Aion 2 free-to-play launch: what we know so far
The Aion 2 free-to-play launch opens NC's MMO to everyone on Steam today. What Founder's Pack buyers got, how it makes money and the numbers so far.
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Aion 2 goes free-to-play for everyone on PC today, October 5, 2026, at 6:00 a.m. PDT (13:00 UTC, 7:00 a.m. in Mexico City). This is what we know so far about the Aion 2 free-to-play launch, as of 6:50 a.m. Mexico City time (12:50 UTC) on October 5: NC's MMORPG had a five-day paid head start that drew a reported peak of 171,530 concurrent Steam players, and its Steam reviews sat at "Mostly Positive" going into launch day.
Key takeaways
- Free from 13:00 UTC today on Steam and NC's PURPLE launcher, Windows PC only, with servers for Europe, North America, Latin America and Asia.
- The paid head start is over. Founder's Packs cost US$24.99, US$49.99 or US$99.99 on Steam in the US and bought five days of early access, cosmetics and a 30-day membership.
- The big numbers are reported, not ours: 80.lv, citing SteamDB, put the peak at 171,530 players on September 30 and says the game topped Steam's global top sellers for a time.
- Reviews held steady before launch: about 76% positive from 4,300 reviews on October 2 (per 80.lv), and 78.5% from 6,963 Steam-purchaser reviews in Steam's data on the morning of October 5.
- The real test starts now: the first free-to-play weekend's player peak and the review score after launch are still unknown.
What changed with the Aion 2 free-to-play launch
Until this morning, only Founder's Pack owners could play. NC closed that Advanced Access period with an eight-hour maintenance that began at 22:00 PDT on October 4, and its maintenance notice sums it up in two lines: Advanced Access ends, commercial launch begins. A few minutes before 13:00 UTC, NC confirmed on Steam that the game would open on time.
The Steam store page lists Aion 2 as free to play, developed and published by NC, for Windows only. The minimum spec is a GTX 1050 Ti with 8 GB of RAM, and you need 100 GB of free space. Text is available in eight languages, including Spain's Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese; full voice acting is in English, Japanese and Korean.
NC's server notice lists launch servers for Europe, NA East, NA West, LATAM and Asia. Each server holds one faction, Elyos or Asmodian, and is paired with a server of the other side for shared PvP areas like the Abyss. The game also runs on NC's own PURPLE launcher, and MMORPG.com reports that players on both platforms share the same game.
What Founder's Pack buyers got
The three packs on Steam, priced for the US store, were Standard at US$24.99, Deluxe at US$49.99 and Ultimate at US$99.99. All three included early access from September 30 and a 30-day membership, and Inven Global reports that early access progress carries over to launch.
The cosmetics scale with the tier. According to NC's October 3 update, Standard adds a unique title, Deluxe adds an armor skin and a weapon skin, and Ultimate adds a second armor skin, a pet and wings. Players complained that those outfits were locked to one character, so NC says it will make them usable on every character on every server. It warned the fix "may still take several days" and will land after early access. If that change makes you want a bigger pack, NC says Steam buyers can buy the higher tier and ask Customer Support to refund the cheaper one, while PURPLE buyers can upgrade directly.
You can still buy a pack today, but not for long: NC's Advanced Access post set the last chance at 8:00 a.m. PDT on October 5 (15:00 UTC). Free players also get something: NC is extending its pre-registration and wishlist rewards, a pet chest and a chest of consumables, to anyone who creates an account and logs in before maintenance on December 1.
How Aion 2 makes money
NC hasn't published a full price list that we could read, so here is only what its own pages say. Steam tags the game with in-app purchases, and the Founder's Packs show three things NC sells: cosmetics, chests and membership time. The game has two currencies, Kinah and Quna, and NC warned players on October 4 that buying either from unauthorized sellers breaks its terms of service and can cost them access to the game. Inven Global notes that the marketplace and the cash shop's cosmetics were already live during early access.
What a membership costs on its own, and exactly what it unlocks, comes mostly from fan guides, not from an NC document we could verify. We've left those details out until NC publishes them.
Aion 2 player count and Steam reviews so far
The early numbers are strong for a game nobody could play for free. 80.lv reports, citing SteamDB, a peak of 171,530 concurrent players on September 30, a second 24-hour peak above 137,000, and a spell at number one on Steam's global top sellers, which ranks by revenue. On October 2, 80.lv counted "Mostly Positive" reviews, about 76% positive from more than 4,300.
Aion 2 Steam reviews didn't sag before launch. At 12:50 UTC on October 5, Steam's own review data showed "Mostly Positive", with 5,467 of 6,963 reviews from Steam purchasers positive (78.5%). Until today, playing at all required a Founder's Pack, so those reviews come from paying early players. The free-to-play crowd hasn't weighed in yet.
We couldn't confirm a live player count: SteamDB blocked our request, and Steam's public player-count endpoint returned no figure for the game at that time. For context on how fast a Steam score can swing in launch week, see how Ace Combat 8's Steam reviews moved in a single day.
What happens next
These are the facts still pending as of the morning of October 5:
- First-weekend player peak: whether free access pushes concurrent players past the 171,530 early-access peak, or whether it was a paying-fan spike.
- Review score after launch: whether "Mostly Positive" holds once free players start reviewing.
- Founder's Pack cosmetics on all characters: NC promised the change "after the end of Early Access" and a follow-up post on how it will work.
- Membership details: NC's own price and benefit list for players who didn't buy a pack.
- December 1: the last day to log in for the pre-registration and wishlist rewards.
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Bottom line
As of 6:50 a.m. Mexico City time on October 5, 2026, the Aion 2 free-to-play launch follows a paid head start that went well: a reported 171,530-player peak and reviews between 76% and 78.5% positive. Those numbers come from fans who paid to get in early. If you're curious, the download costs nothing but 100 GB of space; if you were weighing a Founder's Pack, its window closes at 15:00 UTC today. Check back after the first weekend for the numbers that matter.
FAQ
Is Aion 2 free to play?
Yes. From 13:00 UTC on October 5, 2026, Aion 2 is free to download and play on Steam and NC's PURPLE launcher. Steam lists in-app purchases, and NC sells cosmetics, chests and membership time.
What is the Aion 2 launch time?
The global launch time is October 5, 2026, at 6:00 a.m. PDT, which is 13:00 UTC, 15:00 CEST and 7:00 a.m. in Mexico City. NC confirmed on Steam that morning that it would open on time.
Can I still buy an Aion 2 Founder's Pack?
Only until 8:00 a.m. PDT (15:00 UTC) on October 5, 2026, according to NC. The Steam prices in the US were US$24.99, US$49.99 and US$99.99, and the early access they included is now over.
Is Aion 2 on PS5 or Xbox?
Not at launch. The Steam page lists Windows only, and NC's launch runs on PC through Steam and its PURPLE launcher.