EA’s Skate franchise has proven to be one of the most popular sports games ever, with fans of the series on pins and needles waiting for any information regarding the newest entry. With 15 years since Skate 3 and four years since EA originally announced skate., it’s been a long time coming. But the wait is finally coming to an end—fans got a taste of the coming addition with some new info and cover art.

the skate. cover art got a mixed reaction

The cover art is a bit different than past games in the franchise, causing a bit of controversy among fans on X/Twitter. In my opinion, though, it’s pretty solid.

Of course, the big news is the reveal that we finally get the release date for Early Access tomorrow (August 26). The skate. insider playtest, which EA reported has seen 1 million players sign up, has been going on since June. If that isn’t an indicator of the desire for this game, I don’t know what is.

We're stoked to reveal the official skate. cover art! Come back on Tuesday 8/26…we're giving you the Early Access release date. See ya then. 🛹 pic.twitter.com/8rXIL4rhyN

— skate. (@skate) August 24, 2025

“At the end of July, we invited over 1 MILLION skate. Insiders to join us in San Vansterdam, and it’s been wild. We’ve got up to 150 folks in each server, throwing down, completing Challenges, having fun. With Early Access coming soon, it’s going to be insane!

It’s important to remember that Early Access is just the beginning. Everything from the gameplay to core features to visuals will continue evolving and improving during Early Access and beyond.

This is a new game, a new world, and we’re excited about where it’s headed. We think this is the best skateboarding experience we have ever created. Will the visuals change over time? Absolutely. You’ll see the characters and world evolve to include even more detail and personality through our future updates.”

I’m looking forward to trying it out because I spent most of my skating game time playing the Tony Hawk Pro Skater franchise and missed out on Skate in real time. I played Skate 3 a few months ago on Game Pass, and while it took me a while to get used to the controls, I saw the vision. Hopefully, skate.—the newest game in the series—still allows for some of those insane gameplay scenarios I’ve seen over the years.