The list below gathers together the very best free PS4 games you can play right now. From sprawling adventures like Genshin Impact to excellent hero shooters like Apex Legends, there are so many fantastic free PS4 games to get stuck into without having to spend a penny. Of course, it's worth noting that some of the entries in our selection to incorporate in-game monetization in the form of microtransactions, but their point of entry is open to you free-of-charge from the outset.
And while many of these picks can also be played on the PS5 thanks to backwards compatibility, there are also lots of great free PS5 games to check out too if you're playing on Sony's latest console.
So, join us as we take you through the best free PS4 games you can play right now.
The best free PS4 games are...
Splitgate
Developer: 1047 Games
Year: 2021
Splitgate isn’t quite Portal meets Halo, but it’s as close as we’re going to get minus lawsuits or big money takeovers. As a super fast-paced, free-to-play shooter, Splitgate is great fun, but what stands it apart is its sci-fi elements, namely its use of wormholes. In practice, this lets players turn battles on their head in an instant, making on-the-fly tactics and strategy absolutely key to survival. Among Splitgate’s most endearing features are its grindable challenges, dozens of customizable characters, a leaderboard and ranking system, and the choice of 20 manipulatable maps, ripe for tearing apart with time-bending portals. For all of this to be free-to-play is impressive, but the fact that Splitgate can be played cross-platform means it more than earns its place on this list.
Genshin Impact
Developer: MiHoYo
Year: 2020
MiHoYo's big open-world gacha JRPG released back in 2020, and since then it's received frequent updates and new additions to give you more reasons to jump into its world. Playing as one of two siblings of your choosing to start out with, you find yourself separated from your family. As you explore the expansive setting of Teyvat, you set out on an adventure to find answers from the gods of elements known as The Seven. You'll also be able to recruit and gain a host of different playable characters and try out a variety of different skills. The free adventure has plenty to offer, with shades of Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
Download Genshin Impact now on PSN
Call of Duty: Warzone
Developer: Activision
Year: 2020
Not only is it completely free, but Infinity Ward's epic shooter allows up to 150 players per match, supports full crossplay between console and PC, is already integrated with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, and is thus the most polished and fine-tuned battle royale experience yet.
With new modes and playlists being added every week, and the current situation in which everyone and their dog is "up for a game" right now, there's no better time to jump into Verdansk. There's even a unique Gulag system and Plunder mode, in which teams vie for Warzone's in-game Cash currency, for those who don't enjoy being thrown out of the game after their first death. What's not to love?
Download Call of Duty: Warzone now on PSN
PUBG Battlegrounds
Developer: Krafton
Year: 2017
An unnecessary name change was quickly followed by a much-welcomed format change in the world of PUBG Battlegrounds. The battle royale that in 2017 inspired the subsequent influx of battle royale games; the game which breathed new life into the genre and helped spawn modern juggernauts such as Fortnite and Apex Legends, is now free-to-play itself. Which means there's no better time to storm Erangel and its other six sprawling wargrounds in your quest for chicken dinners.
Download PUBG Battlegrounds on PSN now
Fortnite Battle Royale
Developer: Epic Games
Year: 2017
Fortnite Battle Royale continues to be a great free-to-play offering. Taking Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds’ basis of a vast, 100 player, last-man-standing shooter as its starting point, and then evolving it with natty, on-the-fly, tactical construction, Battle Royale is an instantly accessible hoot with serious long-term depth.
Parachuting into a huge, open-world island map – initially completely unarmed and entirely devoid of supplies – the opening minutes of any match are a giddy, tense scramble as you attempt to glide to a spot free of competition (but hopefully bountiful of resources), search for a weapon, and quickly smash up the environment in a bid to accrue a few of the building resources you’ll need as things heat up. As the map boundaries close in, player numbers dwindle, and base structures become ever more elaborate, a different kind of tension ramps, as the game’s demands dynamically evolve. It’s an unpredictable joy every time.
