As a long time PS Plus subscriber, the announcement of PS Plus Extra back in 2022 was quite exciting to me. I already had a backlog of more than enough games from the monthly titles, but as someone who has never been able to use Game Pass from my couch, the idea of a new catalogue did make me feel very enthusiastic.
I try not to read too much into console wars internet chatter, but based on whatever the algorithms feed me, I don’t see a whole lot of love for PS Plus Extra. Underwhelm was the general vibe I was sensing at launch and despite numerous fantastic months of additions, I still don’t see a lot of hype. I find this to be a shame because for me, the service just keeps on giving.
The ability to be able to try out so many games without having to commit to them has been so fantastic. Not enjoying it? No biggie, time to move on to the next one. And trying games I never thought I would always brings me joy. Even if I don’t get along with whatever I am playing, it gives me the opportunity to examine why. Not only that but a lot of the games that had their launch on the service have been games that I particularly wanted to play. Stray and Tchia spring to mind immediatly, so I am especially grateful to have been able to play them much earlier than I would have otherwise.
Below, I have gathered together a full list of the games I have played since PS Plus Extra launched. I am doing the same with Game Pass to see if I find any interesting trends, differences, and mostly to have a visual reminder of how lucky we are to get to try out so many different games.
What I have played since PS Plus Extra launched
Games Tried: 25 Games Completed: 17 Games Abandoned: 6
The first thing that I notice in the chart above is that I haven’t done a lot of experimental content with PS Plus (hence no paused or dropped online games). On one hand that is funny as one of my very first deep dives into content creation were covering the PS Plus games. Whether I liked them or not, we discovered as I went. However, as time has passed and I now have a PC, my PlayStation has swerved into more of a personal machine. My capture card became unreliable so if there is a game that I specifically want to stream I do so with Remote Play, otherwise, it is a little bit of a pain so I tend not to.
Secondly, I notice the variety in games played. While there are a lot of indies, there are plenty of AAA’s in there too. I even dropped 2 of them, where as if I had bought them outright I probably would have forced myself to continue (not that I was ever going to buy Demon’s Souls, I was just curious how I would do 😅). Then even among the indies, some of the titles are instantly recognisable while some you may never have heard of. I really do feel privileged to get to play them as my gaming budget is so limited, I wouldn’t be able to try even half of what I have if they weren’t on the service.
The best part is how many games I still have the opportunity to try. Being the list nerd that I am, of course I am keeping track of what looks interesting to me, and there are a few! (Accurate at the time of writing, games leave the service each month so I won’t get to play them all but new games will be added consistantly too)
Still to play – Offline
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim
Carto
Civilization VI
Cloudpunk
Cursed to Golf
Dead Cells
Disaster Report 4: Summer Memories
Empire of Sin
Evil Genius 2: World Domination
Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age
Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster
Forager
Ghost of Tsushima
I am Dead
Immortals Fenyx Rising
Kingdom Heards HD 1.5+2.5 ReMIX
Kingdom: New Lands
The Last Guardian
Life is Strange 2
Rain World
Returnal
Rune Factory 4
Scarlet Nexus
Sea of Stars
Skyrim
Slime Rancher
Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town
Story of Seasons: Pioneers of Olive Town
Two Point Hospital
These are the games that I will try/play for myself without making content (probably). Total Games: 29 Games started: 5 (Dead Cells, Returnal, Rune Factory 4, Sea of Stars, Skyrim)
Still to play – Online or Offline?
11-11 Memories Retold
A Hat in Time
Chicken Police – Paint it RED!
JETT: The Far Shore + Given Time
Journey to the Savage Planet: Employee of the Month
Last Stop
Spirit of the North
The Talos Principle
Undertale
These are games that I haven’t quite decided whether I should make content for or not. Total Games: 9
To sum up, PS Plus extremely valuable to me. While I adore the service, I do have a creeping worry about how subscription services might affect game sales. Particularly the indies, and particularly with the recent price hike, eating further into peoples budget. But as a consumer, it allows me to play so much more than I otherwise would have been able. For now, I am going to continue working my way through my list, enjoying and appreciating every second of it.
If you have enjoyed this post keep an eye out as I am working on a similar post about Game Pass soon!
GG App is where I do my tracking. Feel free to follow along here.
Hey everyone! This is a round up of the games entering and leaving a variety of Game Services throughout the month, as well as free game giveaways that have been available throughout.
I like to try to keep track of what is coming and going in the world of game subscriptions but it is hard to find a singular place that does that, so I thought I would give it a go myself. I am going to trial it for a couple of months and see how it feels, whether I would like to add things and so on. Having it all in one place means that you can scroll to see if anything catches your eye, or you can Ctrl+F to whichever service it is that interests you.
Disclaimer: Sometimes dates aren’t announced and surprises are thrown in. I will do my best to make sure the information is as accurate as possible!
PlayStation Plus is Sony’s subscription service for PlayStation consoles. The service is split into three tiers. ‘Essential’, ‘Extra’ and ‘Premium’.
PS Plus Essential
‘PlayStation Plus Essential’ is the cheapest tier. This is the tier that is the closest to what PS Plus used to be. When you are subscribed, you get access to online play. Additionally, Essential offers 3 monthly games*. If you claim them during that month then they are yours to play for as long as you have a PS Plus Essential subscription. If you drop your subscription then you will lose access, but they will still be on your account ready for the next time you subscribe. The monthly games get revealed on the final Wednesday of every month. They are then made available to add to your library and play on the first Tuesday, replacing the previous months games. The games offered occasionally vary by region. * Occasionally there will be more or less.
June PS Plus Essential Games | Available to claim from Tuesday 6th June 2023 – Monday 3rd July 2023
Jurassic World Evolution 2 (PS5/PS4)
NBA 2K23 (PS5/PS4)
Trek to Yomi (PS5/PS4)
July PS Plus Essential Games | Available to claim from Tuesday 4th July 2023
Alan Wake Remastered (PS5/PS4)
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (PS5/PS4)
Endling – Extinction is Forever (PS5/PS4)
PS Plus Extra/Premium
‘PlayStation Plus Extra’ and ‘PlayStation Plus Premium’ are the next two tiers of PS Plus above Essential. They include everything that you get with Essential plus other benefits. PlayStation Plus Extra – Extra is the middle tier and allows you access to a catalogue of games, available to play on your console. New games get added to the service part way through each month and stay for an unknown amount of time. Games also leave regularly and it isn’t always communicated well so it is worth checking when you are deciding what to play. PlayStation Plus Premium – Premium is the most expensive tier. As well as giving you access to the Extra catalogue, it also has it’s own benefits. There is an extended catalogue available as Premium also includes ‘Classics’ – a seperate collection of games from older generations. In addition, game trials and cloud streaming are some more benefits to this tier. You can find a full breakdown of the benefits here.
June 2023 PS Plus Extra Game Additions | Available from Tuesday 20th
Soulstice (PS5)
Conan Exiles (PS5/PS4)
DC League of Super-Pets: The Adventures of Krypto and Ace (PS5/PS4)
Elex 2 (PS5/PS4)
Far Cry 6 (PS5/PS4)
Hundred Days: Winemaking Simulator (PS5/PS4)
Inscryption (PS5/PS4)
MX vs ATV Legends (PS5/PS4)
My Friend Peppa Pig (PS5/PS4)
PAW Patrol Mighty Pups: Save Adventure Bay!(PS5/PS4)
Vampire: The Masquerade – Coteries of New York (PS4)
The Wild at Heart (PS4)
June 2023 PS Plus Premium Game Additions | Available fromTuesday 20th
Coded Soul (PS5/PS4) (Asia Region)
Herc’s Adventures (PS5/PS4)
Killzone: Liberation (PS5/PS4)
Worms (PS5/PS4)
Game Trial – WWE2K23
Games that left PS Plus Extra/Premium in June 2023
9 Monkeys of Shaolin
Agents of Mayhem
Ash of Gods: Redemption
Black Mirror
Defense Grid 2
Descenders
Fire Pro Wrestling World
Gods Will Fall
Joe Dever’s Lone Wolf
John Wick Hex
KeyWe
NSR: No Straight Roads: Encore Edition
Party Hard
Redeemed
Red Faction
Red Faction II
Wytchwood
Games leaving PS Plus Extra/Premium in July 2023 | Dates may vary
Bioshock Remastered
Bioshock 2 Remastered
Bioshock Infinite
Borderlands: The Handsome Collection
Fluster Cluck
Marvel’s Avengers
Raiden V Directors Cut
Rogue Stormers
Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell
Stray
Game Pass is Microsoft’s game subscription service. It is split into three different types. ‘PC’, ‘Console’, and ‘Ultimate’. I will currently only be covering ‘Game Pass for PC’.
Game Pass For PC
Game Pass for PC and for Console are seperate subscriptions but are very similar, they just work on different machines. They have their own slightly different catalogues but function the same. Game Pass grants you access to a library of games on your platform of choice. They are then available for you to play as for as long as you have a subscription or as long as they are on the service. Game Pass Ultimate combines the two, allowing your account access to the service on both PC and Console, along with more perks including XBOX Live Gold. You can find a full breakdown of the differences here.
June 2023 Game Pass for PC Additions
The Big Con
Car Mechanic Simulator 2021
Slayers X: Terminal Aftermath: Vengance of the Slayer
Hypnospace Outlaw
Amnesia: The Bunker
Rune Factory 4 Special
Dordogne
The Bookwalker: Thief of Tales
Need for Speed Unbound
Bramble: The Mountain King
F.I.S.T: Forged in Shadow Torch
Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town
July 2023 Announced Game Pass for PC Additions | Available from various dates
Wednesday 5th July – Sword and Fairy: Together Forever
Friday 14th July – Exoprimal
Games that left Game Pass for PC in June 2023
Thursday 1st June – Europa Universalis IV
Thursday 1st June – Evil Genius 2: World Domination
Thursday 1st June – Fifa 21
Thursday 1st June – Floppy Knights
Thursday 1st June – Lawn Mowing Simulator
Friday 16th June – Bridge Constructor Portal
Friday 16th June – Chorus
Friday 16th June – Maneater
Friday 16th June – Mortal Shell: Enhanced Edition
Friday 16th June – Serious Sam 4
Friday 16th June – Total War: THREE KINGDOMS
Games leaving Game Pass for PC in July 2023 | 1st & 16th of the Month
Saturday 1st July – DJMAX RESPECT V
Saturday 1st July – Empire of Sin
Saturday 1st July – Matchpoint – Tennis Championships
Saturday 1st July – Olija
Saturday 1st July – OMORI
Saturday 1st July – Road 96
Sunday 16th July – Exo One
Sunday 16th July – Paw Patrol The Movie: Adventure City Calls
Sunday 16th July – Spelunky 2
A lot of people do not realise that included in an Amazon Prime subscription is access to Prime Gaming. Not only does this get you a free subscription to a streamer of your choice on Twitch, they also give away free weekly games and other perks. The difference with this service is that often the games are for different launchers. Some are for Amazon Games, but they also give codes for Epic Games, GOG and more. The best part? As far as I can tell – you get to continue playing the games you have claimed after your subscription has ended. You can claim your games here.
