NBA 2K19 Prelude: 5 Things to Know

If you want to try NBA 2K19 a few days before its official release date you can do so via the upcoming Prelude demo.

Those who pre-order a copy of the $100 NBA 2K19 20th Anniversary Edition get early access to the full version of the game, but the Prelude will let you play a portion of the game a few days before the early September 7th release date.

The NBA 2K19 Prelude isn’t a full demo, but it will give you a chance to try a very specific part of the game and potentially help you decide if the full version of the game is worth buying.

If you’re planning to try the Prelude before the game’s official arrival in September, here are the most important things you need to know right now about its release date, features, and more.

NBA 2K19 Prelude Release Date & Time

The full version of NBA 2K19 drops on September 7th for those who pre-order the 20th Anniversary Edition and September 11th for those who buy the standard version of the game. The Prelude arrives a few days earlier in August.

2K Games and Visual Concepts have confirmed the NBA 2K19 Prelude release date for August 31st. With just hours to go before the demo’s release, we aren’t expecting a pre-load. There wasn’t a preload option for the NBA 2K18 Prelude either.

The companies haven’t provided a specific release time, but based on last year, you can expect the NBA 2K19 Prelude to go live at Midnight Eastern on August 31st.

Who Can Play the NBA 2K19 Prelude?

NBA 2K19 is officially headed to four platforms: Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Windows PC, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android. Like last year, you can expect the Prelude to be limited to just two of those platforms.

The NBA 2K18 Prelude was limited to the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 and this year’s demo will likely be limited to those consoles as well.

NBA 2K19 Prelude Size

We don’t have a download size yet because the NBA 2K19 Prelude hasn’t appeared on the PlayStation Store or on Microsoft’s Store. Again, we expect the Prelude to appear sometime around Midnight Eastern on August 31st. That said, you can expect a pretty substantial download.

Last year’s Prelude was right around 12GB for the two consoles so we expect the NBA 2K19 Prelude download size to be 10GB+ for the Xbox One and PlayStation 4.

What’s in the NBA 2K19 Prelude?

We don’t have a full feature list just yet, but we know the Prelude will take players through part of the game’s all-new MyCAREER story.

You won’t be able to play the full story, but the Prelude will allow you to create a character and play through the entire first chapter of the game’s new storyline dubbed “The Way Back.”

Don’t expect popular modes like MyGM and MyLeague in the demo and don’t expect to be able to restart the Prelude after you’ve completed the first act of the story. It It will tie your player and the progress you make to your Xbox Live or PlayStation Network account.

As for how the NBA 2K19 Prelude handles game saves, it could mirror what we saw last year with the NBA 2k18 Prelude.

Last year, you weren’t allowed to directly manage your save. Instead, the game tracked your progress and transferred it over to the final version of the game.

Of course, this also meant that the character you created for the Prelude was the character that appeared in the final version of the game.

Players were then able to change their character once the final version of the game was released.

How Much Does the NBA 2K19 Prelude Cost?

You don’t have to pre-order a copy of NBA 2K19 to play the Prelude. NBA 2K19’s Prelude is a free download for all Xbox One and PlayStation 4 players.

Pre-Order to Play NBA 2K19 ASAP

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One of the best reasons to pre-order NBA 2K19 is if you want to play the next version of the game as soon as possible.  If you pre-order a copy of the $100 NBA 2K19 20th Anniversary Edition you'll get early access to the full version of the game. The NBA 2K19 release date is set for September 11th, but those who order the Anniversary Edition will be able to start playing on September 7th.  That's a pretty steep price difference, but the Anniversary Edition does net you some additional items and bonuses including a poster, sticker sheet and wristband. If you pre-order a digital copy of the game you should also be able to pre-load it so you can start playing right at midnight on launch day.

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