Download Fortnite Battle Royale now on PSN
Brawlhalla
Developer: Ubisoft
Year: 2017
A decidedly slick, accomplished, and even slightly more energetic take on the Smash formula, Brawlhalla presents a nonsensically eclectic cast of mythical and historical warrior archetypes – taking in Valkyries, Vikings, medieval knights, and er, ‘30s gangsters – and lets you go wild. With an increased focus on empowered air-control, and bigger scope for epic, high-flying ‘off-stage’ duels, Brawlhalla also does a good job of standing (somewhat) distinct from it inspiration. And its free-to-play model is rather friendly too, offering a limited selection of the character roster on free rotation, with earned in-game currency or real money buying the rest.
Download Brawlhalla now on PSN
Apex Legends
Developer: Respawn Entertainment
Year: 2019
One part Overwatch-style hero shooter, two parts Titanfall 2 successor, and five parts battle royale game, Respawn's surprise free-to-play FPS was so sudden in its arrival, and surprisingly good in quality, that it was originally hailed as the gaming equivalent of mana from heaven, and it plays like it too.
Meticulously devised with Respawns' trademark for fast-paced, air-tight shooting, Apex Legends is a breath of fresh air in the battle royale market, underlaying its breakneck pace with a welcome focus on squad interdependency. That, in addition to the immeasurably innovative Ping system, makes Apex Legends worth the added megabytes to your PS4 hard drive, regardless of whether you've even made a passing glance at Fortnite by this point.
Download Apex Legends now on PSN
The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit
Developer: Dontnod
Year: 2018
Even if you haven't experienced Life is Strange and its prequel Life is Strange: Before the Storm till now, The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit is well worth checking out.
A totally free, bite-size chunk of Life is Strange gameplay, as well as a precursor to the excellent Life is Strange 2, this two hour trip inside the mind of endearing seven year old Chris is a delight from beginning to end. It's not the longest game in the world, but then again, you won't have to pay a thing, and not a single minute spent with the imaginative youngster is wasted when he's such an empathetic and loveable presence. It's the perfect gateway the wonderful world of Arcadia Bay.
Download The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit now on PSN
Smite
Developer: Hi-Rez
Year: 2014
Part third-person action game, part competitive shooter, part RPG, part co-operative PvP team game, Smite takes the loose spirit of the MOBA and turns the genre in an entirely more immediate direction. You’ll earn gold and experience with which to level and enhance your character’s power and abilities, but – much like in something like Destiny – the RPG numbers mean nothing if your action skills and combat strategy aren’t up to standard.
Not that this is just about instinctive twitch play. With a current line-up of 93 playable hero deities covering ranged and melee archetypes (with separate magical and physical combat types), spread over five distinct classes, there’s a huge amount of tactical team play to get stuck into. The free-to-play model is pretty damn pleasant, too. You get five permanent gods for free when you start, and five more will cycle into the roster on a weekly basis. From then on you can buy or rent your chosen champions as you go, or pay for the full package and get access to every one that’s been released, and every one that ever will be.
The Sims 4
Developer: Maxis
Year: 2014
Yes, The Sims 4 has officially gone free-to-play, meaning you can pick up the base game right now on PS4 without having to spend anything. Of course, it's worth noting that if you want any of the many expansions to add to your Simming adventures, that will cost you. The latest Sims installment has improved a lot since it first launched, with a series of updates and additions that make it all the more worthwhile. From the joy of building your dream home with The Sims 4's intuitive building tools, it's also great fun to shape a Sims life and lead them on their journey. If you've not yet dipped into the world of The Sims 4, or you're interested to see how it plays on the PS4, there's never been a better time to get stuck in.
