Streets of Rage 4, both a sequel and love letter to the Sega Genesis’ classic side-scrolling beat-em-up, headlines PlayStation Plus Essential’s free offerings in June. It’s joined by AEW Fight Forever, last year’s pro wrestling simulation, and SpongeBob Squarepants: The Cosmic Shake.
These three games will be available from June 4 to July 2. Additionally, EA Sports FC 24, the latest edition in what was formerly known as the FIFA series, is still available until June 18. It was part of the May lineup of games (Ghostrunner 2, Tunic, and the Destiny 2: Lightfall expansion), which may still be claimed up to June 4.
First, the free games:
Streets of Rage 4
Streets of Rage 4, by dotemu, launched in 2020 and was widely hailed by critics. It might be a relatively short experience, but it stays faithful to the originals’ memorable gameplay style (especially when the cop car rolls up to nuke everyone) while updating its visuals for present day. It was nominated for Best Action Game at The Game Awards 2020.
AEW Fight Forever
AEW Fight Forever is the second act for Yuke’s, which had developed the WWE Smackdown vs. Raw and WWE 2K series until 2K Sports and Visual Concepts took full control in 2019. All Elite Wrestling, a promotion challenging the WWE’s singular dominance in the U.S. market, was founded the same year. The game drew middling reviews, though critics did praise individual elements, particularly those unique to the harder-edge antics of real-life AEW.
SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake
SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake, a 3D platformer by Purple Lamp and THQ Nordic, also launched in 2023. It’s a spiritual successor to 2003’s SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom, another platformer that sold very well and gained a cult following.
Days of Play begins May 29
The three free games are part of Sony’s eighth annual Days of Play celebration, which runs May 29 through June 12 and offers a lot more content as well as community activities and challenges, as well as discounts through the PlayStation Store and PlayStation Direct (which ships hardware and boxed games). The official Days of Play announcement page has much more information.
It’s also when Sony Interactive Entertainment usually holds a showcase of what will be coming to PlayStation in the next year, somewhat like the old E3 presentations. No such event has been confirmed yet, and it may simply be a smaller scale State of Play broadcast, but keep your ears up for announcements as they might come soon.
