While the main perk of being signed up for services like PlayStation Plus or Xbox Live Gold is to play multiplayer games online, both subscriptions offer other bonuses as well. This includes discounts on game purchases as well as a selection of free games that subscribers can claim for their digital libraries every month.
Now that it's July, Sony and Microsoft have fresh batches of free games in store for fans. However, some may be curious which subscription service is offering the better value between PlayStation Plus and Xbox Games with Gold.
Here are the free PS Plus and Xbox free Games with Gold games for July 2021, compared by their monetary value and critical reception.
Free PS Plus Games for July 2021
- A Plague Tale: Innocence
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 4
- WWE Battlegrounds
There were plenty of leaks about the free PS Plus games for July 2021 prior to Sony's announcement, though only one of them turned out to be true. As had been leaked weeks in advance of Sony making the big reveal, the PlayStation 5 version of A Plague Tale: Innocence is one of the free PS Plus games for July 2021. It and the other free PS Plus games for July 2021 will be available starting Tuesday, July 6 until the PlayStation Store updates on Tuesday, August 3 and replaces them with a brand new batch of free games.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is a solid addition to the lineup, and it joins Call of Duty: Black Ops 3, which PS Plus Collection on PS5. This allows PS Plus subscribers to get a more well-rounded Call of Duty experience on PlayStation consoles without having to actually purchase the games.
And finally, WWE 2K Battlegrounds rounds out the list of free PS Plus games for July 2021. WWE 2K Battlegrounds isn't the most critically-acclaimed wrestling game in recent years, but free is free.
Based on how these games are currently priced on the PlayStation Store, all together the PS Plus free games for July 2021 lineup is giving fans a roughly $150 value, which is pretty impressive to say the least.
Xbox Free Games with Gold for July 2021
- Planet Alpha (July 1 - July 31)
- Rock of Ages 3: Make & Break (July 16 - August 15)
- Conker: Live & Reloaded (July 1 - July 15)
- Midway: Arcade Origins (July 16 - July 31)
Xbox is clearly focused on saving its bug guns for the Xbox Game Pass service, hoping to get as many people signed up as possible, and as a result, the Games with Gold offerings have suffered. This is disappointing news for those that only have Xbox Live Gold and haven't bothered to sign up for Xbox Game Pass for whatever reason, but Xbox Game Pass Ultimate offers the best of both worlds. With an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription, users can get access to the free Games with Gold games in addition to all of the Game Pass games, so that's really an Xbox user can get the best value from their console.
Regardless, there's no denying that the free Games with Gold for July 2021 lineup is fairly weak. Planet Alpha, Rock of Ages 3: Make & Break, and Midway: Arcade Origins all earned middling reviews when they first launched. And even though Midway: Arcade Origins technically offers over 30 retro games for subscribers to try, the game reportedly has some issues with its controls that keep it from being all that worthwhile of a compilation.
The headlining game for the Xbox free Games with Gold July 2021 lineup is Conker: Live & Reloaded. A remake of the classic Nintendo 64 game Conker's Bad Fur Day, Conker: Live & Reloaded is one of the few Microsoft-published titles that isn't available on Xbox Game Pass. It features a brand new multiplayer mode and vastly improved graphics, though it also has more censorship than the Nintendo 64 original. Regardless, it earned mostly positive reviews when it first launched and is a solid addition to anyone's digital games library.
In terms of monetary value, Xbox has valued the Xbox free games with Gold for July 2021 at $79.96.
PS Plus vs. Games with Gold July 2021
From a monetary value standpoint, the free PS Plus games for July 2021 trounce the Xbox free Games with Gold, offering nearly double the value even with one less game. This really comes as no surprise, as Sony has consistently made an effort to ensure that its free PS Plus offerings have been top-notch, while Xbox has been completely neglecting its Games with Gold program to focus all its efforts on Xbox Game Pass.
In terms of critical reception, PS Plus has Xbox Games with Gold beat in that arena as well. While WWE 2K Battlegrounds reviews weren't all that great, both A Plague Tale: Innocence and Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 earned mostly positive reviews. None of the Xbox free Games with Gold for July 2021 games are critical darlings, and Conker: Live & Reloaded is really the only game in the lineup that earned decent reviews at all.
Based on current trends, it's quite likely that the free PS Plus games and free Xbox Games with Gold games for August 2021 will tell a similar story. Fans will have to wait a few weeks to find out for sure, though.