Preloading gets the base game onto your console — but big launches ship a day-one update that only becomes available around unlock time. Its size is unknown; recent AAA day-one patches have ranged from a few GB to 20+ GB. Leave headroom and expect a short wait at 00:00.
Why a patch on day one at all
The disc/preload build is finalized weeks before release; development continues right up to launch. The day-one patch carries those final fixes. It's normal, not a scandal — but it's a real download competing with millions of others at the same minute.
Minimizing the midnight hit
Keep ~20 GB free beyond the install itself.
Wired connection at 00:00 — patch servers are most congested in the first hour.
Rest mode + auto-downloads on Nov 18: if the patch pre-releases, your console grabs it while you sleep.
At a slow crawl right after unlock? Sometimes pausing and resuming the download re-routes you to a less loaded CDN node.
Want the exact hour to start your download? The Preload Calculator does the math for your connection speed. Open the calculator →