AION 2 has not even opened to everyone yet and it is already one of the stories of the week on Steam. Since September 30, founder's pack buyers have been playing in advance access, and NC's MMORPG reached number one on Steam's top sellers, passed 160,000 concurrent players on Steam alone and forced the studio to open new servers more than once.

On Sunday, October 5, the game opens to everyone for free on PC through Steam and NC's PURPLE launcher. If you are jumping in now, here is what matters for day one: what happened in advance access, what it costs, which server regions exist, the PC you need and how to avoid a rough launch day.

What happened in advance access

The five-day advance access began on September 30 and runs until October 4, exclusively for founder's pack buyers. It got off to a strong start: AION 2 hit the top of Steam's best sellers list, and NC celebrated with a gift code. On Thursday, October 2, the game sat at 4th in sales and 9th in most played, with a peak of more than 160,000 concurrent players.

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That number only tells half the story. AION 2 also runs on PURPLE, NC's own launcher, and players there do not count toward Steam's figures. On top of that, everyone in right now paid to get in early. Once the game turns free on Sunday, demand should only grow.

Success brought the usual MMORPG side effect: full servers. NC has opened new servers several times and is asking players to pick recommended servers to ease the busiest ones until October 14, when server transfers become available.

A character flying over the sea in AION 2

When AION 2 launches for everyone

The official launch is October 5, 2026, on PC through Steam and PURPLE. NC has not publicly confirmed the exact opening time yet, so the best plan is to have the game installed in advance and keep an eye on the official channels on Sunday morning.

Advance access players are on their own separate servers. According to NC, shared queues between those servers and the launch servers will be available from October 5.

Is AION 2 free?

Yes. AION 2 is free-to-play. The founder's packs are only for players who wanted to get in early and pick up cosmetic items. On Steam they cost:

  • Standard Founder's Pack: $24.99
  • Deluxe Founder's Pack: $49.99
  • Ultimate Founder's Pack: $99.99

Like other free MMORPGs, the game has an optional cash shop and subscription. One point NC has been keen to stress: wing skins sold in the shop are purely cosmetic and grant no stats, which will reassure anyone worried about pay-to-win.

Server regions

NC confirmed five regions for the global launch: North America West, North America East, South America, Central Europe and Japan. There is no region lock, so you can join another region if your friends are there, as long as you accept the higher ping.

Oceania is not on the list. And Steam and PURPLE players share the same world, so you can play with friends on the other launcher without any issue.

A group of players facing a boss in AION 2

Supported languages

According to the game's Steam page, AION 2 supports English, French, German, Spanish, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian and Korean, with full audio in English, Japanese and Korean.

AION 2 PC requirements

AION 2 runs on Unreal Engine and asks for a reasonable PC plus plenty of disk space. These are the official requirements listed on Steam:

  • Minimum: 64-bit Windows 10/11, Ryzen 5 2600 or Core i5-10500, 8 GB RAM, GTX 1050 Ti (4 GB) or Radeon RX 470 (4 GB)
  • Recommended: 64-bit Windows 10/11, Ryzen 7 3700X or Core i7-11700, 16 GB RAM, RTX 2070 (8 GB) or Radeon RX 5700 XT (8 GB)
  • Storage: 100 GB, SSD recommended
  • DirectX: 12

One detail from NC itself: at minimum spec in Full HD, the game should be set to the Very Low preset, and at recommended spec, to Low. In other words, playing on high settings takes more hardware than the sheet suggests at first glance.

Spell combat in AION 2

Launch day tips

Download early. It is 100 GB. If your connection is not fast, get everything ready before Sunday so you do not miss the opening.

Pick recommended servers. During advance access, the busiest servers had queues. Since transfers only arrive on October 14, choosing a crowded server now could leave you stuck there for more than a week.

Plan with your group first. Settle region, server and faction with your friends before creating a character. Changing later is a hassle.

Use your character slots. Accounts start with four character slots, which leaves room to try classes before committing to a main.

If you are still unsure about classes, factions and what to do in your first hours, our guide AION 2: 10 things to do before the global launch covers each step, and our complete AION 2 guide explains the game from scratch.

An AION 2 character in an open field

Our take

The advance access numbers are impressive, but they call for a little caution. Players who paid to get in five days early are the most engaged fans, and an MMORPG's fate is decided in the following weeks, once the novelty fades and queues, class balance and the cash shop take over.

Still, the signs are good. A free game with no region lock, a South American server, eight text languages and a cosmetic-only wing shop removes the main excuses for not trying it. If NC keeps its servers stable on Sunday, AION 2 has everything it needs to be the most played MMORPG of the fall, at least until WoW Forever arrives on November 4.

FAQ

When does AION 2 launch? October 5, 2026, for everyone on PC.

Is AION 2 free? Yes, it is free-to-play. Founder's packs, from $24.99 to $99.99, are optional.

Which server regions are there? North America West, North America East, South America, Central Europe and Japan.

Can Steam and PURPLE players play together? Yes. Both launchers share the same world.

When can I transfer servers? Server transfers are planned for October 14.

Is AION 2 on consoles? At launch, it is PC only.