Outriders release date, launch time news and preload update

Square Enix is launching Outriders this week, with plenty of gamers queuing up to try out the full experience.

The demo has proven a big success mainly due to its generous offering of free content, and not only can gamers still download it, but they can keep much of their built-up experience for launch day.

The Outriders Demo features the first full chapter, including the early story and tutorials, as well as mechanics that are introduced in the game.

This is still available across PS4, Xbox One and PC platforms, but more exciting options are going live this week.

And the good news is that we know when the full game will be arriving, including launch times.

WHAT TIME IS OUTRIDERS COMING OUT?

The Outriders console release time has been confirmed by Square Enix and has been locked in for Midnight on April 1, local time.

This means that gamers who are playing on PS4 and Xbox One will be able to start playing straight away on Wednesday, April 1.

But while there is good news for console gamers, PC gamers will need to wait longer before they gain access.

According to the latest release date news, Outriders will unlock on PC at 5pm BST in the UK and 9am PST in the United States.

A message from the Outriders team adds: “It’s to ensure that we have the maximum amount of staff support on hand and working.

“5pm GMT/10am PST is also when Valve staff come online should we need their assistance. 5pm GMT for Steam release is the Square Enix tried and tested ideal time for launching.”

Gamers should also note that Outriders can be preloaded this week across all platforms, with the full release schedule listed below:

Pre-loading:

• Xbox – Pre-loading will be live today!
• PlayStation Platforms – Pre-loading will begin 48 hours in advance of release time
• Steam – We are still determining our pre-load options here and hope to share news about the possibility of it next week.
• Epic Game Store: Preloading is not currently possible.

Launch Times:

Rolling Midnight Unlock for Consoles:

• Consoles (Xbox and PlayStation) will unlock at midnight on April 1st for your specific country.
• For the USA, this means midnight EDT April 1st, which is 21:00 PDT on March 31st

Unified single global time for PC & Stadia:

• The platforms will release on April 1st at 17:00 BST / 09:00am PDT
• These platforms can only release at a single time globally (this is due to how their stores are set up)
• This time is the standard PC release time for Square Enix and has been carefully chosen to ensure that the maximum amount of support and partner staff are on hand to deal with any launch day issues.

As ever, more news and updates are expected to be shared regarding the Outriders launch before April 1.

And there’s also plenty of time for the team to reveal the longer-terms for the game across all platforms.

The big thing to note if you’re an Xbox console owner with Xbox Game Pass is that Outriders is being added to the service on Day One.

This means you’ll be able to download and start playing Outriders without needing to spend any cash beyond your usual subscription.