‘Battlefield Hardline’ EA Access Gives Xbox One Owners 10 Hours Early Play Time

Electronic Arts continues to use its EA Access program for the Xbox One as a way to promote upcoming games. Details on Battlefield Hardline were released Wednesday revealing how much early play time subscribers will receive.

The Battlefield Hardline EA Access trial will be available on March 12, five days before its North American launch on March 17. The trial allows those that download to access the entire multiplayer and some of the single-player portions of the game for 10 hours, with no additional restrictions.

All multiplayer maps and game modes will be available in the EA Access trial version of Battlefield Hardline. However, the single-player campaign is limited to the prologue and the first chapter. This restriction is understandable, as most players would likely finish the campaign under the 10-hour time limit and skip purchasing the game altogether.

Anyone that participates in the trial will also be entered to win a Battlefield Hardline themed Xbox One console, according to the end of the trailer above. This is a United States only promotion.

Those who do decide to purchase Battlefield Hardline after playing the trial will be able to carry over all of their progress. That means wherever you left off in the campaign, plus where you leveled up to in multiplayer, and items you unlocked in single-player will all be there waiting for you when the game launches.

EA Access is a subscription program that costs $4.99 a month or $29.99 a year. In addition to getting early access to new titles like Hardline, subscribers also get a 10 percent discount on all EA game digital purchases from the Xbox Store and can play from a growing list of games in The Vault.

The Vault is a Netflix-like library of titles that Xbox One owners can download and play while their subscription is active for no additional cost. It currently contains Battlefield 4, EA Sports UFC, Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare, NBA LIVE 15, Madden NFL 25, FIFA 14, Peggle 2, and Need for Speed: Rivals.

For those wondering why EA Access is an Xbox One exclusive, it is because Sony turned it down for the PlayStation 4. A Sony representative told Game Informer last July that the company “decided that it does not bring the kind of value PlayStation customers have come to expect.” Sony’s efforts with its monthly free game offerings via PS Plus and the new PlayStation Now game streaming service likely factored in heavily behind the decision as well.

[Images via Battlefield Hardline]