Amazon Prime Games | June 2023 | Weekly on Thursdays
Thursday 1stJune – Mutation Nation (Amazon Games)
Thursday 1st June – Sengoku (Amazon Games)
Thursday 8th June – Over Top (Amazon Games)
Thursday 8th June – Soccer Brawl (Amazon Games)
Thursday 15th June – SteamWorld Dig 2 (Amazon Games)
Thursday 15th June – The Super Spy (Amazon Games)
Thursday 15th June – Top Hunter (Amazon Games)
Thursday 22ndJune – Autonauts (Amazon Games)
Thursday 22nd June – Neverwinter Nights: Enhanced Edition (Amazon Games)
Thursday 22ndJune – Revita (Amazon Games)
Thursday 29th June – Once upon a Jester (Amazon Games)
Thursday 29th June – Roguebook (Amazon Games)
Thursday 29th June – Gems of Destiny: Homeless Dwarf (Legacy Games)
Bonus game – Beasts of Maravilla Island
Bonus game – Calico
Bonus game – DKO: Divine Knockout (Amazon Games)
Bonus game – Double Kick Heroes
Bonus game – Shattered: Tale of the Forgotten King
Bonus game – Tandem: A Tale of Shadows (Amazon Games)
Ever since its inception, the Epic Game Store has offered free games to all. All you need is an account. Every Thursday at 4pm UTC at least one title will be set to ‘free’ and next weeks game/s will be revealed. All you have to do is log in and add it to your library while it is free if you would like to play it in the future. If you miss the window then there is nothing that you can do but you have a whole week to do it. Unlike the services above, you do not need a subscription to claim these games. You can check out the Epic Game Store here.
Free Epic Games | June 2023| Must claim in the timeframe
Midnight Ghost Hunt (June 1st – June 8th)
Payday 2 (June 8th – June 15th)
Guacamelee! Super Turbo Championship Edition (June 15th – June 22nd)
Guacamelee! 2 (June 15th – June 22nd)
Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms (June 22nd – June 29th)
theHunter: Call of the Wild (June 22nd – June 29th)
The Dungeon of Naheulbeuk (June 29th – July 6th)
Free Epic Games | Announced for July 2023*
GRIME (July 6th – July 13th)
*These games are announced one week in advance so you will need to check on the Epic Store weekly if you don’t want to miss out. Alternatively, I do always try to post them in my discord server.
I may add new sections as I go but for now, this section is for any other give-aways or notable deals that I come across in the given month. Most of these will have been and gone already but it is interesting to see what games have been given.
Steam Giveaways | June 2023
Tell Me Why
Field of Glory II
GOG Giveaways | June 2023
Sunblaze
Sigma Theory: Global Cold War
Eschalon: Book II
Hell Division
Ancient Enemy
Beholder 2
If you have found this helpful please consider sharing on social media or with a friend. You could also check out my other work on the blog, YouTube and Twitch, and/or sign up to get posts delivered into you inbox below. Finally, you could consider becoming a member, where you can financially support me and stay up to date with my work as CtrlAltNoob.
Hey everyone! This is a round up of the games entering and leaving a variety of Game Services throughout the month, as well as free game giveaways that have been available throughout.
I like to try to keep track of what is coming and going in the world of game subscriptions but it is hard to find a singular place that does that, so I thought I would give it a go myself. I am going to trial it for a couple of months and see how it feels, whether I would like to add things and so on. Having it all in one place means that you can scroll to see if anything catches your eye, or you can Ctrl+F to whichever service it is that interests you.
Disclaimer: Sometimes dates aren’t announced and surprises are thrown in. I will do my best to make sure the information is as accurate as possible!
PlayStation Plus is Sony’s subscription service for PlayStation consoles. The service is split into three tiers. ‘Essential’, ‘Extra’ and ‘Premium’.
PS Plus Essential
‘PlayStation Plus Essential’ is the cheapest tier. This is the tier that is closest to what PS Plus used to be. When you are subscribed, you get access to playing games online and instant access to the PS Plus collection*. Additionally, Essential offers 3 monthly games**. If you claim them during that month then they are yours to play for as long as you have a PS Plus Essential subscription. If you drop your subscription then you will lose access, but they will still be on your account ready for the next time you subscribe. The monthly games get revealed on the final Wednesday of every month. They are then made available to add to your library and play on the first Tuesday, replacing the previous months games. The games offered occasionally vary by region. * PS5 Only. ** Occasionally there will be more or less.
⚠ The PS Plus Collection ended on May 9th.
May PS Plus Essential Games | Available to claim from Tuesday 2nd May 2023 – Monday 5th June 2023
Chivalry 2 (PS5/PS4)
GRID Legends (PS5/PS4)
Descenders (PS4)
June PS Plus Essential Games | Available to claim from Tuesday 6th June 2023
Jurassic World Evolution 2 (PS5/PS4)
NBA 2K23 (PS5/PS4)
Trek to Yomi (PS5/PS4)
PS Plus Extra/Premium
‘PlayStation Plus Extra’ and ‘PlayStation Plus Premium’ are the next two tiers of PS Plus above Essential. They include everything that you get with Essential plus other benefits. PlayStation Plus Extra – Extra is the middle tier and allows you access to a catalogue of games, available to play on your console. New games get added to the service part way through each month and stay for an unknown amount of time. Games also leave regularly and it isn’t always communicated well so it is worth checking when you are deciding what to play. PlayStation Plus Premium – Premium is the most expensive tier. As well as giving you access to the Extra catalogue, it also has it’s own benefits. There is an extended catalogue available as Premium also includes ‘Classics’ – a seperate collection of games from older generations. In addition, game trials and cloud streaming are some more benefits to this tier. You can find a full breakdown of the benefits here.
May 2023 PS Plus Extra Game Additions | Available from Tuesday 16th
Ratchet & clank: Rift Apart (PS5)
Thymesia (PS5)
Bus Simulator 21: Next Stop (PS5/PS4)
Humanity (PS5/PS4)
Lake (PS5/PS4)
Soundfall (PS5/PS4)
Watch Dogs: Legion (PS5/PS4)
Conan Exiles (PS4)
Dishonored 2 (PS4)
Dishonored: Death of the Outsider (PS4)
Rain World (PS4)
Rune Factory 4 Special (PS4)
Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin (PS4)
Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town (PS4)
The Evil Within 2 (PS4)
Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition (PS4)
Rise of the Tomb Raider (PS4)
Shadow of the Tomb Raider (PS4)
Wolfenstein: Youngblood (PS4)
May 2023 PS Plus Premium Game Additions | Available fromTuesday 16th
Ghostbusters: The Video Game Remastered (PS4)
Blade Dancer: Lineage of Light (PSP)
Pursuit Force (PSP)
Syphon Filter: Logan’s Shadow (PSP)
Games that left PS Plus Extra/Premium in May 2023
Balan Wonderland
Batman: Return to Arkham – Arkham Asylum
Batman: Return to Arkham – Arkham City
Chocobo’s Mystery Dungeon EVERY BUDDY!
Chronos: Before the Ashes
Deadlight: Director’s Cut
Dreamfall Chapters
FlatOut 4: Total Insanity
Graveyard Keeper
Homefront: The Revolution
How to Survive: Storm Warning Edition
Injustice 2
Kingdom Come: Deliverance
Kona
Last Day of June
Left Alive
Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4
Lego Harry Potter: Years 5-7
Marvel’s Spider-Man
Metro: Last Light Redux
Mighty No. 9
MX vs ATV All Out
NBA 2K Playgrounds 2
Pathfinder: Kingmaker
Pixel Piracy
Red Faction Guerrilla Re-Mars-tered
Relicta
Resident Evil
Shenmue III trophies
Star Ocean: First Departure R
This War of Mine: The Little Ones
Tour De France 2021
TT Isle of Man: Ride on the Edge 2
Virginia
Windbound
Games leaving PS Plus Extra/Premium in June 2023 | Dates may vary
9 Monkeys of Shaolin
Agents of Mayhem
Ash of Gods: Redemption
Black Mirror
Defense Grid 2
Descenders
Gods Will Fall
Joe Dever’s Lone Wolf
John Wick Hex
KeyWe
NSR: No Straight Roads: Encore Edition
Party Hard
Redeemed
Red Faction
Red Faction II
Wytchwood
Game Pass is Microsoft’s game subscription service. It is split into three different types. ‘PC’, ‘Console’, and ‘Ultimate’. I will currently only be covering ‘Game Pass for PC’.
Game Pass For PC
Game Pass for PC and for Console are seperate subscriptions but are very similar, they just work on different machines. They have their own slightly different catalogues but function the same. Game Pass grants you access to a library of games on your platform of choice. They are then available for you to play as for as long as you have a subscription or as long as they are on the service. Game Pass Ultimate combines the two, allowing your account access to the service on both PC and Console, along with more perks including XBOX Live Gold. You can find a full breakdown of the differences here.
May 2023 Game Pass for PC Additions
Ravenlok
Shadowrun: Hong Kong – Extended Edition
Shadowrun: Dragonfall – Director’s Cut
Shadowrun Returns
Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2
EA Sports Fifa 2023
Eastern Exorcist
Supraland: Six Inches Under
Planet of Lana
Railway Empire 2
Chicory: A Colorful Tale
Farworld Pioneers
June 2023 Announced Game Pass for PC Additions | Available from various dates
Thursday 1st June – The Big Con
Thursday 1st June – Car Mechanic Simulator 2021
Thursday 1st June – Slayers X: Terminal Aftermath: Vengance of the Slayer
Tuesday 6th June – Hypnospace Outlaw
Tuesday 6th June – Amnesia: The Bunker
Thursday 8th June – Rune Factory 4 Special
Thursday 8th June – Stacking
Tuesday 13th June – Dordogne
Games that left Game Pass for PC in May 2023
Monday 1st May – Tetris Effect: Connected
Monday 1st May – Dragon Quest Builders 2
Monday 1st May – Destroy All Humans!
Monday 1st May – Unsouled
Monday 1st May – Bugsnax
Tuesday 16th May – Umurangi Generation
Tuesday 16th May – My Friend Pedro
Tuesday 16th May – Before We Leave
Tuesday 16th May – Hearts of Iron IV
Tuesday 16th May – Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair Anniversary Edition
Tuesday 16th May – Her Story
Games leaving Game Pass for PC in June 2023 | 1st & 16th of the Month
Thursday 1st June – Europa Universalis IV
Thursday 1st June – Evil Genius 2: World Domination
Thursday 1st June – Fifa 21
Thursday 1st June – Floppy Knights
Thursday 1st June – Lawn Mowing Simulator
Friday 16th June – Bridge Constructor Portal
Friday 16th June – Chorus
Friday 16th June – Maneater
Friday 16th June – Mortal Shell: Enhanced Edition
Friday 16th June – Serious Sam 4
Friday 16th June – Total War: THREE KINGDOMS
A lot of people do not realise that included in an Amazon Prime subscription is access to Prime Gaming. Not only does this get you a free subscription to a streamer of your choice on Twitch, they also give away free weekly games and other perks. The difference with this service is that often the games are for different launchers. Some are for Amazon Games, but they also give codes for Epic Games, GOG and more. The best part? As far as I can tell – you get to continue playing the games you have claimed after your subscription has ended. You can claim your games here.
