26 January 2023 , 13:35
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PS Plus subscribers are in for an extra week's wait for February 2023's freebies thanks to how calendars work.
The monthly PS Plus free games for the Essential tier are usually revealed on the last Wednesday of each month and are available on the service the following Tuesday. This is very handy information to know if you like to keep an eye on the dates for games coming and going, as we explained in our PS Plus explainer. But Wednesday has been and gone, and there's been no update on the PlayStation blog.
It's safe to assume, with next week being the last week of January, that the PS Plus games for February 2023 will be announced on Wednesday, February 1 at the usual time of 4.30pm GMT / 11.30am ET / 8.30am PT. That means we won't see the new additions land on the service until the following week, on Tuesday, February 7.
The delay isn't all bad news; you'll get extra time to play the slew of titles leaving PS Plus in February. That includes GTA: Vice City – The Definitive Edition which is on its way out and isn't available to buy outside of PS Plus. Normally, the games that PS Plus members get free access to are still able to be bought on the PS Storefront. With the release of GTA: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition players are being funnelled towards this bundle as the ability to purchase the individual titles are being – or have already been – removed.
Last chance saloon
For those of you who haven't been keeping on top of your monthly PS Plus freebies – something I've been guilty of every single time – you should grab GTA: Vice City – The Definitive Edition while you can. The only other way to play it on PS4 and PS5 currently is as part of the trilogy. And that'll cost you £54.99 / $59.99 / AU$99.95. Yikes!
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PS Plus January 2023's offerings included Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (arguably the best game since Knights of the Old Republic); Fallout 76, which is supposed to be much better than the ham-fisted mess it was when it launched in 2018; and Axiom Verge 2. Depending on your proclivities when it comes to genres, that could be considered a pretty strong selection. Personally, not my cup of tea, but we'll see what February has in store when next week rolls around.