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PlayStation Plus' free games totaled more than $1,300 in value per subscription this year
Sony would, of course, like you to see its PlayStation Plus service as a bargain, but how much value does it really add to your gaming life? Well, according to data compiled by UK publication Push Square, quite a lot, actually. After combing through the 2014 selection of games offered as part of the service's Instant Game Collection, Push Square reports that Sony offered $1,349.29 worth of games in North America, and £960.64 worth of games in Europe. Now, there are some caveats to this data. While the games themselves are free to add to your collection and free to play while you have a current PS Plus subscription ($50 for a year in the US), once your subscription lapses you'll lose access to said games. Push Square's numbers also do not separate games by system, so you only got the full, $1,349.29 value of games if you owned a PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, and a PlayStation Vita. Still, considering that the average monthly Metacritic score (factoring in all games) was 79 for the US and 78 in Europe, as well as the fact that PS Plus also grants subscribers access to discounts, giveaways, Share Play and online multiplayer on PS4, it's not a bad deal. And that's how you (possibly) saved more than $1,200 in 12 months on your game collection. [Image: Sony]
Injustice, Secret Ponchos join PS4 Instant Game Collection in December
Sony teased some of its coming PlayStation Plus Instant Game Collection releases today, revealing that subscribers will receive free copies of NetherRealm's one-on-one fighter Injustice: Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition and Wild West shoot-'em-up Secret Ponchos for the PlayStation 4 next month. Standalone Infamous: Second Son expansion Infamous: First Light and atmospheric puzzler The Swapper are next in line to join the PS4 Instant Game Collection in January. Sony notes that Injustice arrives as "the first AAA Blu-ray title to join the Instant Game Collection for PS4," replacing the postponed racer Driveclub: PS Plus Edition while developer Evolution Studios sorts out lingering server issues. "We understand many of you are waiting for Driveclub PS Plus Edition to be added to the Instant Game Collection, and we apologize that the game is not yet ready to launch," PlayStation Digital Platforms senior manager Matthew Harper stated. "We want you to know that we're committed to providing Driveclub PS Plus Edition to members when it's ready, and the Evolution team is working hard to make it a reality." [Image: Warner Bros]
PlayStation Plus to offer 2 free games for Vita, PS3, PS4 each month
Sony is adjusting its Instant Game Collection schedule for PlayStation Plus starting in July, promising to dish out six free games per month. The games will be divided evenly among its three active platforms, two for each of PS4, PS3 and Vita, and will all debut on the first Tuesday of every month, lasting until the first Tuesday of the following month. Current freebies on PS Plus that had a "nice, long stint" will be gradually phased out in the coming weeks. The House of PlayStation also announced the six games that will be free for the month of June, starting next Tuesday. PS4 owners will have access to Trine 2: Complete Story and PixelJunk Shooter Ultimate, PS3 players can download NBA 2K14 and Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time and Vita owners will get Terraria and Mutant Mudds Deluxe for the month. Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time is Cross-Buy eligible, so Vita owners will be able to download that game as well. [Image: Sony]
PS Plus weekly: Stealth Inc. free for subscribers starting tomorrow
Curve Studios' sneaky puzzle-platformer Stealth Inc. A Clone in the Dark is set to join the PlayStation Plus Instant Game Collection this week. Both the PlayStation 3 and PS Vita versions of the game will be available as free downloads for PS Plus subscribers starting tomorrow. Originally known as Stealth Bastard, Stealth Inc. features more than 80 levels in which players must avoid detection and outwit deadly traps while searching for an escape. An enhanced version, Stealth Inc. Ultimate Edition, hit the PlayStation 4 last month, bundling the core game and all previously released DLC in a single standalone package. PlayStation Plus subscribers also get a 20 percent discount on the upcoming PlayStation 4 version of Strike Suit Zero: Director's Cut this week, dropping its price to $15.99. [Image: Curve Studios]
March's PlayStation Plus freebies are Tomb Raider, Thomas Was Alone, more
PlayStation Plus subscribers have six free games to look forward to across Sony's three current platforms as part of its Instant Game Collection program. PS4 owners signed up to PS Plus will receive arcade shooter Dead Nation: Apocalypse Edition for free this coming month. Three more games will be free on PS3 in March: Tomb Raider, Thomas Was Alone and Lone Survivor: The Director's Cut. Lastly, Vita players will get to add military shooter Unit 13 and beast-slayer Monster Hunter: Freedom Unite to their download queues. Those with copies of Monster Hunter Freedom 2 can transfer their data to Freedom Unite to continue progressing their characters. Penny-pinchers would also be wise to remember the Back to 2013 and Vita anniversary sales Sony is hosting at the moment. The sales offer discounts on games like Hotline Miami, Escape Plan, Flower, Killzone Mercenary, Tales of Xillia, Dragon's Crown, Ni no Kuni and more. [Image: SCEA]
BioShock Infinite free for PS Plus members tomorrow
BioShock Infinite will be available to download on PS3 tomorrow, and it'll be completely free for PS Plus members as part of the Instant Game Collection. That's a hefty freebie. The 14 for 14 Vita and PS3 sale is also happening now, with games up to 75 percent off for Plus members, including Crysis 3 for $5, Lone Survivor: The Director's Cut (a Cross Buy title) for $5.25, Puppeteer for $7 and The Wolf Among Us season pass for $13.50.
Soul Sacrifice goes free on PS Plus tomorrow
Come November 26, the Vita-exclusive Soul Sacrifice joins the free games on offer to PlayStation Plus subscribers, and they won't even have to trade a limb for it. For those who missed Soul Sacrifice, think of it as a game of choices. You play a prisoner turned sorcerer in a world where magic requires sacrifices. Some of these are largely benign, but there are the massively damaging spells that ask you to literally give up an arm in exchange for that kind of power. The game's difficulty level is slightly less intense than that seen in Dark Souls, but it still makes a very worthwhile contender for anyone looking for a game that will mercilessly punish mistakes - and unlike Dark Souls, since Soul Sacrifice is a Vita game, you can get your fix on the go. As with all new PS Plus additions, the introduction of Soul Sacrifice means that something must be bumped off of the roster. In this case, the PS Plus Instant Game Collection is losing Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen. If you want to pick up Capcom's endearing attempt at a Western-style, open-world role-playing game, today marks your last chance to do so via PlayStation Plus.
Uncharted 3, XCOM, LBP Karting free on PS Plus next week
Next week, when the PlayStation Store updates on June 11, three new games will be added to the PlayStation Plus free Instant Game Collection library: Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, XCOM: Enemy Unknown and LittleBigPLanet Karting. Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception will include the full single-player campaign for PS Plus subscribers and the free-to-play multiplayer side. Both XCOM: Enemy Unknown and LBP Karting are their full retail offerings, joining a June that has already yielded a free copy of Deus Ex: Human Revolution and will later gift Saints Row: The Third.
Free SSF4 Arcade Edition, Rochard for PS Plus members tomorrow
Tomorrow's PlayStation Network update adds two freebies to the Instant Game Collection for PlayStation Plus members: Rochard and Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition. Last week, PS Plus subscribers were treated to a free copy of BioShock 2.Rochard is a puzzle-platformer from Recoil Games, one that our own Ludwig Kietzmann called "a refreshing, perfectly sized game" that does well aping the mechanics of Portal and Half-Life 2. Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition, while initially fairly broken at launch, has since been patched to be a more balanced fighting experience.
