New Player • 2/3/2026

Ashes of Creation Alpha 2: The Definitive Access Guide (2026)

By VerraGuide

The “Persistent” World is Finally Here

For years, Ashes of Creation was a myth of “coming soon.” In 2026, that changed. Alpha 2 is no longer a weekend stress test; it is a Persistent Alpha. That means the servers are live 24/7 (mostly), and your character doesn’t disappear on Monday morning.

But getting in? That’s still the hardest raid boss in the game. Here is the honest truth on how to play right now.

The Only Ways to Get Access

Stop looking for “Voyager Packs” on eBay. They are gone. Legacy Pre-order packs were removed years ago. Today, you have two paths:

1. The Single Key Drop

Intrepid Studios occasionally opens the floodgates for Single Key Purchases.

  • The Catch: These are limited time windows. They usually happen before a major “Phase” update.
  • Strategy: Join the official Discord and turn notifications ON for the #announcements channel. These keys often sell out or the window closes without much warning.

2. Spot Testing (The Lottery)

If you don’t want to spend money, you can gamble on your luck.

  • How it works: You sign up on the official site.
  • The Criteria: They don’t just pick randoms; they pick based on Hardware profiles and Testing history. If you have a unique rig (super high-end or specific older GPU) or a history of detailed bug reporting, your odds go up.

The Reality of Testing (Phase III)

You are not playing a finished game. You are playing a construction site.

  • Uptime: 24/7. Realms like Shol (US) and Lotharia (EU) are always online unless patching.
  • Wipes: While it is “persistent,” partial wipes (inventory, specific progress) can still happen if a duping bug is found.

System Requirements: A Warning

Ashes runs on Unreal Engine 5. It uses Nanite (geometry) and Lumen (lighting).

  • HDD = Death: Do not install this on a Hard Drive. You need a fast NVMe SSD. Texture streaming will choke otherwise.
  • CPU Heavy: In massive node sieges, your GPU matters less than your CPU. An i7 or Ryzen 7 is the baseline for smooth large-scale PvP.

Is It Worth It?

If you want to play a polished MMO? No. Wait for Beta. If you want to shape the development, report bugs, and see the nodes grow from nothing? Yes. There is nothing else like it on the market.