Words: Mahin Kesore
Aren't you lucky? This might just be the best week for free gaming of the year, factoring in some of the amazing new subscription service additions. Add in Steam's Next Fest and the Tokyo Games Show and there's simply so much free gaming content that we'd better get straight into things.
Marvel's Avengers Comes To Xbox Game Pass
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Let's start with Marvel's Avengers which has just landed (in a dramatic hero style, obviously) on Xbox Game Pass for PC and console. This is a big-budget game - but one you don't need a big budget to enjoy right now, so grab it while you can. Also new to Game Pass is FIFA 2022, albeit as a 10-hour trial via EA Play, which you'll have access to if you're a Game Pass Ultimate subscriber. You'll find our review of EA's latest football sim here.
Related, check out our interview with Christopher Judge, the voice of Black Panther in Marvel's Avengers...
Via a surprise announcement from the Tokyo Games Show, Scarlet Nexus, The Somnium Files and Mighty Goose are now also on Xbox Game Pass. Be sure to keep checking all platforms throughout TGS for sudden game drops. And the Game Pass additions don't stop there, as Dandy Ace, Lemnis Gate and Unsighted are also new to the service.
A Resident Evil Classic Is Free Via Xbox Games With Gold
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Xbox's Games With Gold is also a force to reckoned with as September saw the likes of Warhammer: Chaosbane and Samurai Shodown II made available. Both have recently left the service - unlike demigod puzzler Mulaka which is still available until October 15. This month also sees sci-fi rhythm-action title Aaero for the Xbox One (live now, until October 31) and Castlevania: Harmony of Despair on Xbox 360 (until October 15) available to subscribers, with Hover for Xbox One and the classic Resident Evil - Code: Veronica X for the Xbox 360 coming later this month, both launching on October 16. If you want to know why that particular Resi is so special, we have you covered.
It's Your Last Chance To Play Judgment On PlayStation Now
On the PlayStation side of things, if you like detective action-adventure games then make sure to give Judgment a go before the Yakuza series spin-off leaves PlayStation Now in a few days, on October 4. If you get a taste for it, its sequel Lost Judgment just came out, and you'll find our review of that here. Sticking with Japanese games, Square Enix's classic Final Fantasy VIII Remastered comes to PS Now on October 5, which is part of an effort to put Final Fantasy games onto the service with more coming every month. The role-player rather struggled to match the commercial highs of Final Fantasy VII but remains a huge fan favourite and is worth the time of any RPG fan.
PlayStation Plus Takes Subscribers To Hell And Back
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PlayStation always seems to always have great free monthly games, and this month is no exception as Hell Let Loose comes to PlayStation 5. It's a new release and completely free for PlayStation Plus subscribers. Alongside it comes the bloody fighter Mortal Kombat X and the golf sim PGA Tour 2K22, both for the PS4. PlayStation gamers are really being spoiled this month! Don't forget about last month's free games though, as Hitman 2, Overcooked: All You Can Eat! and Predator: Hunting Grounds are all leaving PlayStation Plus on October 4 - so if you've not yet grabbed them, you know what to do.
Not-Quite-Pokémon Title Nexomon Lights Up Mobile Gaming
If much of your gaming time is spent with phone in hand, there are still a few games worth picking up this week. Monster-catching game Nexomon: Extinction arrived at the very end of September on iOS and Android, and it's playable for free with no subscription required. If you have a subscription to Apple Arcade, the fast-paced rhythm game Thumper: Pocket Edition is now on the service and comes highly recommended.
All Change On The Epic Games Store
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The Escapists has done just that, leaving the free slot on the Epic Games Store, to be replaced with Europa Universalis IV, a grand strategy game spanning centuries of trading, colonising, and outright warfare. If that appeals, get it for free here. It's available until October 7, after which it'll be replaced by PC Building Simulator.
Upcoming Treats From Steam's Next Fest And The Tokyo Game Show
PC gamers can rejoice as it's the return of Steam's Next Fest where from October 1 to 7 we get developer interviews, live streams and, most importantly, hundreds of free game demos to try out! Nothing especially AAA but this event still boasts a bunch of great smaller indie titles coming out within the next year. This will be the second one of these events to ever happen, with the first one churning out over 700 demos There is currently no schedule announced, but some games reported to be there are Starship Troopers: Terran Command, Tunic and The Last Campfire - the latter of which was made by Hello Games, who made No Man's Sky. (Click those links for a little more on each title.)
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The Tokyo Games Show is also on right now and lasts until Sunday October 3. As a Japan-based show, timings on live presentations are tricky. It focuses on Japanese games for different platforms, and demos are being released after each is shown during the event. Some big studios delivering presentations (and, we hope, demos) include miHoYo, Square Enix and Bandai Namco, with Konami also providing details on the upcoming free Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel.
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Now that we're in the weeks leading up to Christmas, it's a good time to save money and play free games. The end of the October is when we're due to get those sweet Nintendo 64 games on Nintendo Switch Online - and if all this free gaming goodness isn't enough for you, there's always smaller indie free games coming out daily on Steam. And with this being the month of spooky goings on, be sure to keep a watchful eye out for some scarily good free games and offers.
Follow the author on Twitter at @Machine_Mahin, and GAMINGbible at @GAMINGbible. Til next week's free games roundup, happy playing!
Featured Image Credit: Square Enix, Warner Bros. Interactive EntertainmentTopics: free games