Skate 4 could be coming sooner than expected

Get your boards ready

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

Skate 4 could be much closer than anyone had anticipated, as an apparent Origin API leak, as well as insider information, has seemingly hinted that it’s nearly ready for playtesting.

The news comes fromeXputerand notorious leakerTom Henderson, who claim that within the Origin API, there was a reference to a Skate playtest. As of writing the API code has since been removed, but eXputer grabbed an alleged screenshot of the entry and it makes clear references to Skate.

The nameSkate 4isn’t used in the code - instead, it’s referred to specifically as ‘skate.’ This would hint that the game has seen a rebrand, moving away from the numbered sequel convention to go the way of a reboot.

There isn’t anything too specific in the API, such as a release date, but it does state that progress from the playtest will not transfer to the main game.

On the more speculative side, eXputer claims sources have told them that internal playtesting has been happening for months, suggesting that Skate 4 is quite far along in its development.

The report also says Skate will have crossplay, while also seemingly denying early rumors that the title is going to be free-to-play.

Sooner than expected

If this Skate playtest is imminent, it will be a big surprise for players. The next Skate was announced in thesummer of 2020 as part of EA Play Live, and it was said to be in ‘very early’ development at that point. If that was true, and this playtest is incoming, that is an impressive turnaround for the title.

Get the best Black Friday deals direct to your inbox, plus news, reviews, and more.

Sign up to be the first to know about unmissable Black Friday deals on top tech, plus get all your favorite TechRadar content.

InterestinglyEA Play isn’t happening this year. The publisher announced that it would be forgoing a summer presentation, so we at least know the game isn’t set to turn up there. However, with no centralized announcement event, it opens up EA games to be shown at other shows, like theSummer Game Fest, or evenXboxandPlayStationshowcases.

It’s even possible thatEAdoesn’t use any third-party event to announce this and instead just releases the news of its own accord.

Regardless, it seems like something is happening with the proposed Skate 4, and fans of the franchise can probably start to get excited about hearing more soon.

Patrick Dane is TechRadar Gaming’s Guides Editor. With nearly a decade in the games press, he’s been a consistent voice in the industry. He’s written for a plethora of major publications and travelled the world doing it. He also has a deep passion for games as a service and their potential to tell evolving stories. To wit, he has over 2000 hours in Destiny 2, over 1000 in Overwatch and is now deeply into Valorant.

The PS5 Pro’s PSSR upscaling gives multiple games a huge visual upgrade – can it compete with Nvidia’s DLSS 3 successor?

I’m a Nintendo Switch expert, here are the best early Black Friday deals right now

Arcane season 2 confirms the hit series isn’t just one of the best Netflix shows ever made – it’s an animated legend that’ll stand the test of time