachuk, and a new range of features is welcomed.
Insider Gaming has everything you need to know about NHL 26 early access. Whether this is your first rodeo, or you’ve danced this ice-cold dance a few times.
How To Get NHL 26 7-Day Early Access
Pre-ordering the NHL 26 Deluxe Edition is the only way to secure 7-day early access.
Other EA titles typically have multiple editions to choose from. Things are simpler with NHL 26: You have the Standard Edition and the Deluxe Edition. Getting the base version will set you back $69.99, but the Deluxe Edition requires a few more cents—$99.99, to be exact.
The Standard Edition comes with handy goodies, including NHL Points, a player pack, and an XP boost. But the Deluxe Edition is where it’s at for dedicated fans. Most importantly, the extra cash gets you into the action seven days before the official worldwide launch.
NHL 26 Early Access Start Date & Times
NHL 26 early access gets underway on September 5—a full seven days before its September 12 launch.
Early access used to be three days, then it was five, and now many games are prepared to go as high as seven days. I must first stress that early access start time info comes via the PlayStation Store. It’s telling me that early access starts in my time zone (BST) at 5 PM.
Using this information, here’s a table showing you NHL 26’s early access start times in key regions and time zones.
| Time Zone | NHL 26 Early Access Release Times & Dates |
|---|---|
| Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) | 9:00 AM—September 5 |
| Central Daylight Time (CDT) | 11:00 AM—September 5 |
| Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) | 12:00 PM—September 5 |
| British Summer Time (BST) | 5:00 PM—September 5 |
| Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT) | 2:00 AM—September 6 |
Will you be getting NHL 26 early access? Is seven days too much of a head start over normal buyers? I’m interested to hear your comments, which you can leave (as always) through the Insider Gaming forum.
You should definitely check out the complete NHL 26 Trophy List and all-new Be A Pro features for more NHL 26 content.
Andy is Insider Gaming's Senior Evergreen Editor and has been in the games journalism sphere in one way or another for over 7 years. His video game taste is as…
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