With new games arriving on PS Plus this August, including Giant Squid’s much anticipated Sword of the Sea, attention naturally turns towards the games leaving PS Plus.
Games Leaving PS Plus in September
This list mostly consists of smaller titles, but there are several well-regarded indies among them:
- UFC 5 (PS5)
- The Plucky Squire (PS5)
- Night in the Woods (PS5, PS4)
- Road 96 (PS5, PS4)
- Pistol Whip (PSVR2)
- Odin Sphere: Leifthrasir (PS4)
- F.I.S.T.: Forged in Shadow Torch (PS5, PS4)
- Dragon’s Crown Pro (PS4)
Three of these in particular have garnered a positive critical reception that makes them worth checking out before they leave PS Plus.
Night in the Woods
2017 might be best known for all-time greats like Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey, but even among those titans, the indie Kickstarter adventure game Night in the Woods manages to stand out.
Set in the town of Possum Springs, this game takes place in a world of zoomorphic characters that’s ultimately very similar to our own, and it leverages both the silliness and familiarity of that setting to tell an emotionally resonant story about feeling lost and at a crossroads.
With the studio’s follow-up being cancelled in 2023, it’s unclear if there will ever be more for the world of Night in the Woods.
Road 96
Set in the fictional authoritarian country of Petria in 1996 on the eve of a decisive election, Road 96 uses procedural generation to tell a story about teenagers attempting to flee the country.
Despite the use of randomised elements, the story is very much the focus of this experience, and light survival-esque mechanics help to reinforce the importance of the narrative decisions that the player makes, helping them to guide the outcome.
In fact, the story is so much the focus that this is something to be aware of going in. Even though mini-games are present, they are there to add variety and support the story rather than to provide real mechanical challenge.
Pistol Whip
While VR games might not regularly top the ‘must-play’ lists, there are several titles to come out of the technology that speak to what it’s capable of.
Many people might think of Half Life: Alyx as being a prime example of this, but Pistol Whip is another one, even if it flew somewhat under the radar.
With movement taken out of the player’s control, they’re free to focus on aiming and firing the gun through intense and heavily-stylised levels, creating an addictive and adrenaline-charged experience.
