Credit: Sony
Sony has finally announced its line-up of free games for PlayStation Plus subscribers for February.
It's not a bad list, either---though that applies mostly to the PS4 offerings. The free games this time around include at least one that I've wanted to play since the PS4 launched way back in 2013, as well as a newer game that many gamers may have missed.
(See the free PS Plus games for January here. Today's the last day to download at least one very worthwhile game.)
As with last month, I'm including each game's OpenCritic (or MetaCritic) score so that you have a sense of how each title performed with critics. Obviously this is less of a concern when each game is free, but we all have limited time and limited HD space on our PS4's, so it never hurts to have as much information at your fingertips as possible.
Including review aggregates can also be helpful for one other reason: To show just how low most of these free games score. Come on, Sony, we can do better than this!
Here are all the free PS Plus games for January:
PS4
PS3
PS Vita
Exiles End (63% on MetaCritic)
Grand Kingdom, PS Vita (Also available on PS4) (76% on MetaCritic)
PS VR (Jan 2 - March 6)
Starblood Arena (68% on OpenCritic)
Knack is one of those games that looked really fun but ended up scoring really poorly. And amidst the flood of new PS4 and Xbox One games at the time, I just never got around to playing it. I did play a bit of the sequel at last year's E3 and I enjoyed that well enough, but now that Knack is free I can give it a spin if only to see why it didn't live up to its promise.
I have played, and enjoy, Rime quite a bit, especially for its lovely visuals. It's not a perfect game by any means, but it has some nice puzzling and exploring and for the rock bottom price of free you could do much worse.
On PS3, don't confuse Spelunker HD with Spelunky. The former is generally a much better received game and was inspired by the original 80s' game Spelunker, of which this is a remake. Beyond this I haven't tried any of the rest of these games. I haven't dusted off my PS Vita in ages and I rarely strap a VR headset to my face these days either.
February will be a kid-friendly month for the PlayStation Plus Instant Game Collection, with subscribers able to download the PlayStation 4 launch title Knack, Sony announced today.
Knack, developed by PS4 lead system architect Mark Cerny, launched alongside the console to a lukewarm reception in November 2013. But it could be fun to check it out before playing the sequel, which arrived last September and was much better received. The other PS4 game for February is Rime, the puzzle adventure from Tequila Works, which was originally released last May.
PlayStation 3 owners will be able to download Irem’s Spelunker HD, which has no relation to Mossmouth’s Spelunky HD — it’s a high-definition remake of a game that originated in 1983 on Atari 8-bit consoles. They’ll also get Mugen Souls Z, Compile Heart’s 2013 sequel to its 2012 strategy RPG Mugen Souls. On the PlayStation Vita front, the two free games for February are Magnetic Realms’ Exile’s End and Monochrome’s Grand Kingdom. The latter title is also available on PS4 via cross-buy.
February will continue a bonus that began in January: PlayStation VR users can download a free copy of Starblood Arena. That offer runs through March 6.
All six February games will go free for PlayStation Plus subscribers next Tuesday, Feb. 6. Until then, members can still download the January games.
Share. Rime, Knack, Grand Kingdom, and more. Rime, Knack, Grand Kingdom, and more.
Sony has unveiled the PlayStation Plus free games lineup for February 2018:
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Knack and Rime headline the PlayStation 4 releases. These two games are joined by a few PlayStation 3 and Vita titles, including Grand Kingdom as February's cross-buy game. StarBlood Arena is also still available as a VR bonus. The full lineup comes via PlayStation Blog.
Knack first released in 2013 and for our thoughts on the 3D platformer, be sure read our original Knack review. Meanwhile, Rime came out last year and we think it's a "beautiful but shallow puzzle-platformer that's a bit too derivative." Check out our wiki guide for the adventure-puzzle game.
PS3 owners can look forward to playing 2009's Spelunker HD and 2014's Mugen Souls Z. The 2D sidescroller Exiles End is one of the two free Vita games, with the 2016 tactical RPG Grand Kingdom available on both Vita and PS4 thanks to cross-buy. StarBlood Arena will remain as a PS VR Bonus until March 6.
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And don't forget — there's still time to grab January's free PS Plus games and find out how much of a savings they'll offer compared to January's Xbox Games With Gold lineup.
Alex Gilyadov is a freelance writer for IGN. Be sure to check out his YouTube channel and follow him on Twitter.
In some parts of the world, January is already over, and that means a new selection of free PlayStation Plus games are on their way. Luckily, Sony has now revealed its selection of freebies for PS4, PS3, and PS Vita owners in February.
From February 6, PS4 owners can grab Knack and Rime for free. Knack is the PS4 launch title developed by Sony Japan and the system's hardware architect, Mark Cerny. Rime, meanwhile, is a colorful adventure game released last year. You can read more about the two games in our Knack review and our Rime review.
PS3 owners, meanwhile, will receive platformer Spelunker HD and turn-based RPG Mugen Souls Z free of charge. Lastly, PS Vita's free games for the month are 2D Metroidvania-style game Exile's End and tactical RPG Grand Kingdom. The latter of these is also available for free on PS4 with Cross-Buy. As an added bonus, PS Plus subscribers can also grab the PSVR exclusive Starblood Arena for the low, low price of nothing until March 6.
With the announcement of these new additions, time is running out to get your hands on January 2018's free PS Plus games, which include Deus Ex: Mankind Divided and Batman: The Telltale Series. You can see all of January's PS Plus games here or take a look below for the full list of February's free PS Plus titles.
Free PS Plus Games For February 2018
PS4
Knack
Rime
PS3
Spelunker HD
Mugen Souls Z
PS Vita
