Tekken 8 early access 72 hours bonus explained – can you play early?

Fans of the fighting game genre are in for a treat. While 2023 saw the releases of Street Fighter 6 and Mortal Kombat 1, 2024 begins with the arrival of Bandai Namco’s highly-anticipated Tekken 8. The game is only a couple of days away from launch, but naturally, fans want to know if you can play and get Tekken 8 early access. There is a 72 hours early access bonus, but the New Zealand trick does not work.

If you’re unsure about buying the newest installment from Bandai Namco, you can download the demo right now on PS5, Xbox, and PC. This is a great way to experience the game before committing to a purchase. It has a huge roster at launch, and the voice actors for many of the characters have been confirmed. And these characters include returning fan-favorites such as the iconic Jin and Kazuya.

The launch date is less than a week away. You can pre-order to get a slew of bonuses, but, unfortunately, none of them include premature access.

Can you play Tekken 8 early?

There is no way to play Tekken 8 early. There is no early access to the full game pre-order bonus for any of the editions, plus the New Zealand trick will not work on Xbox.

Yet, although there isn’t early access to the full game, the release time for the title actually launches on January 25th in the United States and the United Kingdom rather than January 26th. The latter is the launch day in Japan, so you can technically play one day before the marketed launch date.

Below are the pre-order bonuses for each edition (via PSN store):

Standard – £64.99: 

• Avatar Costume – Paul Phoenix Set
•  2 Avatar Skins – Tetsujin, Mokujin

Deluxe edition – £94.99:

• Avatar Costume – Paul Phoenix Set
•  2 Avatar Skins – Tetsujin, Mokujin
•  Playable Character Year 1 Pass
•  Avatar Skin: Kinjin
•  Character Costume: Gold Suit Pack

Ultimate edition – £104.99: 

• Playable Character Year 1 Pass
•  Avatar Skin: Kinjin
•  Character Costume: Gold Suit Pack
•  Avatar Costume: Classic TEKKEN Tee Set
•  3 Avatar Skins: Kazuya, Jun, Jin
•  Avatar Costume: Paul Phoenix Set
•  2 Avatar Skins: Tetsujin, Mokujin

If you plan on buying either the Deluxe or Ultimate Edition, check out our guide to the DLC characters and season pass. Remember that you can also preload the game in advance of launch so you can begin playing the very second it unlocks.

Tekken 8 72 hours early access bonus explained

Although there is no way to play the full game before launch, there is a 72 hours early access bonus that comes with buying either the Tekken 8 Deluxe or Ultimate edition. The following was highlighted during the TWT Global Finals 2023 day 3:

’72 hours early access for each character for holders of the Player Character Year 1 Pass included in the Deluxe and Ultimate editions!!’

So, basically, if you buy the Deluxe or Ultimate edition, you will own the Season Pass and get DLC characters three days before fans who don’t own the season pass can buy fighters individually. Know that you can buy the Season Pass on its own and still get the three days incentive.

Does the New Zealand early access trick work?

Tekken 8 will come out in New Zealand at 12 PM NZDT on January 26th. Per the PSN store, the game launches at 3 PM PT/ 6 PM ET/ 11 PM GMT on January 25th, which means it does not unlock at local midnight per region. Unfortunately, this means the common New Zealand early access trick will not on Xbox as the Microsoft store shares the same launch hours as the PSN store.

For more Tekken 8 information, we have a guide to whether the game has microtransactions, and we also have a guide for each of the demo characters including Jin and Paul.