Amazon Prime Games | May 2023 | Weekly on Thursdays
Thursday 4th May – Star Wars: Rogue Squadron 3D (Amazon Games)
Thursday 18th May – The Almost Gone (Amazon Games)
Thursday 18th May – 3 Count Bout (Amazon Games)
Thursday 18th May – Alpha Mission 2 (Amazon Games)
Thursday 25th May – Lila’s Sky Ark (Legacy Games)
Thursday 25th May – Agatha Knife (Amazon Games)
Thursday 25th May – King of the Monsters 2 (Amazon Games)
Thursday 25th May – Kizuna Encounter: Super Tag Battle (Amazon Games)
Bonus game – Beasts of Maravilla Island
Bonus game – Calico
Bonus game – DKO: Divine Knockout (Amazon Games)
Bonus game – Double Kick Heroes
Bonus game – Shattered: Tale of the Forgotten King
Bonus game – Tandem: A Tale of Shadows (Amazon Games)
Bonus game – Tiny Robots Recharged
Bonus game – Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion
Amazon Prime Games | Announced for June 2023
Thursday 1st June – Mutation Nation (Amazon Games)
Thursday 1st June – Sengoku (Amazon Games)
Thursday 8th June – Over Top (Amazon Games)
Thursday 8th June – Soccer Brawl (Amazon Games)
Thursday 15th June – SteamWorld Dig 2 (Amazon Games)
Thursday 15th June – The Super Spy (Amazon Games)
Thursday 15th June – Top Hunter (Amazon Games)
Thursday 22nd June – Autonauts (Amazon Games)
Thursday 22nd June – Neverwinter Nights: Enhanced Edition (Amazon Games)
Thursday 22nd June – Revita (Amazon Games)
Thursday 29th June – Gems of Destiny: Homeless Dwarf (Legacy Games)
Thursday 29th June – Once Upon a Jester (Amazon Games)
Thursday 29th June – Roguebook (Amazon Games)
Ever since its inception, the Epic Game Store has offered free games to all. All you need is an account. Every Thursday at 4pm UTC at least one title will be set to ‘free’ and next weeks game/s will be revealed. All you have to do is log in and add it to your library while it is free if you would like to play it in the future. If you miss the window then there is nothing that you can do but you have a whole week to do it. Unlike the services above, you do not need a subscription to claim these games. You can check out the Epic Game Store here.
Free Epic Games | May 2023| Must claim in the timeframe
Breathedge (April 27th – May 4th)
Poker Club (April 27th – May 4th)
Against All Odds (May 4th – May 11th)
Horizon Chase Turbo (May 4th – May 11th)
Kao the Kangaroo (May 4th – May 11th)
The Sims 4 Daring Lifestyle Bundle (May 11th – May 18th)
Death Stranding (May 18th – May 25th)
Fallout: New Vegas – Ultimate Edition (May 25th – June 1st)
Free Epic Games | Announced for June 2023*
Midnight Ghost Hunt (June 1st – June 8th)
*These games are announced one week in advance so you will need to check on the Epic Store weekly if you don’t want to miss out. Alternatively, I do always try to post them in my discord server.
I may add new sections as I go but for now, this section is for any other give-aways or notable deals that I come across in the given month. Most of these will have been and gone already but it is interesting to see what games have been given.
Steam Giveaways | May 2023
Warhammer 40,000: Gladius – Relics of War
If you have found this helpful please consider sharing on social media or with a friend. You could also check out my other work on the blog, YouTube and Twitch, and/or sign up to get posts delivered into you inbox below. Finally, you could consider becoming a member, where you can financially support me and stay up to date with my work as CtrlAltNoob.
Hey everyone! This is a round up of the games entering and leaving a variety of Game Services throughout the month, as well as free game giveaways that have been available throughout.
I like to try to keep track of what is coming and going in the world of game subscriptions but it is hard to find a singular place that does that, so I thought I would give it a go myself. I am going to trial it for a couple of months and see how it feels, whether I would like to add things and so on. Having it all in one place means that you can scroll to see if anything catches your eye, or you can Ctrl+F to whichever service it is that interests you.
Disclaimer: Sometimes dates aren’t announced and surprises are thrown in. I will do my best to make sure the information is as accurate as possible!
PlayStation Plus is Sony’s subscription service for PlayStation consoles. The service is split into three tiers. ‘Essential’, ‘Extra’ and ‘Premium’.
PS Plus Essential
‘PlayStation Plus Essential’ is the cheapest tier. This is the tier that is closest to what PS Plus used to be. When you are subscribed, you get access to playing games online and instant access to the PS Plus collection*. Additionally, Essential offers 3 monthly games**. If you claim them during that month then they are yours to play for as long as you have a PS Plus Essential subscription. If you drop your subscription then you will lose access, but they will still be on your account ready for the next time you subscribe. The monthly games get revealed on the final Wednesday of every month. They are then made available to add to your library and play on the first Tuesday, replacing the previous months games. The games offered occasionally vary by region. * PS5 Only. ** Occasionally there will be more or less.
⚠ The PS Plus Collection ends on May 9th. If you have any tier of PS Plus and a PS5 then make sure to add the games to your library before it’s too late. As far as I can see, they have taken all traces of the collection from the PlayStation website already so you may have to manually search for each game. Please do take a look because there are many worthwhile games on there. Here is a list of the games that you need to add to your library before May if you haven’t already –
April PS Plus Essential Games | Available to claim from Tuesday 4th April 2023 – Monday 1st May 2023
Meet Your Maker (PS5/PS4)
Sackboy: A Big Adventure (PS5/PS4)
Tails of Iron (PS5/PS4)
May PS Plus Essential Games | Available to claim from Tuesday 2nd May 2023
Chivalry 2 (PS5/PS4)
GRID Legends (PS5/PS4)
Descenders (PS4)
PS Plus Extra/Premium
‘PlayStation Plus Extra’ and ‘PlayStation Plus Premium’ are the next two tiers of PS Plus above Essential. They include everything that you get with Essential plus other benefits. PlayStation Plus Extra – Extra is the middle tier and allows you access to a catalogue of games, available to play on your console. New games get added to the service part way through each month and stay for an unknown amount of time. Games also leave regularly and it isn’t always communicated well so it is worth checking when you are deciding what to play. PlayStation Plus Premium – Premium is the most expensive tier. As well as giving you access to the Extra catalogue, it also has it’s own benefits. There is an extended catalogue available as Premium also includes ‘Classics’ – a seperate collection of games from older generations. In addition, game trials and cloud streaming are some more benefits to this tier. You can find a full breakdown of the benefits here.
April 2023 PS Plus Extra Game Additions | Available from Tuesday 18th
Bassmaster Fishing (PS5/PS4)
Doom Eternal (PS5/PS4)
Kena: Bridge of Spirits (PS5/PS4)
Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom (PS5/PS4)
Paradise Killer (PS5/PS4)
Riders Republic (PS5/PS4)
Sackboy: A Big Adventure (PS5/PS4)
Anodyne (PS4) (4th April)
The Evil Within (PS4)
Slay the Spire (PS4)
Wolfenstein: The Old Blood (PS4)
Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus (PS4)
April 2023 PS Plus Premium Game Additions | Available fromTuesday 18th
Doom (PS4)
Doom II (PS4)
Doom 64 (PS4)
Doom 3 (PS4)
Dishonoured: Definitive Edition (PS4)
Games that left PS Plus Extra/Premium in April 2023
2Dark
428: Shibuya Scramble (EU Only)
Croixleur Sigma
Gabbuchi
Marvel Puzzle Quest: Dark Reign
Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4
Steins;Gate Elite (EU Only)
The Caligula Effect: Overdose
The Wonderful 101: Remastered
Zanki Zero: Last Beginning (EU Only)
Games leaving PS Plus Extra/Premium in May 2023 | Dates may vary
Balan Wonderland
Batman: Return to Arkham – Arkham Asylum
Batman: Return to Arkham – Arkham City
Chocobo’s Mystery Dungeon EVERY BUDDY!
Chronos: Before the Ashes
Deadlight: Director’s Cut
Dreamfall Chapters
FlatOut 4: Total Insanity
Graveyard Keeper
Homefront: The Revolution
How to Survive: Storm Warning Edition
Injustice 2
Kingdom Come: Deliverance
Kona
Last Day of June
Left Alive
Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4
Lego Harry Potter: Years 5-7
Marvel’s Spider-Man
Metro: Last Light Redux
Mighty No. 9
MX vs ATV All Out
NBA 2K Playgrounds 2
Pathfinder: Kingmaker
Pixel Piracy
Red Faction Guerrilla Re-Mars-tered
Relicta
Resident Evil
Shenmue III trophies
Star Ocean: First Departure R
This War of Mine: The Little Ones
Tour De France 2021
TT Isle of Man: Ride on the Edge 2
Virginia
Windbound
Game Pass is Microsoft’s game subscription service. It is split into three different types. ‘PC’, ‘Console’, and ‘Ultimate’. I will currently only be covering ‘Game Pass for PC’.
Game Pass For PC
Game Pass for PC and for Console are seperate subscriptions but are very similar, they just work on different machines. They have their own slightly different catalogues but function the same. Game Pass grants you access to a library of games on your platform of choice. They are then available for you to play as for as long as you have a subscription or as long as they are on the service. Game Pass Ultimate combines the two, allowing your account access to the service on both PC and Console, along with more perks including XBOX Live Gold. You can find a full breakdown of the differences here.
April 2023 Game Pass for PC Additions
Goat Simulator
Loop Hero
Ghostwire: Tokyo
Minecraft Legends
Coffee Talk Episode 2: Hibiscus and Butterfly
Homestead Arcana
Cassette Beasts
Quantum Break
BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle
The Last Cast of Benedict Fox
Besiege
Redfall
Mass Effect 2 (2010 Edition)
Mass Effect 3 (2012 Edition)
May 2023 Announced Game Pass for PC Additions | Available from various dates
Thursday 4th May – Ravenlok
Thursday 11th May – Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2
Thursday 25th May – Railway Empire 2
Games that left Game Pass for PC in April 2023
Saturday 1st April – Cluster Truck
Saturday 1st April – Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid
Saturday 1st April – Kracken Academy
Saturday 1st April – A Memoir Blue
Saturday 1st April – Chinatown Detective Agency
Sunday 16th April – The Riftbreaker
Sunday 16th April – Panzer Corps 2
Sunday 16th April – The Long Dark
Sunday 16th April – Life is Strange: True Colors
Sunday 16th April – The Dungeon of Naheulbeuk: The Amulet of Chaos
Sunday 16th April – Moonglow Bay
Sunday 16th April – Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Extraction
Games leaving Game Pass for PC in May 2023 | 1st & 16th of the Month
Monday 1st May – Tetris Effect: Connected
Monday 1st May – Dragon Quest Builders 2
Monday 1st May – Destroy All Humans!