Realm Royale
Developer: Hi-Rez
Year: 2018
Youngling battle royale fans with a case of Fortnite fatigue need not look any further than Hi-Rez's latest free-to-play title Realm Royale. The multiplayer game hit PC in the Summer of last year, and quickly racked up an impressive audience, before moving to console with its open beta. But what makes this battle royale stand out from the rest? Chickens, for one thing. Whenever you're downed, your character has a chance to survive as a white flag waving fowl before coming back into the fold after a ten second timer.
Not only that, but Realm Royale features class-based gameplay, personal mounts, a unique arsenal of armour and weapons, and an eye-pleasing art style that makes that familiar base jump at the start of each map all the more exciting. The open beta will eventually form into a full release, and you can help Hi-Rez iron out the technical bumps in the meantime by putting Realm Royale through its paces.
Download Realm Royale now on PSN
Let it Die
Developer: Let it Die
Year: 2016
A hectic, borderline-sadistic hack-and-slash, you should only play Let it Die if you have a penchant for getting your ass handed to you. Or thrown over the other side of the room as one of its many insane bosses rips you in half in ways you didn’t know existed. No, I’m not going to compare it to that game about darkness and souls. Grinding your way through its many levels, you’ll have to beat boss after boss to make it all the way to the top of a tower that’s mysteriously risen up through the earth. On your way you’ll meet characters that look like someone pitched them based on random word combinations.
The most memorable by far is the skateboarding Uncle Death. Who wears spiral sunglasses and biker boots. He’s… interesting. There is a slim monetisation aspect to Let it Die, but you get a ton of ‘death metals’, its currency of choice (*metal horns gesture*), thrown at you after completing special events so you don’t have to drain your wallet to play. Plus each time you die your player will appear in someone else’s game as an additional enemy. So we promise all those deaths mean something. Promise.
Download Let it Die now on PSN
DC Universe Online
Developer: Daybreak Games
Year: 2011
Imagine having the whole pantheon of DC comics at your fingertips, where superheroes saunter through city streets without fear of prejudice and adventure lies around every corner. That's DC Universe Online in a nutshell; a battle-tested MMO in which players create their own superhero and battle it out in a sprawling multiplayer landscape inspired by the comic books that brought us Bats, Supes, and all the rest.
The game's over seven years old, so its visual oomph isn't as impressive at it once was, but developer Daybreak Game Company has been so committed to enriching the game with new updates and content since launch that it's hard not to be impressed by the sheer breadth of gameplay available for free. A must play for DC fans, and definitely something to try out for those on a budget, DC Universe Online is a super sized corker of a free product.
Download DC Universe Online now on PSN
H1Z1: Battle Royale
Developer: Daybreak Games
Year: 2016
To mitigate the notable lack of crowd-pleasers, Sony pulled out all the stops for the remaining 10 months of 2012. By the end of the year, the Vita gained support for the well-regarded PlayStation Plus subscription service. For $50 a year, Vita owners could download select games for free every month, with the one caveat that, should they cancel their subscriptions, access to those titles would be rescinded.
A system bundle, which included a whole year of the service along with a 4GB memory card, came out at a time when its heaviest hitters could be downloaded for free using the PlayStation Plus Instant Game Collection incentive. But by then smart phone games were evolving, Vita's reputation had been - fairly or unfairly - tarnished as something with no viable games to play, and Sony was slow to unlock its heritage of PlayStation games to help stem the bleeding. PS5 take note - while new games are pricey to produce, Sony already has a raft of older titles to lean on when that lull inevitably comes along in between PS5's launch and its second wave.
In a last-ditch effort to save the Vita from becoming the next Dreamcast, Sony was giving away a year's worth of access to Uncharted: Golden Abyss, WipEout 2048, Gravity Rush, and Unit 13 as part of this bundle. Moreover, by December, annualized best-selling franchises like Assassin's Creed and Call of Duty both had a presence on the Vita, though admittedly both Assassin's Creed 3: Liberation and Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified kind of sucked. Critically, the latter was a disaster for the Vita's reputation. If the masses were already dissuaded from buying a Vita due to a lack of triple-A blockbusters, Black Ops Declassified would cement that decision.
Paladins
Developer: Hi-Rez Studios
Year: 2016
For those who want a good hero shooter to tuck into, Paladins is the perfect substitute. Sure, it's almost criminal just how similar it is to Blizzard's multiplayer masterpiece, right down to each character's design and their respective special abilities, but Hi-Rez Studios has managed to cobble something seriously fun out of this unashamed imitation.
As a free-to-play shooter, Paladin's microtransaction store, which the progression system awkwardly pushes you towards, is hard to ignore or enjoy, but there's no pay-to-win rubbish to worry about here. It's all cosmetic, and Paladins actually has a distinguishable aesthetic to it once you're done comparing it to other shooters on the market, with a wild, energetic visual palette that's easy on the eyes and pairs well with the rambunctious PvP skirmishes. An easy choice for the shooter fan.
Warframe
Developer: Digital Extremes
Year: 2013
Cyberninjas. Does that word alone not sell you on Warframe instantly? With your main aims being assassination, looting, and trying out as many frames as possible, at first the amount to do is intimidating. You see, ‘frames’ are loadouts (in the form of different sets of armour) that determine your abilities, and therefore your playstyle. To amass different frames to try you’ll first need blueprints, which will be splurged out of bosses you defeat. Use these to buy the frame you’ve got your eye on. One will be able to teleport, another will be able to summon a frost nova or a sonic boom.
Encouraging you to play the game however you want and try out new approaches, it helps that each frame has an eye-catching design for you to yearn after. It’s outperformed usual free-to-play expectations by making it entirely possible to get to a high level of expertise without paying a single penny, though expect to grind quite a bit in the process. With over 50 million users, there’s a very active community to play too.
Fallout Shelter
Developer: Bethesda
Year: 2018 (as free on PS4)
After years of thriving on mobile devices, Bethesda took to its E3 2018 stage to announce that Fallout Shelter would be hitting the PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch consoles for free, no strings attached whatsoever. The vault management spin-off to the studio's acclaimed RPG franchise is definitely more of a mobile game than anything else, but its crafted with such dedication and whimsy by Bethesda that the translation to PlayStation 4 feels completely natural.
If you're willing to be patient, you can also completely ignore Fallout Shelter's microtransactions, which are mainly there to speed up wait times of questing beyond the vault. Before you know it, you'll be addicted to overseeing your subterranean commune, building new structures, cranking out resources, and micro-managing the populace like all the great post-apocalyptic dictators of past, present, and future.
Download Fallout Shelter now on PSN
Gwent: The Witcher Card Game
Developer: CD Project Red
Year: 2018
Though technically still in Beta (several years after being announced), CD Projekt Red has stated that Gwent: The Witcher Card Game will be free to all throughout its lifetime, and it's worth downloading now regardless of that early access status. The unexpected spin-off to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is a perspicuous and stimulating card game that CDPR originally devised as a side hobby in its adored RPG series, but the clash of wits and stats has found new life as a much loved pastime that can really steal the hours from any competitor, if they're willing to let it.
A good card game on console, let alone a free one, is a rare find these days, and anyone who's played The Witcher 3 will know that the calibre of the studio behind Gwent is enough of a reason to beam this one into your PS4 memory banks. At the very least, Gwent is just another excuse to enjoy the sights and sounds of The Witcher before its makers ever return to that world in...oh I don't know, a century's time.
Download Gwent: The Witcher Card Game now on PSN
How to choose the best free PS4 game for you
A great way to decide what the best PS4 free games are is to check out our reviews section, which will offer you our expert opinions on all the hottest PlayStation titles. Another way is to decide whether or not you want to play competitive, online games like Fortnite, or if you need games that don't require an internet connection so you can hook up the machine anywhere without having to worry about lag.
Look ahead to future releases with our roundup of upcoming PS4 games and upcoming PS5 games.
