Throughout the years, PS Plus subscribers have been treated to a plethora of free games each month. Some of these end up being hits, such as this month’s free release of Fall Guys, while others can wind up being less impressive like May’s lineup of Farming Simulator 19 and Cities: Skylines. For the most part, players have learned to accept what is given to them as part of this subscription service, but that hasn’t stopped some from fantasizing about some truly great titles that could make their way into the free offerings one month. Unfortunately, these games are almost guaranteed to not be given out for free.
Hopefully, the previous statement is incorrect and these titles do make their way to PS Plus someday, but it does seem unlikely. For the most part, this is either because they are relatively new titles, they have recently had remasters, or they are older titles which are still going strong in the grand scheme of things. Most PS Plus games tend to be either older titles or releases ahead of a sequel as a means of promotion, and these five games don’t fit any of those requisites.
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Last year’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare has changed the perception of the franchise forever, as it is taking a vastly different approach than any other in the series. Historically, Call of Duty games tend to be one and done deals; they are supported throughout the year of their release but quickly forgotten about when the next installment arrives. Despite the recent announcement of Call of Duty Black Ops: Cold War, it seems that Modern Warfare has no plans of stopping support in the coming year. As one of the most popular games in its genre right now, FPS fanatics would no doubt be thrilled to see Modern Warfare free for PS Plus.
Call of Duty games certainly aren’t off limits for PS Plus, as Modern Warfare 2 Remastered was released this month and World War 2 was made free earlier this year, but with how recent Modern Warfare is it seems unlikely. Though a sequel of sorts is coming out this year, there is a strange situation in which Modern Warfare will compete with Black Ops Cold War for the attention of its players. Rather than release Modern Warfare for free to promote Black Ops Cold War, it seems Activision is drawing on its backlog of games to do so instead.
Marvel’s Spider-Man is hailed as one of the greatest achievements of the PS4. In terms of open world games, few provide players as much freedom in terms of movement and exploration while still managing to make the game fun and exciting. The combat is a return to the roots of the action-adventure genre, and the story features one of the most popular characters of all time, the titular Spider-Man. It’s no surprise this game did so well, but as a resul,t it seems improbable that it will be given out for free on PS Plus.
With Spider-Man: Miles Morales coming out soon, players might be tempted to think that Insomniac Games’ Spider-Man could be given out for free for promotional purposes, but there’s certainly no guarantee. This sequel of sorts is looking to be a much shorter and condensed experience than the original, and this game likely wouldn’t appear on PS Plus unless a full blown sequel was being released for the PS5 later on down the line. Nevertheless, those that didn’t get the chance to experience Marvel’s Spider-Man still hold out hope for its inclusion in the lineup someday.
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Earlier this year Persona 5‘s inclusion may have seemed possible, but the release of Persona 5 Royal dashes all hopes of the title appearing on PS Plus. Originally releasing back in 2016, this was a popular yet somewhat niche game that would have been perfect for PS Plus. Offering the title for free would help it reach those that don’t typically venture into the realm of anime games and could have broadened its reach considerably. Persona 5 Royal just released recently, though, so it wouldn’t make sense for Persona 5 to be given out for free right after the re-release.
Unlike the other games so far, Ghost of Tsushima is still very fresh. As one of the PlayStation 4’s best sellers, it wouldn’t make any sense from a business perspective to hand this gem out for free. Many are still going out and buying Ghost of Tsushima, and Sucker Punch is no doubt going to want to get as much out of their hard work as it can.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is getting on in age at this point, but its player base is still just as vigorous as ever. This is in large part due to Rockstar Games’ focus on Red Dead Online, taking a similar approach to the game as with Grand Theft Auto 5. Those wanting to see Red Dead Redemption 2 free on PS Plus need look no further than how Rockstar is handling its modern day cousin GTA 5, which is being re-released on the PS5 soon.
With such grand plans, it wouldn’t make much sense for either of these games to be given out for free. It is clear that Rockstar still thinks there’s a lot it can do with these titles despite how old they are at this point, and their thriving player bases don’t really indicate a need for a free release. Unless a PS5 Red Dead Redemption 2 sequel is announced, fans should temper their expectations for the game on PS Plus as it is simply very unlikely. Again, though, Sony could always surprise fans and release any or all of these games for free, so wishful players will simply need to wait and see.
PS Plus is available now to PS4 owners.
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