The Elder Scrolls Online launch times announced

When will you be able play The Elder Scrolls Online? Really, that depends on a couple of factors. The most important is if you're planning to buy it, because, if not, there's a pretty easy answer to the question. Assuming that you are, things are a little more complicated. During a Reddit AMA for ESO, Bethesda posted times and dates for when they plan to fling open the gates to the online Tamriel.

Those who pre-order the digital edition through Bethesda's online store will get a five day head-start over other players:

-North America (East): 7:00 AM EDT, Sunday March 30th

-UK/IE: 12:00 PM WEST, Sunday March 30th

-Central Europe: 1:00 PM CEST, Sunday March 30th

-Sydney, Australia: 10:00 PM AEDT, Sunday March 30th

-Singapore: 7:00 PM SGT, Sunday March 30th

Pre-order from a different retailer, and you'll instead get a three day lead on the masses:

-North America (East): 7:00 AM EDT, Tuesday April 1st

-UK/IE: 12:00 PM WEST, Tuesday April 1st

-Central Europe: 1:00 PM CEST, Tuesday April 1st

-Sydney, Australia: 10:00 PM AEDT, Tuesday April 1st

-Singapore: 7:00 PM SGT, Tuesday April 1st

For everyone else, the servers are accessible from April 3rd/4th.

-North America (East): 7:00 PM EDT, Thursday, April 3rd

-UK/IE: 12:00 AM WEST, Thursday, April 4th

-Central Europe: 1:00 AM CEST, Thursday, April 4th

-Sydney, Australia: 10:00 AM AEDT, Thursday, April 4th

-Singapore: 7:00 AM SGT, Thursday, April 4th

Should you pre-order? Based on what I've played of the beta , I'd advise caution. Little of what I saw inspired confidence in the game's ability to entertain. While I've seen suggestions that more recent patches have directly addressed some of the criticisms from that weekend, it still seems inadvisable to jump on board until we get a better idea of how much the final game has improved.

Thanks, IGN .

Phil has been writing for PC Gamer for nearly a decade, starting out as a freelance writer covering everything from free games to MMOs. He eventually joined full-time as a news writer, before moving to the magazine to review immersive sims, RPGs and Hitman games. Now he leads PC Gamer's UK team, but still sometimes finds the time to write about his ongoing obsessions with Destiny 2, GTA Online and Apex Legends. When he's not levelling up battle passes, he's checking out the latest tactics game or dipping back into Guild Wars 2. He's largely responsible for the whole Tub Geralt thing, but still isn't sorry.