Final Fantasy XIV Evercold: new date, early access, preorders

Final Fantasy XIV Evercold was originally set to launch sometime in January 2027. That window was announced at the North American FFXIV Fan Fest in April. The expansion now arrives on February 23, 2027, with early access starting February 19, 2027. The new date came at FFXIV Fan Fest in Japan, alongside the full trailer and intro cinematic for Evercold. According to IGN, the shift was described as only a four-week delay.

Preorders for Evercold open on November 4, 2026. Two items come with a preorder. The first is a Wind-up Kottr minion that follows you around the world. The second is Halone's Earring, which boosts EXP for Jobs under level 100 while equipped. The collector's edition adds the Valhallar Odin mount, the Entreat Crystal emote and the Crystal Skyltborg, which looks like glam for the new Bastion Job's weapons. The physical collector's bundle includes the Evercold art book, the Tapestry of the Fourth decoration, a Kottr plush, an Ethos Metal keychain and a Warrior of Light Reaper figure.

Fan Fest also showed the second new Job coming with the expansion. It's a ranged DPS called Zephyr. The Job uses a crossbow as its primary weapon and commands an avian companion for support. Zephyr follows Bastion, the new Tank Job already tied to Evercold. The keynote was led by director and producer Naoki Yoshida, who covered new features, where the story is heading and gameplay changes as FFXIV moves to version 8.0 with the expansion's launch.

Evercold brings a new world and a new main story. Two crossover raid series are part of the lineup: one with Neon Genesis Evangelion, which got a new teaser trailer, and one with Final Fantasy VII. The third and final teaser trailer turned out to be the full opening cinematic, which opened the Japan Fan Fest keynote. The expansion also ships alongside version 8.0.

The dates to keep in mind are November 4, 2026 for preorders and February 19, 2027 for early access. The full launch follows on February 23, 2027. If you want the minion and the earring, the preorder window is the one that matters.