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- Jun 13, 2005
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Updated April 13th, 2020
If you have any corrections to offer or favored resources I've missed please mention them. Any game sales are welcome to be posted here.
Sony Playstation Plus
[PS4] [PS3] [PS Vita]
Microsoft Xbox Live Gold
[Xbox One] [Xbox 360]
Nintendo Switch Online
[Switch]
Sony Playstation Now
[PS4] [PC]
Microsoft Xbox Game Pass
[Xbox One] [PC]
EA Origin
EA Access [Xbox One] [PS4]
Origin Access [PC] [MacOS]
Ubisoft Uplay+
[PC] [Android]
Humble Choice
[PC]
Utomik
[PC]
Twitch Prime
[PC]
Gamefly
[PS4] [Xbox One] [Switch]
Apple Arcade
[iOS] [tvOS] [MacOS]
Google Stadia
[Android] [PC via Chrome Browser] [MacOS via Chrome Browser] [ChromeOS via Chrome Browser]
Google Play Pass
[Android]
NVIDIA GeForce Now
[PC] [MacOS] [Android]
If you have any corrections to offer or favored resources I've missed please mention them. Any game sales are welcome to be posted here.
Sony Playstation Plus
[PS4] [PS3] [PS Vita]
- $10 ---- monthly ($9.99/mo)
- $25 ---- quarterly ($8.33/mo)
- $60 ---- yearly ($5.00/mo)
- Allows online access for Playstation games & web services; has a companion mobile app [iOS / Android]
- Comes with 2-5 free games a month for download; these can be (re-)downloaded and played at any time in the future so long as you were subscribed during the month it was issued, and are currently subscribed at the time you wish to download
- According to Polygon, the total MSRP value of games given away was $894 in 2019; $1,508 in 2018; $1,287 in 2017; $1,151 in 2016; $1,053 in 2015; over $1,300 in 2014.
- The history & catalog of games "given" away are listed in the Instant Games Collection which currently stands at 657 titles across all Sony gaming platforms (excluding repeats)
Microsoft Xbox Live Gold
[Xbox One] [Xbox 360]
- $10 ---- monthly ($9.99/mo)
- $25 ---- quarterly ($8.33/mo)
- $60 ---- yearly ($5.00/mo)
- Allows online access for Xbox games & web services; has a companion mobile app [iOS / Android]
- Almost always just 2 free games a month, but more frequently strong selling AAA releases than with the Instant Games collection above, and unlike with the Playstation Plus giveaways, these can be downloaded and kept to be played forever (including offline) even if you discontinue subscription on the Xbox 360 though not on the Xbox One
- Microsoft boasts that this service delivers $700 of games a year
- The history & catalog of games "given" away are listed in the Games with Gold Collection which currently stands at 169 titles for the Xbox 360 and 132 titles for the Xbox One
Nintendo Switch Online
[Switch]
- $4 ----- monthly, individual ($3.99/mo)
- $8 ----- quarterly, individual ($2.66/mo)
- $20 ---- yearly, individual ($1.67/mo)
- $35 ---- yearly, family up to 8 accounts ($2.92/mo)
- Allows online access for Switch games & web services; has a rather lousy companion mobile app [iOS / Android]
- Very rarely special offers are made
- Access to cloud-streamed Nintendo Classic library; currently 26 Super Nintendo titles and 52 Nintendo titles available with co-op and competitive multiplayer enabled
Sony Playstation Now
[PS4] [PC]
- $10 ---- monthly ($9.99/mo)
- $25 ---- quarterly ($8.33/mo)
- $60 -- yearly ($5.00/mo)
- originally a cloud-based gaming service that could only stream; they added the ability to download games (for PS4 only) thanks to competition from Xbox Game Pass
- Enables you to play not just PS4 games in the library, but also older PS3 and PS2 titles available on the service otherwise not compatible with the PS4 (or PC)
- A minimum 5MBps internet connection is recommended by Sony for a good experience if streaming; streaming quality is limited to 720p for PC
- PC gamers require a membership to Sony Playstation Plus and a Dualshock 4, Dualshock 3, or XInput Controller (e.g. Xbox One & Xbox 360 controllers, Logitech F710, F510, or F310) to qualify
- There are 837 titles currently listed in the dynamic library (351 x PS4 + 466 x PS3 + 20 x PS2 = 837 total)
Microsoft Xbox Game Pass
[Xbox One] [PC]
- $10 ------ monthly, Game Pass, PC [beta] ($9.99/mo)
- $10 ---- monthly, Game Pass, Xbox ($9.99/mo)
- $15 ---- monthly, Game Pass Ultimate, Xbox & PC* ($14.99/mo)
*includes Xbox Live Gold membership; $1/mo special currently- Games are downloadable, not streaming, meaning no reduced graphical quality or latency issues
- 20% off Game Pass titles if one wishes to buy them permanently; 10% off add-ons and related content
