Ben Gibson 
Both Sony and Microsoft offer console users of their services (Playstation Plus and Xbox Live Gold respectively) free games each month, as a thank you for maintaining their memberships. If you have either membership, both companies offer certain titles to be downloaded for free for a limited time. In the case of both services, so long as you maintain your membership, you can keep the games for as long as you wish, provided you gained access to the games during the offer period.
For Xbox Live Games with Gold, this month’s games are:
- Overcooked!: Available October 1 to 31 on Xbox One
- Victor Vran: Available October 16 to November 15 on Xbox One
- Stuntman: Ignition: Available October 1 to 15 on Xbox One and Xbox 360
- Hitman: Blood Money: Available October 16 to 31 on Xbox One and Xbox 360
Note that the Xbox titles have their free periods staggered and the offers do not last the entire month, so make sure not to miss out. Overcooked! is a manic, friendship-destroying party game often seen being played by groups of Youtubers, where the players try to prepare meals and send them out under time pressures, all in ridiculous environments such at kitchens with moving bridges between areas or icy patches to slide on. For the RPG fans, Victor Vran is an isometric action RPG that has the player take on numerous demonic enemies in fast paced and fluid combat.
For Playstation Plus, this month’s games are:
- Friday the 13th: The Game, PS4
- Laser League, PS4
- Master Reboot, PS3
- The Bridge, PS3 (Cross Buy with PS4 and PS Vita)
- Rocketbirds 2: Evolution, PS Vita (Cross Buy with PS4)
- 2064 Read Only Memories, PS Vita (Cross Buy with PS4)
The PS4 exclusive titles on the Playstation Plus list are Friday the 13th: The Game and Laser League. Friday the 13th allows a player to take on the role of horror icon Jason Voorhees, who attempts to take out as many players as possible, whilst the other players in the game try either to survive long enough, or to escape the environment through side objectives. Laser League is a multiplayer title that pits teams against each other in various Tron-esque arenas, where they try to eliminate the opposing side by making them hit their team’s lasers.
As well as being able to get these titles for free, as an added bonus, both Microsoft and Sony offer some flexibility with their games. For Xbox users, you can save storage space by gaining access to the free games during the offer period and download them at a later date. You will lose access to the titles if your gold membership ends, but you can re-access them if you start a new subscription. Similarly, Sony allow players who let their subscription run out to regain their free titles if they renew their membership, and also allows players to re-download any game that was acquired for free but later uninstalled. The quality of the games on offers various for both platforms, but they are worth keeping an eye on if you plan to maintain a membership to either service. In September, the Playstation Plus list included Destiny 2, just over a year after its initial release.
The FAQ for Xbox Live Games for Gold can be found here.
The FAQ for Playstation Plus can be found here.