Monday 1st May – Unsouled
Monday 1st May – Bugsnax
Tuesday 16th May – Umurangi Generation
Tuesday 16th May – My Friend Pedro
Tuesday 16th May – Before We Leave
Tuesday 16th May – Hearts of Iron IV
Tuesday 16th May – Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair Anniversary Edition
Tuesday 16th May – Her Story
A lot of people do not realise that included in an Amazon Prime subscription is access to Prime Gaming. Not only does this get you a free subscription to a streamer of your choice on Twitch, they also give away free weekly games and other perks. The difference with this service is that often the games are for different launchers. Some are for Amazon Games, but they also give codes for Epic Games, GOG and more. The best part? As far as I can tell – you get to continue playing the games you have claimed after your subscription has ended. You can claim your games here.
Amazon Prime Games | April 2023 | Weekly on Thursdays
Thursday 6th April – Wolfenstein: The New Order (GOG)
Thursday 6th April – Ninja Commando (Amazon Games)
Thursday 6th April – Art of Fighting 3: The Path of the Warrior (Amazon Games)
Thursday 13th April – The Beast Inside (GOG)
Thursday 13th April – Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition (Amazon Games)
Thursday 13th April – Crossed Swords (Amazon Games)
Thursday 13th April – Ghost Pilots (Amazon Games)
Thursday 20th April – Beholder 2 (Amazon Games)
Thursday 20th April – Terraformers (Amazon Games)
Thursday 20th April – Metal Slug 4 (Amazon Games)
Thursday 20th April – Ninja Masters (Amazon Games)
Thursday 27th April – Looking for Aliens (Legacy Games)
Thursday 27th April – Grime (Amazon Games)
Thursday 27th April – Sengoku (Amazon Games)
Thursday 27th April – Magician Lord (Amazon Games)
Amazon Prime Games | Announced for May 2023
Thursday 4th May – Star Wars: Rogue Squadron 3D
Thursday 4th May – Super Sidekicks
Thursday 4th May – Samurai Shodown IV
Thursday 11th May – Planescape Torment: Enhanced Edition
Thursday 11th May – Lake
Thursday 11th May – Robo Army
Thursday 11th May – Last Resort
Thursday 18th May – Kardboard Kings
Thursday 18th May – The Almost Gone
Thursday 18th May – 3 Count Bout
Thursday 18th May – Alpha Mission 2
Thursday 25th May – Lila’s Sky Ark
Thursday 25th May – Agatha Knife
Thursday 25th May – King of the Monsters 2
Thursday 25th May – Kizuna Encounter
Ever since its inception, the Epic Game Store has offered free games to all. All you need is an account. Every Thursday at 4pm UTC at least one title will be set to ‘free’ and next weeks game/s will be revealed. All you have to do is log in and add it to your library while it is free if you would like to play it in the future. If you miss the window then there is nothing that you can do but you have a whole week to do it. Unlike the services above, you do not need a subscription to claim these games. You can check out the Epic Game Store here.
Free Epic Games | April 2023| Must claim in the timeframe
The Silent Age (March 30th – April 6th)
Shapez (April 6th – April 13th)
Dying Light Enhanced Edition (April 6th – April 13th)
Mordhau (April 13th – April 20th)
Second Extinction (April 13th – April 20th)
Beyond Blue (April 20th – April 27th)
Never Alone (Kisima Ingitchuna) (April 20th – April 27th)
Breathedge (April 27th – May 4th)
Poker Club (April 27th – May 4th)
Free Epic Games | Announced for May 2023*
Against All Odds (May 4th – May 11th)
Horizon Chase Turbo (May 4th – May 11th)
Kao the Kangaroo (May 4th – May 11th)
The Sims 4 Daring Lifestyle Bundle (May 11th – May 18th)
*These games are announced one week in advance so you will need to check on the Epic Store weekly if you don’t want to miss out. Alternatively, I do always try to post them in my discord server.
I may add new sections as I go but for now, this section is for any other give-aways or notable deals that I come across in the given month. Most of these will have been and gone already but it is interesting to see what games have been given.
GOG Giveaways | April 2023
Under the Moon
Steam Giveaways | April 2023
Battlestar Galactica Deadlock
If you have found this helpful please consider sharing on social media or with a friend. You could also check out my other work on the blog, YouTube and Twitch, and/or sign up to get posts delivered into you inbox below. Finally, you could consider becoming a member, where you can financially support me and stay up to date with my work as CtrlAltNoob.
Hey everyone! This is a round up of the games entering and leaving a variety of Game Services throughout the month, as well as free game giveaways that have been available throughout.
I like to try to keep track of what is coming and going in the world of game subscriptions but it is hard to find a singular place that does that, so I thought I would give it a go myself. I am going to trial it for a couple of months and see how it feels, whether I would like to add things and so on. Having it all in one place means that you can scroll to see if anything catches your eye, or you can Ctrl+F to whichever service it is that interests you.
Disclaimer: Sometimes dates aren’t announced and surprises are thrown in. I will do my best to make sure the information is as accurate as possible!
PlayStation Plus is Sony’s subscription service for PlayStation consoles. The service is split into three tiers. ‘Essential’, ‘Extra’ and ‘Premium’.
PS Plus Essential
‘PlayStation Plus Essential’ is the cheapest tier. This is the tier that is closest to what PS Plus used to be. When you are subscribed, you get access to playing games online and instant access to the PS Plus collection*. Additionally, Essential offers 3 monthly games**. If you claim them during that month then they are yours to play for as long as you have a PS Plus Essential subscription. If you drop your subscription then you will lose access, but they will still be on your account ready for the next time you subscribe. The monthly games get revealed on the final Wednesday of every month. They are then made available to add to your library and play on the first Tuesday, replacing the previous months games. The games offered occasionally vary by region. * PS5 Only. ** Occasionally there will be more or less.
⚠ The PS Plus Collection ends in May. If you have any tier of PS Plus and a PS5 then make sure to add the games to your library before it’s too late. As far as I can see, they have taken all traces of the collection from the PlayStation website already so you may have to manually search for each game. Please do take a look because there are many worthwhile games on there. Here is a list of the games that you need to add to your library before May if you haven’t already –
March PS Plus Essential Games | Available to claim from Tuesday 7th March 2023 – Monday 3rd April 2023
Battlefield 2042 (PS5/PS4)
Code Vein (PS4)
Minecraft Dungeons (PS4)
April PS Plus Essential Games | Available to claim from Tuesday 4th April 2023
Meet Your Maker (PS5/PS4)
Sackboy: A Big Adventure (PS5/PS4)
Tails of Iron (PS5/PS4)
PS Plus Extra/Premium
‘PlayStation Plus Extra’ and ‘PlayStation Plus Premium’ are the next two tiers of PS Plus above Essential. They include everything that you get with Essential plus other benefits. PlayStation Plus Extra – Extra is the middle tier and allows you access to a catalogue of games, available to play on your console. New games get added to the service part way through each month and stay for an unknown amount of time. Games also leave regularly and it isn’t always communicated well so it is worth checking when you are deciding what to play. PlayStation Plus Premium – Premium is the most expensive tier. As well as giving you access to the Extra catalogue, it also has it’s own benefits. There is an extended catalogue available as Premium also includes ‘Classics’ – a seperate collection of games from older generations. In addition, game trials and cloud streaming are some more benefits to this tier. You can find a full breakdown of the benefits here.
March 2023 PS Plus Extra Game Additions | Available from Tuesday 21st
Ghostwire: Tokyo (PS5)
Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection (PS5)
Haven (PS5/PS4)
Immortals: Fenyx Rising (PS5/PS4)
Life is Strange: True Colors (PS5/PS4)
Tchia (PS5/PS4)
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Extraction (PS5/PS4)
Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot (PS4)
Final Fantasy Type-0 HD (PS4)
Life is Strange 2 (PS4)
NEO: The World Ends With Us (PS4)
RAGE 2 (PS4)
Street Fighter V: Champion Edition (PS4)
Untitled Goose Game (PS4)
March 2023 PS Plus Premium Game Additions | Available fromTuesday 21st
Ridge Racer Type 4 (PS1)
Ape Escape 2 (PSP)
Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror (PSP)
Games that left PS Plus Extra/Premium in March 2023
WWE 2K22
Danger Zone
Dungeons
Ghost of a Tale
Monster Energy Supercross – The Official Videogame 5
Override 2: Super Mech League
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter
Velocibox
Victor Vran Overkill Edition
Games leaving PS Plus Extra/Premium in April 2023 | Dates Vary
2Dark
428: Shibuya Scramble (EU Only)
Croixleur Sigma
Gabbuchi
Marvel Puzzle Quest: Dark Reign
Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4
Steins;Gate Elite (EU Only)
The Caligula Effect: Overdose
The Wonderful 101: Remastered
Zanki Zero: Last Beginning (EU Only)
Game Pass is Microsoft’s game subscription service. It is split into three different types. ‘PC’, ‘Console’, and ‘Ultimate’. I will currently only be covering ‘Game Pass for PC’.
Game Pass For PC
Game Pass for PC and for Console are seperate subscriptions but are very similar, they just work on different machines. They have their own slightly different catalogues but function the same. Game Pass grants you access to a library of games on your platform of choice. They are then available for you to play as for as long as you have a subscription or as long as they are on the service. Game Pass Ultimate combines the two, allowing your account access to the service on both PC and Console, along with more perks including XBOX Live Gold. You can find a full breakdown of the differences here.
March 2023 Game Pass for PC Additions
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty
Guilty Gear -Strive-
Sid Meier’s Civilization VI
Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom – The Prince’s Edition
Infinite Guitars
April 2023 Announced Game Pass for PC Additions | Available from various dates
Tuesday 4th April – Goat Simulator
Tuesday 4th April – Loop Hero
Wednesday 12th April – Ghostwire: Tokyo
Tuesday 18th April – Minecraft Legends
Thursday 20th April – Coffee Talk Episode 2: Hibiscus and Butterfly
Games that left Game Pass for PC in March 2023
Wednesday 1st March – Alien: Isolation
Wednesday 1st March – Crown Trick
Wednesday 1st March – Dragon Ball FighterZ
Wednesday 1st March – FAR: Changing Tides
Wednesday 1st March – Lightning Returns: FFXIII
Wednesday 1st March – Madden NFL 21
Wednesday 1st March – Octopath Traveler
Thursday 16th March – Goat Simulator
Thursday 16th March – Kentucky Route Zero: TV Edition
Thursday 16th March – Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
Thursday 16th March – Paradise Killer
Thursday 16th March – Undertale
Thursday 16th March – Young Souls
Thursday 16th March – Zero Escape: The Nonary Games
Games leaving Game Pass for PC in April 2023 | 1st & 16th of the Month
Saturday 1st April – Cluster Truck
Saturday 1st April – Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid
Saturday 1st April – Kracken Academy
Saturday 1st April – A Memoir Blue
Saturday 1st April – Chinatown Detective Agency
Sunday 16th April – The Riftbreaker
Sunday 16th April – Panzer Corps 2
Sunday 16th April – The Long Dark
Sunday 16th April – Life is Strange: True Colors
Sunday 16th April – The Dungeon of Naheulbeuk: The Amulet of Chaos
Sunday 16th April – Moonglow Bay
Sunday 16th April – Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Extraction
A lot of people do not realise that included in an Amazon Prime subscription is access to Prime Gaming. Not only does this get you a free subscription to a streamer of your choice on Twitch, they also give away free weekly games and other perks. The difference with this service is that often the games are for different launchers. Some are for Amazon Games, but they also give codes for Epic Games, GOG and more. The best part? As far as I can tell – you get to continue playing the games you have claimed after your subscription has ended. You can claim your games here.
