09/06/2021 17:42:41 / 3 years ago / Author: Andy Robertson

Subscriptions are one way we highlight how games are made available:

• Franchises: Categorise games that are part of a long running franchise, like Super Mario or Pikmin.
• Collections: Categorise games that are published on a particular platform, like Roblox or Dreams.
• Subscriptions: Categorise games that are available with a monthly subscription service.

Game subscriptions cover two aspects of playing video games:

• Access To A Library Of Games
• Access To Play Online

Access To A Library Of Games

You can subscribe to services that provide you access to a large library of games without additional costs. These are services like Xbox Game Pass, Apple Arcade or PlayStation Now, that you pay for on a monthly basis. You are then granted access to a ready-made library of games for that system.

On the database we list these subscription options in the Costs section on every game page. If you want to assess the value of a subscription for your family, you can click one of the links here to browse the games currently on offer:

Access To Play Online

Console games usually require a subscription to that platform maker's online service to be able to play games online. Xbox Gold or PlayStation Plus are two examples. While there are some games you can play online without this subscription, the majority require it to access servers and other players.

This enables you to play online games against or with other people, along with some other online services like backing up your game save progress to the cloud, talking to other players and exchanging messages.

These subscriptions also offer a small selection of free or discounted games each month. It's important that you claim these games on a monthly basis as once the next month arrives you can no longer claim last month's free games.

There are some games that let you play without the need for a subscription:

Free Games With Subscriptions

Here's a consolidated list of all the games that you can currently get free on a subscription to one of the above services: