Octopus Overlords

Posted: **Wed Nov 25, 2015 1:19 pm**

...and I just became aware that you can claim the XBone titles if you don't have an XBone, and they will be there if you ever get one.

I'm still trying to decide whether to keep my Gold membership.

Posted: **Wed Nov 25, 2015 3:24 pm**

Playstation Plus for December:

Vita:

Rocketbirds: Hardboiled Chicken
Freedom Wars

PS3:

SSX
Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon

PS4:

Gauntlet: Slayer Edition
King’s Quest — Chapter 1: A Knight to Remember

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Video overview

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These should be available on December 2nd.

At least one great game in there - Blood Dragon, although I've already played it.

King's Quest is supposed to be good, but I have no idea if that is just the first chapter, or the whole shebang.

Rocketbirds got good reviews, but isn't really my type of game.

Freedom Wars got lukewarm reviews. It looks to be an action RPG, so I may give it a whirl eventually. It isn't like there are a lot of other choices for the Vita (I'd gladly trade it for a 3DSXL if I could.)

Gauntlet also got mediocre reviews, mostly calling it tedious and repetitive. There are much better games to spend my time with.

SSX - this isn't at all in my area of interest. Sports games just aren't my thing.

Posted: **Wed Nov 25, 2015 6:26 pm**

Chrisoc13 wrote:Thief. Now that is something I actually want. There have been a small handful of good free games with live so far. Tomb raider I still need to play.

I traded Thief in after playing a handful of missions while it was still worth something. For free I might give it another shot.

Posted: **Thu Nov 26, 2015 7:28 pm**

Wow the PS4 offerings (or lack thereof) are utter shite.

Posted: **Thu Nov 26, 2015 8:13 pm**

Yup. Being a PlayStation Plus subscriber is a thankless job.

Posted: **Thu Nov 26, 2015 9:14 pm**

I might have to figure out what free games I've downloaded on my account and see if I can live without them if I cancel my membership. Or start to play some multiplayer.

Posted: **Thu Dec 17, 2015 3:18 pm**

Smoove_B wrote:
On Xbox One, Xbox Live Gold members can download The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing ($14.99 ERP) for free during the month of December. Thief ($29.99 ERP) will be available as a free download from December 16th to January 15th.

On Xbox 360, starting Tuesday, 01 December, Castlestorm ($9.99 ERP) will be free for Xbox Live Gold members through December 15th. Then on December 16th, Xbox Live Gold Members can download Sacred 3 ($19.99 ERP) for free through December 31st. And as an extra gift for the holidays, Gold members can get Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising for free from December 16-31.

We're into Thief/Sacred 3/Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising days.

Posted: **Thu Dec 17, 2015 4:10 pm**

I will download Thief and never play it like a good little customer.

Posted: **Mon Dec 21, 2015 10:52 pm**

On Xbox One, Xbox Live Gold members can download Killer Instinct: Season 1 Ultra Edition ($39.99 ERP) for free during the month of January. Zheros will be available as a free download from January 16th to February 15th.

On Xbox 360, starting Friday, 01 January, DiRT Showdown ($14.99 ERP) will be free for Xbox Live Gold members through January 15th. Then on January 16th, Xbox Live Gold Members can download Deus Ex: Human Revolution ($14.99 ERP) for free through January 31st.

Posted: **Tue Dec 22, 2015 11:50 am**

I don't have an xBox. Are these free downloads permanent, like Origins give aways, or temporary, like free to play weekends on steam? Will MS revoke access to these games at some point?

Posted: **Tue Dec 22, 2015 12:00 pm**

Anything is possible and eventually I'm guessing they'll be free games you can't access because no one makes an Xbox360 anymore and the One might not have 100% backwards compatibility. You'd still need to be paying the $30+ annual gold membership fee to associate each of these titles with your account, but once you do, they're yours forever*.

In short - you can activate them and associate them with your Xbox/Xbone account but like the man says:

‘All conditioned things are impermanent’ — when one sees this with wisdom, one turns away from suffering.

Posted: **Tue Dec 22, 2015 4:12 pm**

Thanks. Wasn't sure about the nature of the word "free" in this case.

Posted: **Tue Dec 22, 2015 4:20 pm**

Not free by any definition. You have to have a subscription to claim it and you have to have a subscription to download it. Once you have claimed it, though, you will have access to it for as long as the console in question has service (or until you delete it, at which point you have to be subscribed again to re-download it.)

You can also claim titles for systems which you do not own. They just go into your library until such a time as you get said system.

Posted: **Tue Dec 22, 2015 7:34 pm**

they are free in the sense that if you already have Xbox live they are free. I have a hard time believing anyone gets live for the free games. But yeah you have to subscribe to live. I've anyways had Xbox live for multiplayer gaming so for me they feel totally free.

Posted: **Tue Dec 22, 2015 9:12 pm**

Chrisoc13 wrote:I have a hard time believing anyone gets live for the free games.

That would actually be me.

And I know as soon as I stop re-upping my annual membership they're going to start giving away good games. I try to spend ~$30 on a pre-paid 12 month gold card, though I'm not quite 100% sure I'm getting my $30 back in gaming value at this point.

Posted: **Tue Dec 22, 2015 9:20 pm**

Yeah, I didn't mean to make things confusing. I just wanted to know if once you have the game attached to your account, whether it would always be attached to your account (and thus playable in the future).

The answer seems to be yes, so thanks for the info.

I was curious if it was a "free trial offer" or "free", I guess.

Posted: **Sun Dec 27, 2015 11:33 pm**

Chrisoc13 wrote:I have a hard time believing anyone gets live for the free games.

I used to subscribe to XBox live just for the gold-only discounts. If you get Live on sale, it's only $40/year, and I save more than that with the sales. The giveaway games are a nice bonus now.

As for the giveaway games themselves, it works differently on the 360 and the XBO. On 360, once you've "bought" the free game, it's yours to keep just as if you had paid for it. You can download and play it anytime, even if you cancel Gold. On XBO, you must be currently subscribed to Gold to play or download the game.

Posted: **Sat Jan 30, 2016 2:53 pm**

For the Xbox One "Hand of Fate" is free in the entire month of February, while "Styx: Master of Shadows" will be downloadable for free from Feb. 16 to March 15.

The Xbox 360 free deals are the "Sacred Citadel" from Feb. 1 to Feb. 15 and "Gears of War 2" from Feb. 16 to Feb. 29

Posted: **Tue Feb 23, 2016 5:32 pm**

For Xbox One:
Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishment (March 1-31)
Lords of the Fallen (March 16-April 15)

For Xbox360:
Supreme Commander 2 (March 1-15)
Borderlands (March 16-31)

Posted: **Wed Feb 24, 2016 3:24 pm**

And PS+ subscribers will be getting Pong.

Posted: **Wed Feb 24, 2016 3:38 pm**

hepcat wrote:And PS+ subscribers will be getting Pong.

The sad thing is I actually had to look it up to make sure that you were joking. I mean, I figured you were, but with PS+ you never know...

Here's the PS+ Pong announcement.

Posted: **Wed Feb 24, 2016 4:23 pm**

...I think I'd rather have Pong.

Posted: **Wed Feb 24, 2016 6:08 pm**

Geeze, that's awful. Again. Two years ago we were getting Tomb Raider, Metro: Last Light, Bioshock Infinite, Kingdoms of Amalur, that sort of thing.

Now we get mobile games (well, sarcastically speaking.)

Posted: **Thu Mar 24, 2016 11:47 am**

Xbox One

The Wolf Among Us (April 1-30)
Sunset Overdrive (April 16-May 15)

Xbox 360

Dead Space (April 1-15)
Saints Row IV (April 16-30)

Posted: **Wed Apr 13, 2016 11:12 am**

PS4 users get "The Shaft"

...again

Posted: **Wed Apr 13, 2016 11:47 am**

hepcat wrote:PS4 users get "The Shaft"

...again

Next month: two copies of The Ball. Share one with a friend!

Posted: **Tue Apr 26, 2016 10:03 pm**

On Xbox One, Xbox Live Gold members can download Defense Grid 2 ($14.99 ERP) for free during the month of May. Costume Quest 2 ($14.99 ERP) will be available as a free download from May 16th to June 15th.

On Xbox 360, starting Sunday, 01 May, GRID 2 ($24.99 ERP) will be free for Xbox Live Gold members through May 15th. Then on May 16th, Xbox Live Gold Members can download Peggle ($9.99 ERP) for free through May 31st.

Now that production has officially ended on new Xbox360 units, I wonder how much longer they'll be giving away free games. Prediction: December 2016

Posted: **Thu Apr 28, 2016 4:09 pm**

Full PSN+ Lineup, May 2016

Bionic Commando Rearmed 2, PS3
God of War: Ghost of Sparta, PS Vita
LocoRoco Cocoreccho!, PS3
Switch Galaxy Ultra, PS4, PS Vita
Table Top Racing: World Tour, PS4
Tropico 5, PS4

Posted: **Mon May 02, 2016 12:25 pm**

Another pile of turds for PS+. Ever since the PS4 came out they have been releasing garbage. Which is crappy considering they require PS+ for online now. Blech... I guess Tropico isn't bad, but that's not something I would want to play on the PS4.

Posted: **Mon May 02, 2016 12:38 pm**

Tropico 5 isn't that bad. At least this month I may actually play the free game they give me.

Posted: **Mon May 02, 2016 2:26 pm**

Really happy with the last two xb1 months. Sunset overdrive is something I've been waiting to play. And defense grid 2 is great. Xb has picked it up with the free games. Hopefully they keep it up.

Posted: **Mon May 02, 2016 3:48 pm**

I just picked up an xbox one because I wanted to take advantage of the upcoming OTA DVR capability coming in one of the next updates. I'll probably grab a Live Gold subscription so I can finally feel what it's like to get something other than free games from 27 years ago!

Posted: **Tue May 24, 2016 9:35 pm**

On Xbox One, Xbox Live Gold members can download Goat Simulator ($9.99 ERP) for free during the month of June. The Crew ($29.99 ERP) will be available as a free download from June 16th to July 15th.

On Xbox 360, starting Wednesday, 01 June, Super Meat Boy ($14.99 ERP) will be free for Xbox Live Gold members through June 15th. Then on June 16th, Xbox Live Gold Members can download XCOM: Enemy Unknown ($39.99 ERP) for free through June 30th.

Posted: **Tue May 31, 2016 1:11 pm**

PS+ free games this month are Gone Home and NBA2k16. Finally two games that I'm actually interested in!

Posted: **Tue May 31, 2016 2:41 pm**

The full list:

PS4

NBA 2K16
Gone Home: Console Edition

PS3

Echochrome
Siren: Blood Curse (Episodes 1-12)

Vita

God of War: Chains of Olympus
Little Deviants

-----------------

The games actually are a little better this time.

Unfortunately, none of them really appeal to me. Gone Home was great, but I've played it, and I have no interest in sports games. Echochrome is another stylistic indie puzzle game, Siren seems to be a horror/stealth game (another genre I have no interest in), Little Deviants is an arcade title. God of War is a PSP-to-Vita port. It got great reviews, although I've never been able to finish a God of War title.

So no real criticisms for the games or their choice of lineup this time - the games are good, just not a good fit for me.

Posted: **Mon Jun 06, 2016 11:14 am**

My annual Live! subscription expires in a few days. I've had it for several years, but I don't know if I'm going to renew. One one hand, I've already got the money. I put back a set amount every month for Live! and PS+ so that I'll have the amount ready when they come due every year. I may get an XB1 someday (but have no current plans to do so), so the free games aren't an awful thing.

On the other hand, I could add the $45 I'd be paying for the subscription back into my budget (or maybe put some of it back for the upcoming Steam sale

) and probably wouldn't even notice the Live! being gone.

Posted: **Wed Jun 08, 2016 5:12 pm**

Blackhawk wrote: Echochrome is another stylistic indie puzzle game

have you yet tried it? i actually thought it was one of the best of the small-scale titles on the PS3/PSP. the 'perspective puzzle' concept was wholly new at the time it was released (and several games have since copied it).

Posted: **Wed Jun 29, 2016 11:36 pm**

Well, I let my XBox Live! Gold account expire. I just can't justify paying for it. Since the PS4 hit, the only multiplayer stuff that I used it for was when my kids wanted to play Halo: Reach multiplayer, and their new requirement that every single player on the 360 pay for a separate account nullified that. I'll consider resubbing if I ever get an XBone, although I don't know how likely that is.

Anyway, PS+ for July:

PS4
~Saints Row: Gat out of Hell
~Furi

PS3
~Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood
~Fat Princess

PS Vita
~Prince of Persia: Revelation
~Oreshika: Tainted Bloodlines

--------------------------------
It's late, and I'm a little tired, so I'm not looking these all up right now, but I do find it kind of annoying that they're giving away the epilogue to Saint's Row 4 without having given us Saint's Row 4. It makes it far less appealing to play.

Posted: **Thu Jun 30, 2016 8:08 am**

I let both my PS+ and Xbox Live! Gold memberships expire, and honestly I haven't missed either of them. I never play multiplayer, and I've got more than enough games to worry about without downloading free ones. I keep telling myself that as soon as they release a free game that's a must own then I'll consider resubscribing, but so far it's been almost a year and that hasn't happened.

Posted: **Thu Jun 30, 2016 8:44 am**

Without PS+ will my games update and keep my saves and everything. I keep putting off The Last of Us now because I dont have my membership and Im afraid Ill miss something if I play without it.

Octopus Overlords

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