Amazon Prime Games | March 2023 | Weekly on Thursdays
Thursday 2nd March – Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition (Amazon Games)
Thursday 9th March – Adios (Amazon Games)
Thursday 9th March – I Am Fish (Amazon Games)
Thursday 16th March – Faraway 3: Arctic Escape (Amazon Games)
Thursday 23rd March – Book of Demons (Amazon Games)
Thursday 23rd March – Peaky Blinders: Mastermind (Amazon Games)
Thursday 30th March – City Legends: Trapped in Mirror – Collector’s Edition (Legacy Games)
Amazon Prime Games | Announced for April 2023
Thursday 6th April – Wolfenstein: The New Order
Thursday 6th April – Ninja Commando
Thursday 6th April – Art of Fighting 3
Thursday 13th April – The Beast Inside
Thursday 13th April – Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition
Thursday 13th April – Crossed Swords
Thursday 13th April – Ghost Pilots
Thursday 20th April – Beholder 2
Thursday 20th April – Terraformers
Thursday 20th April – Metal Slug 4
Thursday 20th April – Ninja Masters
Thursday 27th April – Looking for Aliens
Thursday 27th April – Grime
Thursday 27th April – Sengoku
Thursday 27th April – Magician Lord
Ever since its inception, the Epic Game Store has offered free games to all. All you need is an account. Every Thursday at 4pm UTC at least one title will be set to ‘free’ and next weeks game/s will be revealed. All you have to do is log in and add it to your library while it is free if you would like to play it in the future. If you miss the window then there is nothing that you can do but you have a whole week to do it. Unlike the services above, you do not need a subscription to claim these games. You can check out the Epic Game Store here.
Free Epic Games | March 2023| Must claim in the timeframe
Duskers (February 23rd – March 2nd)
Rise of Industry (March 2nd – March 9th)
Call of the Sea (March 9th – March 16th)
Warhammer 40,000: Gladius – Relics of War (March 16th – March 23rd)
Chess Ultra (March 23rd – March 30th)
World of Warships – Starter Pack: Ishizuchi (March 23rh – March 30th)
Tunche (March 30th – April 6th)
The Silent Age (March 30th – April 6th)
Free Epic Games | Announced for April 2023*
Blazing Sails (April 6th – April 13th)
Dying Light Enhanced Edition (April 6th – April 13th)
*These games are announced one week in advance so you will need to check on the Epic Store weekly if you don’t want to miss out. Alternatively, I do always try to post them in my discord server.
I may add new sections as I go but for now, this section is for any other give-aways or notable deals that I come across in the given month. Most of these will have been and gone already but it is interesting to see what games have been given.
GOG Giveaways | March 2023
Lorelai
Neurodeck: Psychological Deckbuilder
Deep Sky Derelicts
Steam Giveaways | March 2023
Figment
If you have found this helpful please consider sharing on social media or with a friend. You could also check out my other work on the blog, YouTube and Twitch, and/or sign up to get posts delivered into you inbox below. Finally, you could consider becoming a member, where you can financially support me and stay up to date with my work as CtrlAltNoob.
Hey everyone! This is a round up of the games entering and leaving a variety of Game Services throughout the month, as well as free game giveaways that have been available throughout.
I like to try to keep track of what is coming and going in the world of game subscriptions but it is hard to find a singular place that does that, so I thought I would give it a go myself. I am going to trial it for a couple of months and see how it feels, whether I would like to add things and so on. Having it all in one place means that you can scroll to see if anything catches your eye, or you can Ctrl+F to whichever service it is that interests you.
Disclaimer: Sometimes dates aren’t announced and surprises are thrown in. I will do my best to make sure the information is as accurate as possible!
PlayStation Plus is Sony’s subscription service for PlayStation consoles. The service is split into three tiers. ‘Essential’, ‘Extra’ and ‘Premium’.
PS Plus Essential
‘PlayStation Plus Essential’ is the cheapest tier. This is the tier that is closest to what PS Plus used to be. When you are subscribed, you get access to playing games online and instant access to the PS Plus collection*. Additionally, Essential offers 3 monthly games**. If you claim them during that month then they are yours to play for as long as you have a PS Plus Essential subscription. If you drop your subscription then you will lose access, but they will still be on your account ready for the next time you subscribe. The monthly games get revealed on the final Wednesday of every month. They are then made available to add to your library and play on the first Tuesday, replacing the previous months games. The games offered occasionally vary by region. * PS5 Only. ** Occasionally there will be more or less.
⚠ The PS Plus Collection ends in May. If you have any tier of PS Plus and a PS5 then make sure to add the games to your library before it’s too late. As far as I can see, they have taken all traces of the collection from the PlayStation website already so you may have to manually search for each game. Please do take a look because there are many worthwhile games on there. Here is a list of the games that you need to add to your library before May if you haven’t already –
February PS Plus Essential Games | Available to claim from Tuesday 7th February 2023 – Monday March 6th 2023
Evil Dead: The Game (PS5/PS4)
OlliOlliWorld (PS5/PS4)
Destiny 2: Beyond Light (PS5/PS4)
Mafia: The Definitive Edition (PS4)
March PS Plus Essential Games | Available to claim from Tuesday 7th March 2023
Battlefield 2042 (PS5/PS4)
Code Vein (PS4)
Minecraft Dungeons (PS4)
PS Plus Extra/Premium
‘PlayStation Plus Extra’ and ‘PlayStation Plus Premium’ are the next two tiers of PS Plus above Essential. They include everything that you get with Essential plus other benefits. PlayStation Plus Extra – Extra is the middle tier and allows you access to a catalogue of games, available to play on your console. New games get added to the service part way through each month and stay for an unknown amount of time. Games also leave regularly and it isn’t always communicated well so it is worth checking when you are deciding what to play. PlayStation Plus Premium – Premium is the most expensive tier. As well as giving you access to the Extra catalogue, it also has it’s own benefits. There is an extended catalogue available as Premium also includes ‘Classics’ – a seperate collection of games from older generations. In addition, game trials and cloud streaming are some more benefits to this tier. You can find a full breakdown of the benefits here.
February 2023 PS Plus Extra Game Additions | Available from Tuesday 21st
Borderlands 3 (PS5/PS4)
The Forgotten City (PS5/PS4)
Horizon Forbidden West (PS5/PS4)
Outriders (PS5/PS4)
The Quarry (PS5/PS4)
Resident Evil VII: Biohazard (PS5/PS4)
Scarlet Nexus (PS5/PS4)
Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown (PS4)
Earth Defense Force 5 (PS4)
I Am Setsuna (PS4)
Lost Sphear (PS4)
Oninaki (PS4)
Tekken 7 (PS4)
February 2023 PS Plus Premium Game Additions | Available fromTuesday 21st
Destroy All Humans (PS4)
Harvest Moon: Back to Nature (PS1)
The Legend of Dragoon (PS1)
Wild Arms 2 (PS1)
March 2023 Announced PS Plus Extra/Premium Additions | Available from various dates
Tuesday 21st March – Tchia (PS5/PS4)
Immortals Fenyx Rising (PS5/PS4)
Rainbow Six Extraction (PS5/PS4)
Ghostwire Tokyo (PS5)
Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection (PS5)
Games that left PS Plus Extra/Premium in February 2023
Agatha Christie – The ABC Murders
The Book of Unwritten Tales 2
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City – The Definitive Edition
Metro: Exodus
Pure Farming 2018
Rad Rogers
Saints Row: The Third Remastered
Sine Mora EX
SkyDrift Infinity
Sparkle Unleashed
The Turing Test
Whispering Willows
Games leaving PS Plus Extra/Premium in March 2023 | Dates Vary
WWE 2K22 (March 13th)
Danger Zone
Dungeons
Ghost of a Tale
Monster Energy Supercross – The Official Videogame 5
Override 2: Super Mech League
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter
Velocibox
Victor Vran Overkill Edition
Game Pass is Microsoft’s game subscription service. It is split into three different types. ‘PC’, ‘Console’, and ‘Ultimate’. I will currently only be covering ‘Game Pass for PC’.
Game Pass For PC
Game Pass for PC and for Console are seperate subscriptions but are very similar, they just work on different machines. They have their own slightly different catalogues but function the same. Game Pass grants you access to a library of games on your platform of choice. They are then available for you to play as for as long as you have a subscription or as long as they are on the service. Game Pass Ultimate combines the two, allowing your account access to the service on both PC and Console, along with more perks including XBOX Live Gold. You can find a full breakdown of the differences here.
February 2023 Game Pass for PC Additions
Darkest Dungeon
HOT WHEELS UNLEASHED – Game of the Year Edition
SD GUNDAM BATTLE ALLIANCE
Madden NFL 23
Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord
Shadow Warrior 3: Definitive Edition
Atomic Heart
Merge & Blade
Soul Hackers 2
F1 22
March 2023 Announced Game Pass for PC Additions | Available from various dates
Friday 3rd March – Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty
Tuesday 7th March – Guilty Gear -Strive-
Games that left Game Pass for PC in February 2023
Wednesday 1st February – Donut County
Wednesday 1st February – Taiko no Tatsujin: The Drum Master!
Wednesday 1st February – Telling Lies
Wednesday 1st February – Worms W.M.D
Thursday 16th February – Besiege
Thursday 16th February – Infernax
Thursday 16th February – The Last Kids on Earth and the Staff of Doom
Thursday 16th February – Recompile
Thursday 16th February – Skul: The Hero Slayer
Games leaving Game Pass for PC in March 2023 | 1st & 16th of the Month
Wednesday 1st March – Alien: Isolation
Wednesday 1st March – Crown Trick
Wednesday 1st March – Dragon Ball FighterZ
Wednesday 1st March – FAR: Changing Tides
Wednesday 1st March – Lightning Returns: FFXIII
Wednesday 1st March – Madden NFL 21
Wednesday 1st March – Octopath Traveler
Thursday 16th March – Goat Simulator
Thursday 16th March – Kentucky Route Zero: TV Edition
Thursday 16th March – Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
Thursday 16th March – Paradise Killer
Thursday 16th March – Undertale
Thursday 16th March – Young Souls
Thursday 16th March – Zero Escape: The Nonary Games
A lot of people do not realise that included in an Amazon Prime subscription is access to Prime Gaming. Not only does this get you a free subscription to a streamer of your choice on Twitch, they also give away free weekly games and other perks. The difference with this service is that often the games are for different launchers. Some are for Amazon Games, but they also give codes for Epic Games, GOG and more. The best part? As far as I can tell – you get to continue playing the games you have claimed after your subscription has ended. You can claim your games here.
