Skate developer Full Circle has revealed in a new video that the game will be a live-service, free-to-play title that it plans to support for "years to come."
In a new video called "The Board Room" on the official Skate YouTube channel (thanks, The Verge), Full Circle goes into great detail about the upcoming title as well as what players can expect to be getting up to once the game launches. Full Circle's head of product management Isabelle Mocquard reveals that the game will be a "free-to-play title available to gamers around the world."
As for platforms, Skate will be available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and even mobile, with full crossplay and cross-progression across all systems as the team is going for a "no barriers approach." Full Circle doesn't reveal a potential release date or even a release year, instead opting to tell fans that the game will release "when it's ready."
Unfortunately, like with most free-to-play titles, Skate will also have microtransactions. However, Full Circle general manager Dan McCulloch makes it explicitly clear that the game will not be pay-to-win. McCulloch also promises that no areas of the map will be locked behind a paywall, that there won't be paid loot boxes, and that Skate won't be a "watered down" experience. Instead, the microtransactions will be centered around "cosmetics and convenience."
If you want to sign up for a chance to play a very early build of Skate, the developers are ready to extend playtesting to a larger portion of the community. There are no guarantees that you'll get an invite, but Full Circle promises to open up more spaces in the coming months. If you want a chance to play Skate early, you can sign up on the game's official website.
If you want a less official way to play Skate, a leaked early build is now playable thanks to a dedicated team of modders. Obviously, EA would much rather you didn't play the leaked or modded build of the game, but it's an option for those that can't wait and didn't get an invite to Skate's "pre-pre-pre alpha " playtesting.