Category: Editorial

PlayStation Plus Free Games July 2021

Editorial Team

The heat and humidity is on its way in, but so are some free games from Sony. And so, here is the line-up of PlayStation Plus free games July 2021 which will be available for download on Tuesday, July 6.

First, there’s A Plague Tale: Innocence, an survival horror with stealth elements from Asobo Studio. Taking place during the Hundred Years’ War in the late 1340’s, Amicia de Rune is a young girl who must face various dangers while searching for a cure to help her brother.

Next, there’s Call of Duty: Black Ops IIII, the sequel to the 2015 Black Ops III, and a first-person online multiplayer shooter. With no single player campaign this time round, players can select to play multiplayer, zombies, and the newly added battle royale mode called Blackout, each with their own story to follow.

Lastly, there’s WWE 2K Battlegrounds, a more arcade-like style to the traditional professional wrestling games. Select from a roster of favorites such as John Cena, The Rock, and Stone Cold Steven Austin, and fight for supremacy in the ring.

Among the three freebies coming next month, A Plague Tale: Innocence and Call of Duty: Black Ops IIII have Platinum trophies to unlock.

Of those two, A Plague Tale: Innocence is by far the easier Platinum. The game is not particularly difficult, especially if you are following a walkthrough, and requires less than 20 hours.

However, as you can imagine being an online-only game, Call of Duty: Black Ops IIII will require some serious first-person shooter skills, and well over a hundred hours, to unlock the Platinum.

While WWE 2K Battlegrounds does not have a Platinum, nor did it receive positive reviews upon its release last year, the game is of average difficulty and all trophies can be unlocked in less than 10 hours.

PlayStation Plus Free Games June 2021

Editorial Team

Similar to the previous month, Sony is releasing quite a mixed bag of games for their line-up of PlayStation Plus free games June 2021 which will be available for download on Tuesday, June 1.

On the PS4 there’s Star Wars: Squadrons, the space combat game released late last year. Taking place following the events of the film Return of the Jedi, players join either the New Republic’s Vanguard Squadron or the Galactic Empire’s Titan Squadron, and compete in dogfights in both single-player and online multiplayer. The game also supports the PSVR, and allows for cross-platform play.

Next for the PS4, there’s Virtua Fighter 5: Ultimate Showdown, an enhanced remake of the PS3 and arcade title, which in turn is an update from the original Virtua Fighter 5 released back in 2006. Select your favorite fighters from the roster and compete in single-player or online battles with updated graphics, new music, and new online features.

Lastly, for the PS5, there’s Operation Tango, a cooperative spy adventure. Select to play as either a Hacker or Agent, and work with your partner through voice communication to succeed in your mission.

Among the three PlayStation Plus free games June 2021, Star Wars Squadrons and Operation Tango have Platinum trophies to unlock.

The difficulty in obtaining the Platinum for Star Wars: Squadrons entirely depends on your first-person dogfighting skills, though is generally more of a grind than a challenge. Considering the game is cross-platform, finding online players should not be a problem.

Since Operation Tango’s release date will be June 1, we have no information on the difficulty of this Platinum. Virtua Fighter 5: Ultimate Showdown is also first being released on June 1, which means the difficulty in obtaining 100% of its trophies is also unknown at the point.

PlayStation Plus Free Games May 2021

Editorial Team

Sony has just announced their next line-up of PlayStation Plus free games May 2021 which seems to be quite a mixed bag, this month. The games will be available for download on Tuesday, May 3.

First, there’s the first-person shooter Battlefield V. First released in 2018, it’s the sixteenth installment in the Battlefield series. The game is a return to the WWII era, and includes several new multiplayer modes including a battle royale mode with up to 64 players divided into squads.

Next, there’s Stranded Deep, a survival game released last year by Australian studio Beam Team Games. After surviving a plane crash in the Pacific Ocean, players can craft shelters and a raft, explore the procedurally generated islands and ocean, while fighting off hunger, thirst, and a variety of dangerous sea life.

Finally, for the PS5, there’s Wreckfest. The game was originally a PC and Xbox exclusive before making its way to the PlayStation 5. As a racing game, players can participate in banger racing and demolition derby, wiping out opponents while avoid crashing themselves, in an attempt to reach first place.

All three games in the PlayStation Plus free games May 2021 line-up have Platinum trophies to unlock.

The Platinums for both Battlefield V and Wreckfest are of average difficulty, though of course depends on your first-person shooter and racing skills. Both games have online trophies which can be made easier if boosted. Both games require roughly around 30 hours to Plat.

Stranded Deep is more time consuming than difficult, as you will need to craft every possible item, as well as do a fair bit of farming. Depending on your playstyle, the Platinum could take over 50 hours of gameplay.

Sony is NOT Closing PlayStation Store on PS3 and Vita

Editorial Team

Following a fair bit of backlash after announcing the closure of the PlayStation Store on the PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, and PlayStation Portable, Sony has decided to backtrack on this decision, announcing that the Store will remain open for now, on the PS3 and Vita.

“Recently, we notified players that PlayStation Store for PS3 and PS Vita devices was planned to end this summer,” stated Jim Ryan, President & CEO of SIE, in a post on the PlayStation Blog. “Upon further reflection, however, it’s clear that we made the wrong decision here.”

Simultaneously, Jim Ryan made this announcement on his Twitter account: “Okay, okay! I hear you loud and clear. We will NOT shut down the PSN store access for PlayStation3 and PSVita this summer. You can continue to buy all of those classics. At least, while these newly increased sales numbers persist.”

Initially, the PlayStation Store on the PS3 was scheduled to close this year on July 2nd this year, and on August 27th for the PS Vita. With the backtrack, this means Trophy Hunters and Completionists still have time to purchase games and DLC to rack-up their trophy numbers.

The PlayStation Store on the PlayStation Portable is still scheduled to shut down on July 2nd.

PlayStation Plus Free Games April 2021

Editorial Team

Just three days after the huge news regarding the closure of the PlayStation Store on the PS3, PSP, and Vita, Sony made another announcement: the next line-up for PlayStation Plus free games April 2021 which will be available for download on Tuesday, April 6.

First, there’s Days Gone, the post-apocalyptic survival horror by Bend Studio, released in 2019. Set in Oregon just a few years after a global pandemic turned humanity into zombie-like creatures known as Freaks, former US Army veteran Deacon St. John is doing his best to survive this nightmare while searching for his wife whom he believes may still be alive.

Next, there’s Zombie Army 4: Dead War, a sequel to the 2015 Zombie Army Trilogy, which in turn is a spin-off of the Sniper Elite series. As evident by the title, this is another zombie-related title, which takes places in an alternate 1946 following Adolf Hitler’s banishment to hell. Players can join their friends in co-op and take down wave after wave of Nazi zombies in this over-the-top B-movie like title.

And for the PS5, there’s Oddworld: Soulstorm, the next installment in the Oddworld series. In this 2.5D side-scrolling platformer, players control Abe who must save his mudokon friends from slave labor. Oddworld: Soulstorm will be launching on the same day it is available as part of the line-up for the PlayStation Plus free game April 2021 on April 6.

All three titles for this line-up of PlayStation Plus free games April 2021 have Platinum trophies to unlock.

The Platinum trophies for both Days Gone and Zombie Army 4: Dead War are not particularly difficult, though both will take around 50 hours of gameplay.

Since Oddworld: Soulstorm will be first released on April 6, we unfortunately do not yet have any information on the difficulty of this Platinum.