On Thursday, September 9 at 1pm PT, Sony will host the 2021 PlayStation Showcase event. Positioned as Sony's big E3-equivalent event, the PlayStation Showcase will shine the spotlight on a variety of upcoming PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 titles. No games have been confirmed for the PlayStation Showcase so far, so fans should be in for plenty of surprises, some of which could be centered around the PlayStation Plus program.
Sony's PlayStation Plus program gives PlayStation gamers a variety of benefits in exchange for a fee. There are free PS Plus games released every month, and a PS Plus subscription is required to play PS4 and PS5 games online. There are other perks to being a PS Plus subscriber, like discounts on purchases, but the online multiplayer accessibility and the monthly free games are definitely the main reasons why people sign up.
When it comes to the free PS Plus games, Sony has established some patterns with how it announces them and when it releases them. For the most part, PS Plus subscribers can expect the next batch of free games to be announced on the last Wednesday of every month, though it has sometimes revealed free PS Plus games early. After the next batch of free PS Plus games are revealed, fans can usually expect them to be added on the first Tuesday of the month when the PlayStation Store updates.
However, Sony has broken from these patterns on occasion, like when the free PS Plus games for September 2021 weren't announced until Wednesday, September 1. It's also occasionally announced free PS Plus games well ahead of time instead of waiting until the end of the month, like when it announced Destruction AllStars as a free PS Plus game months in advance to make up for its last-minute delay or when it's revealed PS Plus games during its State of Play events.
Sony's tendency to make PS Plus reveals at its State of Play events is why those interested in free PS Plus games will definitely want to tune in to the PlayStation Showcase on Thursday, September 1 at 1pm PT. While it's entirely possible that the PlayStation Showcase will come and go with no mention of any PS Plus titles, there is still a strong possibility that the event will reveal upcoming PS Plus games.
Free PS Plus Games Announced at PlayStation Events
This past year, there are two big examples one can point to when it comes to Sony announcing free PS Plus games at its State of Play broadcasts. The first was Oddworld: Soulstorm, which was confirmed as a free PS Plus game on February 25 and then added to the service in April. The second was a more recent example, as battle royale game Hunter's Arena: Legends was announced as a free PS Plus game in July and then added to the service as one of the free PS Plus games for August 2021.
Clearly, there is a precedent for Sony using these events to preview its upcoming PS Plus games lineup. Whether or not that means it will potentially reveal some of the free PS Plus games in October remains to be seen, but subscribers will just have to tune in to find out.
Will the Free PS Plus Games for October 2021 Be Announced at PlayStation Showcase?
It's unclear if Sony will use the PlayStation Showcase event to announce any of the free PS Plus games for October 2021 or beyond, but if it does, there's one interesting theory that's been making the rounds. Rumor has it that the recently announced Alan Wake Remastered game from Remedy Entertainment will be launching on October 5, with the reveal supposedly taking place during the PlayStation Showcase. This has not been confirmed, but if that is Alan Wake Remastered's release date, it stands to reason that it could very well be one of the free PS Plus games for October 2021 and that announcement will take place at PlayStation Showcase.
Fellow Remedy Entertainment title Control was a free PS Plus game earlier this year, and Sony usually likes to have at least one brand new release for its PS Plus games lineup. One of the only exceptions was the free PS Plus games for September 2021, and while that could be a sign that the service will no longer be focusing on new games, it could simply be a one-off situation.
Ultimately, fans can't know for sure if any free PS Plus games will be announced at the PlayStation Showcase, but there is precedent to suggest that it's a distinct possibility. The PlayStation Showcase kicks off on September 9 at 1pm PT, and while PS Plus subscribers should keep their expectations in check (especially when it comes to the Alan Wake theory as that could have zero basis in reality), it should still definitely be worth tuning in.
Besides potentially getting a peak at upcoming PS Plus games, rumors point to the new God of War being at the PlayStation Showcase in addition to the PS5 version of Grand Theft Auto 5, but again, nothing has been confirmed at the time of this writing.