PlayStation Plus has had a bit of a strange start to the year. After some truly spectacular months in the back half of 2025, January and February have been mixed bags—at least for Essential users. January brought Need for Speed Unbound, Epic Mickey: Rebrushed, and Core Keeper. And while these games are solid enough, they targeted niche audiences, as racing, family, and sandbox titles aren’t everyone’s cup of tea. There was no true heavy hitter, either, something that sadly applies to the PS Plus free games for February 2026 as well.
- Subnautica: Below Zero
- Ultros
- Ace Combat 7
- Undisputed
Subnautica: Below Zero is perhaps the only thing resembling a big PS Plus Essential game this year, and even then, the original Subnautica was already given out for free as part of the Play at Home campaign a few years ago. The standalone expansion is also held back a bit by the negative perception around the series as a whole following the announcement of Subnautica 2 fully embracing AI.
Add on the fact that the other three games are either small titles (Ultros) niche genres (Ace Combat 7) or poorly reviewed (Undisputed), and it’s the second mediocre month for the service in a row. Or at least, it could be, as there’s a good chance that PS Plus Extra (like January’s games) once again does some heavy lifting.
Though it remains to be seen what games will join PS Plus Extra in February, past months have housed some heavy hitters. Below are the last six months of PS Plus Extra, all of which have at least two huge games to speak of—something that doesn’t apply to the Essential tier as of late.
|
Games |
Month |
|---|---|
|
Mortal Kombat 1, Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered, Sword of the Sea, Earth Defense Force 6, Unicorn Overlord, Atelier Ryza 3 Alchemist of the End and The Secret Key, Indika, Harold Halibut, Coral Island |
August 2025 |
|
WWE 2K25, Persona 5 Tactica, Green Hell, Fate/Samurai Remnant, Crow Country, The Invincible, Conscript |
September 2025 |
|
Silent Hill 2 Remake, Until Dawn Remastered, Yakuza: Like a Dragon, V Rising, Poppy Playtime: Chapter 1, As Dusk Falls, Wizard With a Gun |
October 2025 |
|
Red Dead Redemption, Grand Theft Auto 5, Pacific Drive, Still Wakes the Deep, Insurgency: Sandstorm, Thank Goodness You’re Here, The Talos Principle 2, MotoGP 25 |
November 2025 |
|
Assassin’s Creed Mirage, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, Cat Quest 3, Granblue Fantasy: Relink, LEGO Horizon Adventures, Paw Patrol: Grand Prix, Paw Patrol World, Planet Coaster 2 |
December 2025 |
|
Resident Evil Village, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Expeditions: A MudRunner Game, A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead, The Exit 8, Art of Rally |
January 2026 |
Looking at the bold entries in this lineup, it’s difficult not to be impressed. Back in August, players got a top-tier fighting game in Mortal Kombat 1 and a stellar superhero adventure with Marvel’s Spider-Man. Then, September featured an enjoyable Persona 5 spin-off for JRPG lovers and a still active WWE 2K game, with the latter being more appealing than normal sports additions since it can be enjoyed with no knowledge of wrestling thanks to user-created characters. October brought the scares with Until Dawn and Silent Hill 2, making it a great month for PS Plus horror games; November showed love to Rockstar via GTA 5 and Red Dead Redemption (the latter of which got a performance upgrade a month later); and December gave fans an interesting soulslike and an Assassin’s Creed game inspired by the older entries. All this goes to say that, even if the other tiers stumble, Extra has been firing on all cylinders for a long time now.
While there is always a chance PS Plus breaks its streak and disappoints like Essential (or the lackluster PS Plus Premium), its track record as of late is so strong that it’s more likely for the February lineup to impress than anything else. Like PS Plus Essential, Extra is willing to explore some niche genres, and in doing so there are some gems players may discover, like the cozy PS Plus game Coral Island.
However, with PS Plus Extra, Sony always manages to deliver two or three huge, AAA experiences that appeal to wider audiences too, something that PS Plus Essential used to do in its better months. Unfortunately, it’s failed to provide that necessary spread of games as of late, leading to two fairly forgettable months in a row.
Fit the 9 games into the grid.
While the reality is that PS Plus Essential will always do somewhat well since it’s a requirement for online multiplayer in several games, surely there are some gamers who would unsubscribe from the service if it continues to disappoint. Unless you love racing games or flight sims, games like Need for Speed Unbound and Ace Combat 7 aren’t going to be worth subscribing for. PS Plus Extra shows that it’s possible to put some games on the service each month that have mass appeal while simultaneously pursuing niche interests. Hopefully, Extra can carry PS Plus on its back yet again this month, with Essential learning from its example and coming back stronger in March.