Amazon Prime Games | February 2023 | Weekly on Thursdays
Thursday 2nd February – The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind GOTY Edition (GOG)
Thursday 2nd February – Onsen Master (Amazon Games)
Thursday 9th February – Aerial_Knight’s Never Yield (Amazon Games)
Thursday 9th February – Divine Knockout (Epic Games)
Thursday 16th February – One Hand Clapping (Amazon Games)
Thursday 16th February – BATS: Bloodsucker Anti-Terror Squad (Amazon Games)
Thursday 23rd February – Space Crew: Legendary Edition (Amazon Games)
Thursday 23rd February – Tunche (Amazon Games)
Thursday 23rd February – Space Warlord Organ Trading Simulator (Amazon Games)
Amazon Prime Games | Announced for February 2023
Thursday 2nd March – Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition (Amazon Games)
Thursday 9th March – Adios
Thursday 9th March – I Am Fish
Thursday 16th March – Faraway 3: Arctic Escape
Thursday 23rd March – Book of Demons
Thursday 23rd March – Peaky Blinders: Mastermind
Thursday 30th March – City Legends: Trapped in Mirror – Collector’s Edition
Ever since its inception, the Epic Game Store has offered free games to all. All you need is an account. Every Thursday at 4pm UTC at least one title will be set to ‘free’ and next weeks game/s will be revealed. All you have to do is log in and add it to your library while it is free if you would like to play it in the future. If you miss the window then there is nothing that you can do but you have a whole week to do it. Unlike the services above, you do not need a subscription to claim these games. You can check out the Epic Game Store here.
Free Epic Games | February 2023| Must claim in the timeframe
City of Gangsters (February 2nd – February 9th)
Dishonoured: Death of the Outsider (February 2nd – February 9th)
Recipe for Disaster (February 9th – February 16th)
Warpips (February 16th – February 23rd)
Duskers (February 23rd – March 2nd)
Free Epic Games | Announced for March 2023*
Rise of Industry (March 2nd – March 9th)
Call of the Sea (March 9th – March 16th)
*These games are announced one week in advance so you will need to check on the Epic Store weekly if you don’t want to miss out. Alternatively, I do always try to post them in my discord server.
I may add new sections as I go but for now, this section is for any other give-aways or notable deals that I come across in the given month.
GOG Giveaways | February 2023
Alien Breed Trilogy
Biing!: Sex, Intrigue and Scalpels
Steam Giveaways | March 2023
Figment (Claim by Thursday March 9th)
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Hey everyone! This is a round up of the games entering and leaving a variety of Game Services throughout the month, as well as free game giveaways that have been available throughout.
I like to try to keep track of what is coming and going in the world of game subscriptions but it is hard to find a singular place that does that, so I thought I would give it a go myself. I am going to trial it for a couple of months and see how it feels, whether I would like to add things and so on. Having it all in one place means that you can scroll to see if anything catches your eye, or you can Ctrl+F to whichever service it is that interests you.
Disclaimer: Sometimes dates aren’t announced and surprises are thrown in. I will do my best to make sure the information is as accurate as possible!
PlayStation Plus is Sony’s subscription service for PlayStation consoles. The service is split into three tiers. ‘Essential’, ‘Extra’ and ‘Premium’.
PS Plus Essential
‘PlayStation Plus Essential’ is the cheapest tier. This is the tier that is closest to what PS Plus used to be. When you are subscribed, you get access to playing games online and instant access to the PS Plus collection*. Additionally, Essential offers 3 monthly games**. If you claim them during that month then they are yours to play for as long as you have a PS Plus Essential subscription. If you drop your subscription then you will lose access, but they will still be on your account ready for the next time you subscribe. The monthly games get revealed on the final Wednesday of every month. They are then made available to add to your library and play on the first Tuesday, replacing the previous months games. The games offered occasionally vary by region. * PS5 Only. ** Occasionally there will be more or less.
⚠ Due to the first Tuesday of the month falling on the 7th, the announcement wasn’t made until February 1st. ⚠ The PS Plus Collection ends in May. If you have any tier of PS Plus and a PS5 then make sure to add the games to your library before it’s too late. As far as I can see, they have taken all traces of the collection from the PlayStation website already so you may have to manually search for each game. Please do take a look because there are many worthwhile games on there. Here is a list of the games that you need to add to your library before May if you haven’t already –
January PS Plus Essential Games | Available to claim from Tuesday 3rd January 2023 – Monday 6th February 2023
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (PS5/PS4)
Axiom Verge 2 (PS5/PS4)
Fallout 76 (PS4)
February PS Plus Essential Games | Available to claim from Tuesday 7th February 2022
Evil Dead: The Game (PS5/PS4)
OlliOlliWorld (PS5/PS4)
Destiny 2: Beyond Light (PS5/PS4)
Mafia: The Definitive Edition (PS4)
PS Plus Extra/Premium
‘PlayStation Plus Extra’ and ‘PlayStation Plus Premium’ are the next two tiers of PS Plus above Essential. They include everything that you get with Essential plus other benefits. PlayStation Plus Extra – Extra is the middle tier and allows you access to a catalogue of games, available to play on your console. New games get added to the service part way through each month and stay for an unknown amount of time. Games also leave regularly and it isn’t always communicated well so it is worth checking when you are deciding what to play. PlayStation Plus Premium – Premium is the most expensive tier. As well as giving you access to the Extra catalogue, it also has it’s own benefits. There is an extended catalogue available as Premium also includes ‘Classics’ – a seperate collection of games from older generations. In addition, game trials and cloud streaming are some more benefits to this tier. You can find a full breakdown of the benefits here.
January 2023 PS Plus Extra Game Additions | Available from Tuesday 17th
Back 4 Blood (PS4/PS5)
Jett: The Far Shore (PS4/PS5)
Devil May Cry 5: Special Edition (PS5)
Dragon Ball FighterZ (PS4)
Devil May Cry 5 (PS4)
Erica (PS4)
Just Cause 4: Reloaded (PS4)
Life is Strange (PS4)
Life Is Strange: Before the Storm (PS4)
Omno (PS4)
January 2023 PS Plus Premium Game Additions | Available fromTuesday 17th
Hot Shots Golf 2 (PS1)
Star Wars Demolition (PS1)
Syphon Filter 3 (PS1)
Games that left PS Plus Extra/Premium in January 2023
Bound By Flame
The Council – Complete Season
Electronic Super Joy
Enigmatis: The Ghost of Maple Creek
Jumpjet Rex
The Last Tinker: City of Colors
Leo’s Fortune – HD Edition
Masters of Anima
Seasons After Fall
Shiness: The Lightning Kingdom
Space Hulk: Tactics
Games leaving PS Plus Extra/Premium in February 2023 | Dates Vary
Agatha Christie – The ABC Murders (Tuesday February 21st)
The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 (Tuesday February 21st)
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City – The Definitive Edition (Tuesday February 21st)
Pure Farming 2018 (Tuesday February 21st)
Sine Mora EX (Tuesday February 21st)
SkyDrift Infinity (Tuesday February 21st)
Sparkle Unleashed (Tuesday February 21st)
The Turing Test (Tuesday February 21st)
Whispering Willows (Tuesday February 21st)
Metro: Exodus
Rad Rodgers
Saints Row: The Third Remastered
Game Pass is Microsoft’s game subscription service. It is split into three different types. ‘PC’, ‘Console’, and ‘Ultimate’. I will currently only be covering ‘Game Pass for PC’.
Game Pass For PC
Game Pass for PC and for Console are seperate subscriptions but are very similar, they just work on different machines. They have their own slightly different catalogues but function the same. Game Pass grants you access to a library of games on your platform of choice. They are then available for you to play as for as long as you have a subscription or as long as they are on the service. Game Pass Ultimate combines the two, allowing your account access to the service on both PC and Console, along with more perks including XBOX Live Gold. You can find a full breakdown of the differences here.
January 2023 Game Pass for PC Additions
Stranded Deep
Mortal Shell: Enhanced Edition
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition
Persona 3 Portable
Persona 4 Golden
Monster Hunter Rise
Hi-Fi Rush
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle R
Inkulinati
February 2023 Announced Game Pass for PC Additions | Available from various dates
Darkest Dungeon (Thursday 2nd February)
HOT WHEELS UNLEASHED – Game of the Year Edition (Tuesday 7th February)
Atomic Heart (Tuesday 21st February)
Games that left Game Pass for PC in January 2023
Iron Harvest
Immortal Realms Vampire Wars
Tropico 6
Scarlet Nexus
Secret Neighbor
Outer Wilds
Gorogoa
The Pedestrian
Embr
The Anacrusis
Trigger
Nobody Saves the World
Pupperazzi
Windjammers 2
Games leaving Game Pass for PC in February 2023 | 1st & 16th of the Month
Donut County (Wednesday 1st)
Worms W.M.D (Wednesday 1st)
Telling Lies (Wednesday 1st)
Taiko no Tatsujin: The Drum Master! (Wednesday 1st)
Recompile (Thursday 16th)
Skul: The Hero Slayer (Thursday 16th)
The Last Kids on Earth and the Staff of Doom (Thursday 16th)
Besiege (Thursday 16th)
Infernax (Thursday 16th)
A lot of people do not realise that included in an Amazon Prime subscription is access to Prime Gaming. Not only does this get you a free subscription to a streamer of your choice on Twitch, they also give away free monthly games and other perks. The difference with this service is that often the games are for different launchers. Some are for Amazon Games, but they also give codes for Epic Games, GOG and more. The best part? As far as I can tell – you get to continue playing the games you have claimed after your subscription has ended. You can claim your games here.
⚠ Prime Games are being made available on a weekly basis from February 2nd rather than the usual bundle at the start of the month. They have renamed the tab on the website ‘Weekly Games’ so I presume this is their new model going forward.
Amazon Prime Games | January 2023
Faraway 2: Jungle Escape (Amazon Games)
The Evil Within 2 (GOG)
Beat Cop (GOG)
Chickon Police – Paint it RED! (Amazon Games)
Lawn Mowing Simulator (Amazon Games)
Breathedge (Amazon Games)
Dishonored 2 (GOG)
SNK 40th Anniversary Collection (Amazon Games)
The King of Fighters 2003 (Amazon Games)
Twinkle Star Sprites (Amazon Games)
The Last Blade (Amazon Games)
The Last Blade 2 (Amazon Games)
Real Bout Fatal Fury 2: The Newcomers (Amazon Games)
Metal Slug (Amazon Games)
Metal Slug 3 (Amazon Games)
Metal Slug X (Amazon Games)
Amazon Prime Games | Announced for February 2023
The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind GOTY Edition (GOG) (February 2)
Onsen Master (Amazon Games) (February 2)
Aerial_Knight’s Never Yield (February 9)
Divine Knockout (February 9)
One Hand Clapping (February 16)
BATS: Bloodsucker Anti-Terror Squad (February 16)
Space Crew: Legendary Edition (February 23)
Tunche (February 23)
Space Warlord Organ Trading Simulator (February 23)
Ever since its inception, the Epic Game Store has offered free games to all. All you need is an account. Every Thursday at 4pm UTC at least one title will be set to ‘free’ and next weeks game/s will be revealed. All you have to do is log in and add it to your library while it is free if you would like to play it in the future. If you miss the window then there is nothing that you can do but you have a whole week to do it. Unlike the services above, you do not need a subscription to claim these games. You can check out the Epic Game Store here.
