Skull and Bones Open Beta start time and how to preload

Here’s when you can start playing the Skull and Bones Open Beta in your time zone

Contents

1. Skull and Bones Open Beta start time
2. When does the Skull and Bones Open Beta end
3. Skull and Bones early access start
4. How to preload Skull and Bones Open Beta

Skull and Bones is emerging from development hell this month, and players eager to finally live their pirate fantasy will get a chance to play early in an open beta this weekend.

The open beta will run from February 8 to 11, 2024, and it’s completely free for anyone to join, as no purchase or pre-order of the game is required.

Players on PC (via Ubisoft Connect or Epic Games Store), Xbox Series X|S, and PS5, will be able to participate in the open beta.

The game will have full crossplay and cross-progression during the open beta period, and any progress made this weekend will carry over into the full game, if you purchase it.

Read on for everything you need to know about the Skull and Bones Open Beta start times and how to preload.

Skull and Bones has a story after all – sort of

Skull and Bones Open Beta start time

The Skull and Bones Open Beta will start simultaneously across all regions and platforms, and you can check the exact start time in your time zone from the list below.

Ubisoft has shared Skull and Bones Open Beta pre-load, start and end times for select time zones / Ubisoft

Skull and Bones Open Beta global start times

• PST (US Pacific Time): 6 p.m. on February 7
• EST (US Eastern Time): 9 p.m. on February 7
• GMT (UK Time): 2 a.m. on February 8
• CET (Central Europe): 3 a.m. on February 8
• EET (Eastern Europe): 4 a.m. on February 8
• IST (India): 7:30 a.m. on February 8
• JST (Japan): 11 a.m. on February 8
• AEDT (Australia): 1 p.m. on February 8
• NZDT (New Zealand): 3 p.m. on February 8

When does the Skull and Bones Open Beta end

The Skull and Bones Open Beta ends on February 11, at 6 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. PT. That's 11 p.m. GMT or midnight CET on February 12, 2024.

Here's the Open Beta end time in your time zone:

• PST (US Pacific Time): 3 p.m. on February 11
• EST (US Eastern Time): 6 p.m. on February 11
• GMT (UK Time): 11 p.m. on February 11
• CET (Central Europe): 12 a.m. (midnight) on February 12
• EET (Eastern Europe): 1 a.m. on February 12
• IST (India): 4:30 a.m. on February 12
• JST (Japan): 8 a.m. on February 12
• AEDT (Australia): 10 a.m. on February 12
• NZDT (New Zealand): 12 p.m. on February 12

Skull and Bones early access start

After the Open Beta ends, servers will go offline for maintenance to prepare for Skull & Bones' early access launch. Check out our Skull and Bones early access release time guide for exact timings and whether you can perform the New Zealand trick, to jump back into the action as soon as possible.

How to preload Skull and Bones Open Beta

There’s the option to preload Skull and Bones on your PC or console, so you can start playing as soon as the servers launch. Preloads for the Skull and Bones open beta are now live, so here’s how to install the game on your platform of choice.

The Skull and Bones Open Beta sets sail this weekend, and preload is available now / Ubisoft

Publisher Ubisoft has made a handy S&B Open Beta web page where you can check times in your time zone again, with links to download the game on every platform.

If you’re playing on PC via Ubisoft Connect, you will be greeted with a big Open Beta preload banner when you start Ubisoft’s game launcher.

On the Epic Games Store, you will find the open beta from Skull & Bones’ store page, where it’s listed as one of the game’s editions.

Xbox players should search for "Skull & Bones" in the console’s store and select the “Free” open beta option from the results.

Searching for "Skull & Bones" in the PlayStation Store on your PS5 should take you directly to the Open Beta version, where you can download the game.

The download size of the Skull and Bones open beta is about 40-47 GB, depending on your platform.

Skull and Bones release date confirmed at The Game Awards 2023