I recently discovered that you have to buy a PS Plus subscription to play many PlayStation games online. I have been a PC gamer all my life, so I didn’t know this was what PlayStation owners had to deal with. Fortunately, I found out there are many free online games that my friends and I could play online even without a PS Plus subscription.
This conundrum started when my friends and I decided to play some cross-platform games together. Unfortunately, they didn’t have a PS Plus subscription so they couldn’t play the game we originally planned. Even if they paid for the game, they would need a PS Plus subscription to play it online.
Free games to play online without PS Plus?
These are the most downloaded free-to-play online games that can be played without a PS Plus subscription. You can also check out the complete list of all free-to-play games from the PlayStation website.
- Apex Legends
- Auto Chess
- Brawlhalla
- Call of Duty: Warzone
- Dauntless
- Destiny 2 (No matchmade activities)
- DC Universe Online
- Enlisted
- Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout
- Final Fantasy XIV
- FISHING PLANET
- Fortnite
- Genshin Impact
- H1Z1 Battle Royale
- Hawken
- Hyperscape
- MultiVersus
- Neverwinter
- Paladins
- Path of Exile
- Realm Royale Reforged
- Rec Room
- Rocket League
- Rogue Company
- Rumbleverse
- Smite
- Spellbreak
- Splitgate
- Star Trek Online
- Star Wars: The Old Republic
- Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodhunt
- Vigor
- Warface
- Warframe
- War Thunder
- World of Tanks
Why Does Sony Charge for Online Services?
The reason console manufacturers charge for online services is to maintain the technology needed to power the multiplayer side of the platform. However, it seemed odd to me as Sony was already taking around a 30% cut from developers for selling a game on PlayStation.
This 30% cut is called the platform royalty and should rightly include all services necessary for the proper functioning of the game. However, all it does is make sure that PlayStation users have no other than to buy a PS Plus subscription.
Considering Sony is also the only platform to charge for cross-play, it is pretty predatory for consumers. However, a few free-to-play games can be played without a PS Plus subscription. These games likely pay a sizable sum to Sony for their online services.
So make sure to check out these amazing games and support the developers if you can.