Free Epic Games | January 2023
Dishonoured – Definitive Edition
Eximius: Sieze the Frontline
Kerbal Space Program
Shadow Tactics – Aiko’s Choice
Divine Knockout
First Class Trouble
Gamedec – Definitive Edition
Epistory – Typing Chronicals
Adios
Hell is Others
Free Epic Games | Announced for February 2023*
City of Gangsters (February 2nd – February 9th)
Dishonoured: Death of the Outsider (February 2nd – February 9th)
Recipe for Disaster (February 9th – February 16th)
*These games are announced one week in advance so you will need to check on the Epic Store weekly if you don’t want to miss out. Alternatively, I do always try to post them in my discord server.
I may add new sections as I go but for now, this section is for any other give-aways or notable deals that I come across in the given month.
GOG Giveaways | January 2023
Haven Park
If you have found this helpful please consider sharing on social media or with a friend. You could also check out my other work on the blog, YouTube and Twitch, and/or sign up to get posts delivered into you inbox below. Finally, you could consider becoming a member, where you can financially support me and stay up to date with my work as CtrlAltNoob.
Moonlighter is a game in which you hunt for treasures by night, and sell them by day. Both of these jobs create two different modes which construct the daily flow of the game. The dungeons you pillage are randomized in a rogue-like fashion. The further you get into a dungeon, the more valuable loot you will find. Kill the main boss to complete the dungeon and unlock the next one, with a new biome and new loot. Throughout the journey you will be fighting creatures, finding notes and organizing your bag in order to maximize your haul. What is the catch here you may be wondering? Well.. If you die you lose the majority of the loot that you have collected that night. It becomes a game of deciding whether you dare go into the next room. There may be enemies that could kill you, but there also may be a healing pool or something worth everything you have already collected combined. Do you want to risk it all? Or are you satisfied to come back another day.
The second half of this game is managing your shop. Almost everything that you find is sellable. Your job is to figure out the optimal price to sell these items. Price them too low and you are missing out on valuable cash, but price them too high and they will not sell or customer demand for said item will plummet. The game kindly provides you with a book that updates automatically to allow you to focus on pricing up the new goods while quickly selling old ones. Another catch? A lot of what you find are also materials that you will need to upgrade your equipment, so you have to make some decisions – managing money vs benefit when it comes to what you sell. My advice? Prioritize upgrading every time. It makes a huge difference as you can spend longer in the dungeons, allowing you to bring even more valuable loot home. And thus, the loop continues.
+ A Good Podcast Game
My favourite thing about this game is that it is a great podcast game. By which I mean, once you are used to the mechanics and know what you are doing, you can easily put on your favourite podcast and listen away.
– The Combat
I am so hit and miss with combat that anyone would be forgiven for taking my opinion with a grain of salt. However, I found the combat to feel really clunky. Hitboxes were strange, it didn’t feel super responsive and I never really got the hang of it. The first thing that I did was rebound the controls (excellent feature I am always happy to see) to feel more familiar which helped some, but the further I got it never felt better. The only thing that helped me make progress was upgrading my equipment. Of course, that is to be expected, but I never felt like I was improving as a player. I was still feeling as frustrated by the end as I was at the beginning. By the fourth dungeon I ended up turning down the difficulty because I just wasn’t having fun with it. Granted, I am used to playing The Binding of Isaac where you can attack in a different direction than you are facing. You can’t do that here and I felt it a lot. It resulted in lots of running into enemies while trying to face them, taking damage in the process.
+/- The Progression
This being a pro or a con really depends on how much you enjoy the core loop. I did enjoy the loop, but I was excited to see how it was going to progress as I unlocked new areas and facilities in the town. Unfortunately for me, I didn’t enjoy the direction it took. The best way that I can describe it is – more of the same but with a few added annoyances. The dungeons and your gear upgrades all follow the same patterns with a couple of changes here and there. That was fine. It was the shop progression that I had a bit of an issue with. As an example, the larger your shop grows, new mechanics are introduced. One of them is a bird flying into your shop. You have to chase it around and catch it by pressing X. It startles the customers and everyone freezes until you catch it. The first time this happened was fine, but it happened around the same time every single day, with the bird flying in the same predictable pattern. It wasn’t a challenge or a delight. It was just a thing that happened to give you something to do and it didn’t add anything. In fact the opposite, it developed to be quite annoying. I do enjoy how the variety of customers grows as your shop does, but I hoped for more in the shop itself.
+ The Ease of Use Features
Simple mechanics such as moving everything to and from chests, easily being able to pick up individual items or stacks, sorting via price, getting rid of items mid dungeon, automatically updating my price book, being able to see my price book easily mid looting, and having a wish list option that highlights crafting materials you need as you find them, were all very gratefully received by me. Often when I thought ‘I wish I could do this’ my thought was cut short because the game had already given me a way to do it.
– Valuing items becomes finicky
To create more challenge and variety, your book doesn’t store item price data if the item is in high demand when it is sold. That means that you can charge more than normal for profit, but the number doesn’t get saved. I wish there was a separate section for recording this data. In addition, it doesn’t save the price for certain customers. This can result in an attempt to figure out the best price of a particular item thwarted because some rich or interested dude bought it. This then gets frustrating becasue you not only have to remember the item and price range that you were working with, but find it again and try another day where it is just as likely to happen again. By the third dungeon I would say around 95% of my prices were not getting recorded and it was really frustrating because figuring out the price boundaries was my favourite part of the game. I loved testing the boundaries, slowly testing the maximum I could get without being too cheeky. This aspect was completely taken away due to the progression of the mechanics and instead turned into annoying robbers and just trying to sell everything as fast as I could. It improved slightly in the fourth dungeon but by then I felt defeated. It had me questioning whether my game was bugged, a question I still don’t know the answer to.
– Some Minor Technical Issues
Every time I pressed X – from entering a dungeon to reading a note – the game would switch my weapons. Which would mean I would run up to punch an enemy only to slowly shoot an arrow in their face because I didn’t realise it had switched. This isn’t game ruining at all, but it was an annoyance that added onto previous ones. I also had some chugging and framerate drops occasionally which felt a little strange in a 2D top down game like this.
+ The Familiars
You can happen upon eggs in the dungeons that after a few days hatch into little friends that aid you during your dungeoneering. I loved this addition. They were cute and had some legitimately interesting perks.
– The Notes
There are notes you can find throughout the dungeons and every time I found one I felt excited. They are there to give the player some hints and add some flavour. I just wish they were a bit more interesting. It didn’t take long at all for them to start repeating and I found them to be quite generic. Occasionally it would be a hint for something that I figured out 2 dungeons ago, and it just ended up feeling very disappointing.
Ultimately, the first couple of hours of was my favourite part of the time that I spent with this game. Where I thought it was going based on those first hours and where it actually went turned out to be a little different, which was unfortunate for me. My favourite part of the game was gradually made worse by strange mechanics rather than staying the same or improving, to the point that I pretty much gave up on it. I started my first few hours wanting to craft every weapon to the highest level, but by the end I was just trying to finish the game. It could be that it is just not for me, but what I really think happened is the niggles that I mentioned above wore me down. The later the game, the more niggly mechanics were added which added to the wear down. I think it is a fantastic, fun core concept for a game that was brought down by a few small things. That all being said, if you go in with the expectations set by everything written above then it is a nice game to keep your hands busy while you listen to podcasts.
+ A Good Podcast Game
– The Combat
+/- The Progression
+ The ease of use features
– Valuing items becomes finicky
– Some minor technical issues
+ The Familiars
– The Notes
If you would like to see my first few hours with the game then you can here!
This year I have been blessed with the amount of ‘me’ games that I have been able to play. Stray, I am pleased to admit, is one of them. Without playing it, it is easy to think of it as nothing more than ‘that cat game’. That is how I thought of it before. I had hope that it would be great but expected charm and not a lot more. However – for me at least – it was so much more than that.
+ The Protagonist
In Stray, we play as a ginger tabby cat. Not a talking cat. Not a person that has been transformed into a cat. Not a magical cat. Just your regular old, run-of-the-mill, carefree street cat. Other aspects of story and play get added as you go, but the cat is still a cat, if a very smart and loyal one.
Throughout this game we traverse through different environments of this fictional dystopia, exploring, learning and taking in the surroundings. We are a speechless outsider, observing and interacting as we go. We aren’t one of them, and my playable character also sharing these qualities with me (the player) created a uniquely immersive experience that hit me on a genius level. This would have been a different game if we were playing as one of the robots that inhabits the city.
Then there is the cat itself. The animations are beautifully made and transition seamlessly. Everything, from the swagger and agility to the curiosity and behaviour scream ‘real cat’. The interactions with other cats, the scratching at objects and rubbing on peoples legs were things that didn’t need to be included, but do wonders for immersion. In some games, going off the beaten path feels strange because you are on a mission to save the world or on urgent business, and stopping to talk to someone or play a mini game breaks the narrative. You do it, because it’s a game, but it feel wrong. Here though, we are a cat. If we see a perfect nap spot, we are 100% going to take it. Because that’s what cats do. We are emotive and adorable without feeling like a caricature, and it is just a pleasure to control this excellent boi.
+ The World Building
Urban and Cyberpunk settings don’t often appeal to me that much. For that reason I was here for the cat, nothing more. To my surprise, it didn’t take long for me to be completely invested in this world, desperate to explore to learn more of what life is like here and why. While ignorant past Noob felt like rolling her eyes at the idea of there being robots in this game, present Noob was delighted to meow at every single one I happened upon. You can learn a lot by interacting with everything you can, exploring the areas, taking notice of the details and putting the pieces together. Although it is a story of robots, it is more relatable than expected. Dealing with issues like pollution and poverty, two very real things, the game managed to keep me in a state of melancholy while also making me think.
+ The Aesthetic
Like I mentioned above, I didn’t expect the setting to really jive with me. Although I haven’t experienced a lot of it, I felt like I was burning out of the dark, dreary cityscape with colorful neon lights. All I had to do was play to realize that I was wrong. This game is stunning and the use of colors kept my brain twinkling in awe. Moving onto a new area always brought something new and interesting, and the beauty within the damaged and broken parallels with the themes of hope that are scattered throughout. Robots are robots, and while they seem sentient, everything they learned is from the humans. The way this is creatively used brought me so much joy. Abandoned apartments layered in rugs, linens, books and plants, creating the most stylish shabby chic décor. It isn’t practical but it doesn’t need to be. Every robot adopting their own style based on what they can find. Lights, lights and more lights. From the intricate interiors, to the wide shots of places you are discovering and have been, there is a beauty to this game that is not only pleasing to the player but really adds to the world building. The biggest crime that there is no photo mode (although maybe that is for the best, I might still be playing to this day).
+ The Difficulty
This is a very easy game, and I think that decision suits it very well. It allows for the flow of exploration without the frustration that can come in other games. Having said that, if you aren’t into exploring as much as I am you don’t have to. It isn’t difficult to figure out what you have to do next so if you want to mainline the story that is also entirely fine. Any puzzling is very minor, which makes the game very accessible to experienced gamers and new players alike.
