The first half of 2020 is absolutely jam-packed full of major AAA releases includingThe Last of Us: Part II,Doom: Eternal, and more all coming out. Following the recent announcement that Square Enix has delayedFinal Fantasy VII Remakefrom February to April andMarvel’s Avengerspushed back as far as September, it looks like players might actually have somewhat of a fighting chance to chip away at some of their backlog or some new games on PS Plus.
Sony has always offered great games through PS Plus, but a new standard was been set over the past six months with titles includingDetroit: Become Human,The Last of Us Remastered,Outlast 2, and this month’s inclusion ofUncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection. If PSVR games aren’t going to be added as a third game to replace the loss of PS3 and PS Vita, then Sony needs to continue to push the bar forward in the lead up to PS5, and we’ve got a few ideas about how to do that. Here’s our completePS Plus free gameswishlist for February.
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The Last Guardian
Originally announced way back during Sony’s 2009 E3 press conference,The Last Guardianquickly turned from an excitingspiritual successor toIcoandShadow of the Colossusto something that most thought would never see the light of day. Numerous management changes, staff departures and problematic development woes with the PlayStation 3 led to a number of delays in the release schedule and an eventual transition to PS4 whereThe Last Guardianultimately released in December 2016.
Like Team Ico’sShadow of the ColossusandIcobefore it,The Last Guardianis an action-adventure game that follows a young boy that meets a giant half-bird, half-mammal creature named Trico. The game tells a beautiful story about the relationship of the pair and goes a long way into making the player care about Trico as a real character.The Last Guardianis certainly a little too long in the tooth and some of its mechanics, specifically the camera controls, do feel quite dated due to the long development cycle and console transition but there’s plenty to love in this artsy adventure.
The Last Guardianis out now on PS4.
Persona 5
Widely considered as one of the best JRPGs available on current hardware,Persona 5uses a mixture of RPG elements, dungeon-crawling, and social simulation to tell a fascinating story about a group of high-school students in modern-day Tokyo that are able to harness physical manifestations of their psyche known as Personas. Players take on the role of Joker, the samePersona 5DLC character used forSuper Smash Bros. Ultimateand the leader of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, a vigilante group that uses their Persona’s to change the hearts and psyche of criminals.
Despite having already been available in Japan for some time now,Persona 5: Royal,an enhanced port of the original game is due to be released in western territories next month, adding a whole new school semester, new characters, new dungeons, and more. With that being said,Persona 5is already an incredibly long game that offers well over 100 hours of playtime on a single play-through. That amount of playtime can be very intimidating to new players and considering thatPersona 5: Royalis adding even more content, there’s a strong argument that the standard version ofPersona 5might be a far better option for first-timers looking to get into the series.
Persona 5is out now on PS4.
DOOM
When id Software first announced thatDoom: Eternalwould be delayed until March 2020, fans were left with disappointment as the wait for id Software’s highly anticipated follow up to the 2016 reboot ofDOOMwas now even further away. With only a couple of months left until release, anewDoom: Eternaltrailerwas released earlier this week proving that it’s going to be worth the wait and reminding the industry just how good the latest take on the DOOM franchise really was.
Originally announced in 2008 as a direct sequel to DOOM 3, DOOM went through its own troubling development cycle that ked to the game being completely restarted by id Software as a complete reboot of the franchise. While the tacked-on multiplayer portion was nothing to write home about, id Software succeeded in creating one of the best-feeling first-person shooters on the market and one of the best games of 2016. Fast-paced, fluid, intuitive, and meaningful gameplay that’s incredibly fun to play and included a ‘glory kill’ system that is so satisfying and varied that evenDestiny 2adopted the mechanic.
DOOMis out now on PC, PS4, Xbox One, Google Stadia, and Nintendo Switch.
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The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
We wished forThe Witcher 3: Wild Huntas a free PS Plus game a few months ago, and honestly, it feels more appropriate now than ever before. After the release of Netflix' The Witcher TV show,not only did a second season get greenlit, but sales numbers and active users blew right back up for this fantastic RPG from CD Projekt Red as longtime and fans and newcomers alike walked away from the show simply needing more.
When it comes to critical acclaim, there’s very little that The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt wasn’t applauded for from gameplay to story, writing, graphics, the high quality of side missions, and two fantastic expansions in the form ofHearts of StoneandBlood and Wine. As CD Projekt Red gets closer and closer to therelease of their next big gameCyberpunk 2077, February is the perfect time to release this masterpiece on PS Plus, even if it’s only the standard addition (although the complete edition would be great).
The Witcher 3: Wild Huntis out now on PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.
PS5 has been heavily rumored to featurefull backward compatibility for PS1, PS2, PS3, and PS4 games, meaning that it’s not only possible for older games to return but that they may even be re-included in the monthly PS Plus offering. However, until Sony makes any sort of concrete announcement regarding backward compatibility or alternatively starts offering at least one PSVR title as a third “free” game each month, the current quality of PS Plus needs to be at the top of Sony’s priority list.
PlayStation Plusmembers receive two free games every month with their subscription.