- There are 75 titles currently on the Microsoft Play Anywhere list. If one buys a Play Anywhere game on either platform (purchase must be from the Microsoft or Xbox stores) he is entitled to play it on both, Xbox or PC, and gameplay, including progress & saved data, is sync'd across both platforms. For some of these games online multiplayer cross-play between platforms is enabled. Those perks apply to Play Anywhere titles available on this Game Pass service
- The PC Game Pass catalog has 196 titles currently
- The Xbox Game Pass catalog has 248 titles currently with another 8 announced upcoming
EA Origin
EA Access [Xbox One] [PS4]
Origin Access [PC] [MacOS]
- $5 ------ Access, monthly ($4.99/mo); Xbox or PS4 [not both]
- $5 ------ Basic, monthly ($4.99/mo)
- $30 ---- Basic, yearly ($2.50/mo)
- $15 ---- Premium, monthly ($14.99/mo)
- $100 -- Premium, yearly ($8.33/mo)
- EA Origin is a launcher on PC (like Steam or Epic) which tracks & saves all of your progress and achievements in the cloud for games on the service
- EA announced on 10/29/2019 that PC gamers are now eligible to enroll in this service through Steam instead of requiring the Origin launcher, and cross-play with players who do use Origin will be permitted
- Unlimited play and access to games in the Vault
- 10% off PC titles at the Origin Store, or 10% off Origin titles on the Xbox & Playstation stores
- Premium users gain 5-day early play access for upcoming Origin titles, and can also play the most current AAA releases unavailable to Basic users (ex. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Need for Speed Heat, FIFA 20, etc); Basic users only get 10-hr trials for these latter games
- 85 Games in Access Vault [Xbox One]
- 40 Games in Access Vault [PS4]
- 237 Base Games in Origin Vault, Basic [PC]*
-- 13 Base Games in Origin Vault, Basic [MacOS]* - 252 Base Games in Origin Vault, Premium [PC]*
- *DLC, Expansions, & Extra Bundled Content also accessible
Ubisoft Uplay+
[PC] [Android]
- $15 ---- monthly ($14.99/mo)
- Available to Android users, but requires a subscription to Google Stadia
- Uplay+ service grants you access to all the games in the UPlay+ library which you can stream from the cloud or download/install so long as you are subscribed
- Extension of Uplay which tracks and saves all your progress and achievements in the cloud for games bought from the Ubisoft Store (459 total products including 199 base games + 135 DLC purchases available)
- 20% off purchases on the Ubisoft store
- Subscribers may have additional benefits such as being invited into closed betas for some of Ubisoft's upcoming games
- UPlay+ library currently has 124 titles
Humble Choice
[PC]
- $12 ---- monthly ($11.99/mo)
- $35 ---- quarterly ($11.67/mo)
- $67 ---- biannually ($11.17/mo)
- $132 -- yearly ($11.00/mo)
- curated "mystery box" delivered monthly as code to email with 10+ games offered each month; you get to choose 9 of these to keep
- 20% off Humble Bundle store purchases
- You may access and download from over 90 DRM-free games in the "Humble Trove" so long as you are subscribed
- 1-year subscription promises minimum of $1,200 MSRP value in games
- Google Spreadsheet: list of past Humble Monthly Bundles
Utomik
[PC]
- $7 ----- monthly, single user ($6.99/mo)
- $10 --- monthly, up to 4 users ($9.99/mo)
- Subscription service granting access to a depot of games that are downloaded, not streamed, and can be played as long as one is subscribed
- Mostly smaller releases, but also aging AAA titles
- 1065 titles available
Twitch Prime
[PC]
- $13 ---- monthly ($12.99/mo)
- $120 -- yearly ($10.00/mo)
- Twitch Prime is a perk of Amazon Prime membership. This comes with free 2-day shipping on Amazon purchases, access to Amazon Prime TV, and other benefits.
- Games are a secondary focus of Twitch Prime itself, which is primarily about perks like channel subscriptions and chat privileges for the Twitch service, but they lean on free games and in-game loot as an incentive to sell more memberships
- Free games each month (mostly indie) with their "Free Games with Prime" initiative. Typically 4-5 indies or smaller releases a month. They also gave away 21 free games in the first two weeks of July in 2019 during the Amazon Prime Day season. Expect this to be a traditional seasonal perk.
- Free in-game loot for popular games (ex. vehicles, weapons, possibly even exclusive items, etc)
- Twitch claimed that they gave away over $3,000 MSRP of games & loot in 2018 to Twitch Prime users that included over 70 free games.
