PlayStation usually reserves the last Wednesday of every month to announce the new batch of free PlayStation Plus games, and this month is no different. As expected, PlayStation has announced the next pair of free games that PS Plus subscribers will be able to download with the next PlayStation Store update on Tuesday, October 6.
The free PS Plus games for October 2020 include Need for Speed: Payback and Vampyr. Need for Speed: Payback is an open world racing game that originally launched in 2017, and included some improvements over its predecessor, like the inclusion of an offline mode and a day/night cycle. Even though the game earned mixed reviews at the time of its release, Need for Speed: Payback should still provide plenty of content for racing game fans to sink their teeth into.
Vampyr, meanwhile, is a horror RPG from Dontnod Entertainment, the studio perhaps best known for its Life is Strange games. Similarly to Need for Speed: Payback, Vampyr also earned mixed reviews when it first launched, but the game does have its fans and should appeal to horror buffs. And with Halloween right around the corner, Vampyr seems like a fitting pick for the free PS Plus games for October 2020 lineup.
While fans wait for October 6 to roll around so they can claim their new free games, there is still some time to claim the free PS Plus games for September 2020 for anyone that has yet to do so. Until October 6, PlayStation Plus subscribers can claim Street Fighter 5, the latest entry in Capcom's long-running fighting game series, and PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, the game that kickstarted the battle royale craze.
Looking ahead, it will be interesting to see how Sony handles PS Plus in November, as that will be the debut of the next-generation PlayStation 5 console. We know that the PlayStation Plus Collection will be launched, giving players access to some of the highest-rated PS4 games, but it's unclear what other plans Sony may have for PS Plus and PS5. For example, will PS5 games start being part of the PlayStation Plus lineup, or will Sony just add games to the PlayStation Plus Collection instead? Fans should get some clarification closer to the PS5 console's launch on November 12.
In any case, the free PS Plus games for October 2020 announcement comes just one day after Microsoft announced the free Xbox Games with Gold for October 2020, consisting entirely of titles that fit the Halloween theme. So gamers on either platform should have plenty of season-appropriate games to play come October.