+/- The Controls
I am personally very happy with the controls but I know a lot of people were underwhelmed. This is no precision platformer and I am glad that it doesn’t try or pretend to be. You can’t jump freely, only where the game allows. One could see this as a lack of freedom, or you could see it as a time saving and quality preserving mechanic. I didn’t waste any time trying to make jumps that maybe, just maybe, I could make. And I wasn’t taken out of the experience by janky animations caused by jumping places that were never intended because I was never allowed to. The levels are hand crafted with verticality in mind and the simple but intuitive controls were additive for me. The fact that there is an on demand meow button is just icing on the cake.
+ The Details
I talked about some of the details in the protagonist and aesthetic sections, but it deserves to be its own positive mark. My favorite detail is how every NPC has their own little personality. Most of them have their own hobbies and styles. When you meow at them, they all have their own reaction to you. It only flashes across their face for a second, but it is there and that was enough to ensure that I meowed at every single NPC that I met.
+ The Collectibles
There were no pointless collectibles. They took the form of memories, and every one that you found added some more context to the world. They weren’t too difficult to find (I think this is the first game ever that I found them all by myself) and they encouraged exploration which, to me, is the highlight of the game. Exploration, rewarded with story, which then encourages more exploration is a dream game loop for me and it was executed to perfection.
+ The Level Design
This game felt like a living and breathing city. I explained a lot of why it works in the Aesthetic and Controls sections above, but I want to give a shout out to the open world areas. I expected more of a linear game so arriving in the slums was a huge surprise. There is lots of exploring to be done and the entire level makes sense. It is unique, lived in, full of character, easy to maneuver and not too big to be overwhelming. And the same can be said for every other open world section in the game. There are nooks and crannies that you can only access due to being a cat. At first it can take a while to get used to the fact that bars aren’t a wall, you can walk through them or jump over them. It keeps things unusual and interesting. A different perspective.
+ The Pacing
I really enjoyed the pacing. Although I would have liked even more time in the open world sections, it would probably be to the detriment to the game. When you are ready to move on, the game is separated with chase/stealth/sort of combat sections that also do not feel like they last too long. The game in its entirety is relatively short, and throughout the entire game I was engaged enough to not put it down.
+ The Surprises
There were things in this game that I did not expect to see at all, but it was all entertaining enough. Obviously this is very vague as to not ruin it, but I think you will know what I mean when you get there.
Overall, this is an awfully sad world with hidden havens dotted around that I couldn’t get enough of exploring. I loved my character and I loved my time with it. I don’t think there are any cheap emotional stabs which is something I always fear in games containing animals, and I couldn’t be happier with the time I spent with this game. In the end, everything in the game made sense and I was very satisfied with the conclusion. The game resonated with me, and not just because of the cat, which I would say is an achievement for ‘that cat game’. Pawsome all around (be grateful. I could have used so many more puns throughout this review).
My Time at Portia is a game with many flaws, but if you can look past them then it can be an absolute delight. I feel like Portia is ideal for the people who love Stardew Valley/Harvest Moon type games but find the farming tedious after a while. These aren’t the only type of people who might enjoy this game, but if that resonates with you then it could be worth a shot! Not only through the first few hours but throughout my entire playthrough, I was constantly surprised, confused and amused by the stuff I would find and the things that would happen, leading to the affectionate nickname of ‘My Weird Time at Portia’.
– Doesn’t know what it wants to be
When I first started playing My Time at Portia, I got the sense that it didn’t know what it wanted to be. Games like Stardew Valley have a lot to do. You can farm, craft, cook, mine, forage, fish, create relationships. I feel that all of these things are key to the slice-of-life farm sim genre that these games are part of, which is already quite a lot of things to do. Portia is similar in that sense, except, add a main story, side quests left right and centre, dungeon crawling, named boss fights, a full on skill tree with three entirely seperate sections to go down, a photo menu, a workshop manual, a research system, a fluctuating economy, social mini games, regular mini games, festival mini games. It is a lot, and for a while the main thought going through my head was ‘What on earth is this game’.
+ Something for everyone
Though the absolute muddle of things to do and potentially overwhelming vibes this game gives out, the bright side is there is probably something for everyone. If you are like me and enjoy the systematic collection of things and ticking things off lists, you can do that. If you like making friends with everyone in town, you can do that. If you like spending your time decorating your home rather than completing commissions, you can do that. If you like dungeon crawling and fighting for loot.. I can’t say that I recommend it but it is there. More on that later!
– The jank
Before you even think about playing this game there is something that you have to accept. This game is Janky. And I mean Janky. Sometimes characters speak out loud, sometimes they dont, when they do it is generally awful. Sometimes they will say the right words, sometimes they will say something entirely different, sometimes they won’t actually be there while they are talking. Sometimes the camera will focus on weird things. NPCs are constantly stuck on the environment and will occasionally teleport. Photo quests break often. Mounts become unmountable. The game does a lot and generally it works, but with love, I do have to say that it can be quite a mess.
+ The jank
On the other hand, if this game didn’t have its Jank then I don’t think it would be half as memorable than if it were perfect and smooth. If you have a mount they are going to be running around in the background of every cutscene. When you get past how awful some of the cutscenes are they become hilarious and you look forward to the next one. When creating my character I couldn’t figure out how to change her name on console so she ended up being Linda. I gave her some pink cheeks that looked nice in the character creation menu. As soon as we got into the game though, it turns out those pink cheeks basically glow. Every day in game, something in the world is going wrong and it was a constant source of glee for me. A lot of the Jank is graphical or in the animations, and they can be the best.
– The combat
Okay… if there is something that I have to give my biggest criticism in this game, it is the combat. I don’t enjoy combat at the best of times but I can usually appreciate it if done well. It isn’t the end of the world since this game isn’t about combat, but you have to do it often enough that it can become frustrating and tedious. There is no feedback, or at least it tries to give you feedback through visual effects, which in the end just feel like a mess on the screen. I genuinely cannot tell when I am getting hit. There are numbers popping up but there is no feeling to it at all. Sometimes you can hit through or be hit through walls. Sometimes the enemy ends up in the air and doesn’t come back to the ground. Timing doesn’t feel like it matters much and when it does it can be frustrating. Hit boxes are hit and miss. AI companions will run at enemies and agro them when you are trying to draw them out one at a time. Thankfully, if you die during a boss fight you will respawn without their health being replenished. This is a mercy that I am grateful for, but it almost feels like confirmation of an awareness that the combat isn’t the best. Throughout the main story you will be put into multiple combat scenarios. As long as you keep plenty of health replenishing items in your inventory then you can tank your way through without too much pain. It can be a huge drag though.
+ Low stakes
I think what I love the most about this game are the low stakes. Sure, there are optimal ways to play and you can min/max if that is how you like to do it. But if not, there aren’t really any punishments for going slow. The only things that are timed are daily commissions (which you can choose to do) and very few quests/side quests. Other than that.. go nuts. Fancy spending an entire week in the mines? Go for it. As long as you have set your machines away there is really no reason to come home at night, so you can pass out at 3am doing whatever you were doing and wake up with full stamina the next day without losing anything. This all makes it really easy to pick this game back up even if you haven’t played for a month. I really appreciate it when I compare it to say, Stardew Valley, where I don’t want to boot up my game without my notebook in hand because I need to stick to my plan.
+ Crafting
I believe Crafting is a really clever way to solve the problem that I mentioned in the intro. By the end, I usually find farming really tedious in these games. Having to water everything every day, plant them at the right time, harvest and replant, then if you miss the window you have to wait an entire year. I always pray for rainy days so that I can go and do other things. Instead, in this game you have to gather materials and process them, to then craft them into different items. Different materials can be processed in different ways, so it is up to you to manage what you have, what you need, and that is the loop rather than plant, water, harvest, repeat. It is much more flexible and, for me at least, enjoyable.
+ Progression
The fact that I already enjoy the crafting is doubled when paired with progression in this game. Throughout the main story you will get many different commissions to help make the city a better place. If there is something I love in a game, it is an environment that evolves over time. Not only does Portia do that, but it only does so thanks to your efforts. Building bridges will allow you to access new areas. Building busses will unlock fast travel. You will build buildings and areas that from that moment onwards will be a permanent part of the town. It never stops being satisfying. On top of this, the crafting progression itself also feels nicely done and natural to me. Once you are able to build everything available, you know that you will then need to upgrade your equiptment to unlock more options. If you have options available that you dont yet have the materials to build, you know that your next quests are going to unlock an area that allows you to access new resources. It is a cycle that repeats throughout the game and works very well.
+/- Relationships
I don’t really know where to place relationships here. There are things I really like and things that I really dislike about them. On the positive side, relationships bloom themselves as you progress through the story, which I think is very naturally done. As you help improve the town, the townsfolk will like you more. As you do commissions for individuals they will like you even more. Then as you grow relationships with them you will start to get cute little side quests which I found to be a nice touch. Becoming friends with certain vendors will get you discounts, and you will occasionally receive gifts from your buddies.
The relationship system is let down in two ways in my opinion. Firstly, I don’t think it’s very fun. There is the traditional system of giving the person daily gifts that they like which isn’t bad, but it isn’t great. Then there are some more unique systems, most of which didn’t land for me. Some characters have their own minigames you can play, some can spar (see combat above to explain why this doesn’t hit) and once you become their friend you can go on playdates (or proper dates if you are romancing). After I had done two dates I was already bored of the system and just wanted go back to old fashioned gift giving. Secondly, when it comes to romance, I don’t feel like there are many good options, specifically for husbands. I didn’t really want to marry anyone. Six of the options are identical. Having kids is as far as you can go down the family route and they don’t grow up from being a toddler. So relationships in general in this game are a really mixed bag for me.
+ Attention to detail
The attention to detail in this game is great. While some systems feel unnecessary, there are others that add to the overall charm of the game. My favorite thing is that anything you are holding, your character will be holding it in their hand. If it’s big they will carry it over their head. Most accessories that you can wear for stats you can also see on your character. They didn’t have to do these things but it really adds to the experience, and it will always be funny running along carrying a giant poop above your head.
– Navigating crafting
Navigating the crafting systems does not flow well, and while you do get used to it, it could be better (and I believe they may have solved this in the sequel). For example, if you are assembling a big product, having the ingredients in your inventory will not do. They have to be directly in your hand to place them. Eventually you get some automation options but it is so late in the game and unintuitive that I have to mark the game down for it. When I don’t play for a while, the hardest part is reacquainting myself with all my stuff since I need to know where to grab things from.
+/- Festivals
Something else to watch out for in this game are the festivals. Many slice-of-life games have them.. But none of them have them quite like this.
++++ Pinky
And the final positive point of this game, saving the best till last. Pinky.
There are a lot of reasons to like this game and many surprises along the way. As long as you know that you are going into a very imperfect experience and are open to some fun, there is such a good time to be had. If you like what you heard above then you should definitely jump in. If you claim the free games on the Epic store you may already own it, or it is currently on the PS Plus Extra Tier and Xbox Game Pass. The Sequel ‘My Time at Sandrock’ is in Early Access right now so it is the perfect time to jump into the series.
– Doesnt know what it wants to be
+ Something for everyone
– Thejank
+ The jank
– The combat
+ Low stakes
+ Crafting
+ Progression
+/- Relationships
+ Attention to detail
– Navigating crafting
+/- Festivals
+ Pinky
I did stream my first few weeks in Portia, I’ll leave this here in case anyone is in need of misadventures.
CtrlAltNoob 