- Here is a spreadsheet showing the history of games given away by Twitch Prime dating back to July 2018
Gamefly
[PS4] [Xbox One] [Switch]
- $16 ---- monthly, 1 Game/Movie Plan ($15.95/mo)
- $23 ---- monthly, 2 Game/Movie Plan ($22.95/mo)
- Mail-in rental service: check out any game you want and hold as long as you like. Physical games only. Their digital front failed. After perusing the above competitor services, with these prices unchanged four years later, it probably isn't hard to see why. I also noticed their physical library size has shrunk by about half since the creation of this thread which suggests to me they're selling their inventory off. Dying business with negative consumer feedback. Probably best avoided.
- 3,838 titles available
Apple Arcade
[iOS] [tvOS] [MacOS]
- $5 ---- monthly ($4.99/mo)
- $50 -- yearly ($4.17/mo)
- No microtransactions (in-app purchases) or ads will be allowed in the Arcade
- Gameplay is also limitless (no lockout timers or restricted access)
- Offline play must be allowed, and games must be downloadable to play
- All Apple devices capable of running the latest operating systems-- of MacOS, iOS, or tvOS-- will support Xbox One S and PS4 controllers (for games designed for controllers) with the launch of the service. This means Mac Pros, iMacs & MacBooks from 2013 and on which run MacOS Catalina 10.15 or later; all iPads since the iPad Air 2 & iPhones since the iPhone 6s running iOS 13 or later; and all Apple TVs that support tvOS 13 or later which currently is the 4th Gen & 5th Gen
- Here is a list of all Apple Arcade games that support one of these controllers
- Currently there are over 110 titles including originals/exclusives with Apple actively participating in development, now
Google Stadia
[Android] [PC via Chrome Browser] [MacOS via Chrome Browser] [ChromeOS via Chrome Browser]
- Free -- anytime, Stadia [aka Stadia Base]
- $10 --- monthly, Stadia Pro ($9.99/mo)
- Ubisoft UPlay+ subscription/games are supported on Stadia
- Cloud-streaming service that grants you access to a depot of PC & Android games. Games cannot be downloaded. You must purchase the games you want to stream.
- Stadia Base streams 1080p@60fp, SDR, Speaker Sound
- Stadia Pro streams 4K@60fps, HDR, 5.1 Surround Sound; plus you get 1 free game on the service every month chosen by Google, and regular exclusive discount offers on other Stadia games
- The native device is the Chromecast 4K Ultra, but support also includes older Chromecast devices, the Pixel phones, and any Windows PC (Windows 7 or later) or Mac (MacOS 10.9 or later) capable of running the Google Chrome browser. In February 2019, they added support for 19 more smartphones made by Samsung, Razer, and Asus. The service is expected to eventually expand to all Android devices on the latest version of the OS. Click here to see all supported devices.
- Dual-Analog Stadia Controller is available for $69, or included with the $129 Stadia Premiere Edition which also packages the Chromecast 4K Ultra and 3 months subscription for you and a friend
- Gylt, Get Packed, and Orcs Must Die! are the only (timed) exclusives so far the service has provided, but Google has already purchased three studios to develop for the service, and it will run Cyberpunk 2077 when it releases
- 50 titles available currently
Google Play Pass
[Android]
- $5 ---- monthly ($4.99/mo), grants access for up to 6 Google accounts
- Android 4.4 or later required.
- Google's answer to the Apple Arcade. Get access to premium games (and apps) without ads or in-game purchases. This includes many games that are paid apps, but unlike the Apple Arcade, no exclusives or originals.
- There were 386 apps & games in the service as of March 20, 2020
NVIDIA GeForce Now
[PC] [MacOS] [Android]
- Free -- anytime, Basic edition, see below
- $5 ----- monthly, Founder's edition ($4.99/mo)
- Cloud-streaming service that allows one to cloud-stream PC games (one owns) to compatible devices with gameplay and progress sync'd across devices
- The "Founder's" edition of the service costs money, but It's free to play in 1-hr chunks without ray-tracing support on the "Basic" plan; you can immediately re-queue for new session when the hour is up (comparison of Founder's vs. Basic here at Android Central)
- Requires compatible hardware & internet connection. Compatible devices are supported NVIDIA GPUs in PC & Mac desktops/laptops; any of the NVIDIA Shield devices; and now also many Android tablets and smartphones (OpenGL ES 3.2 required; only devices with at least 2GB of RAM and Android 5.0 or later are capable)
- NVIDIA says that GeForce Now requires at least a 15Mbps download speed in order to stream 720p@60fps while 25Mbps is required for 1080p@60fps; you'll also need to use either a hardwired ethernet connection to your device or have a 5GHz wireless router
- FAQ here: https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/geforce-now/faq/
- Best download page is here with direct download links for the four different platforms
- 549 titles were compatible with the service as of Jan-31-2020. You can search here to find games currently supported:
https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/geforce-now/games/
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