9 January 2026

PS Plus Free Games for January 2026 Set Up 3 Targets and Hit Them All

By newsgame

PlayStation Plus set a very high bar for itself in 2025, at least when it comes to the games offered for free via PS Plus Essential. 2025 saw acclaimed titles like Alan Wake 2, Psychonauts 2, and Lies of P come to PlayStation Plus’ Essential tier, along with smaller hits like High on Life, Stray, and Viewfinder. PS Plus also ended 2025 with a bang, delivering a total of five free games in December, including LEGO Horizon Adventures, Killing Floor 3, and The Outlast Trials, among others.

Naturally, there was a lot of pressure on PlayStation Plus to knock it out of the park with its free games for January 2026. To some fans, PS Plus didn’t quite live up to the lofty expectations this month. But with three very different titles currently available, PlayStation Plus’ January 2026 free games have targeted three specific audiences that are sure to embrace at least some of what’s on offer this month, with those groups likely to be satisfied.

Best Local Co-Op & Split-Screen Games On PlayStation Plus

PlayStation Plus has something for everyone, and that includes great couch co-op and split-screen games. Here are the absolute best on Sony’s service.

PS Plus Essential Free Game for January 2026: Need for Speed Unbound

Target One: The Casual Racing Fan

Probably the most divisive PlayStation Plus free game for January 2026, Need for Speed Unbound was originally released back in December 2022. Along with being an older game, some PS Plus subscribers are disappointed with Need for Speed Unbound‘s inclusion this month because it was available on PS Plus Extra and Premium up until August 2024. In other words, PS Plus is double-dipping with games again, and many fans would have already played it on PS Plus.

That said, Need for Speed Unbound is still a solid game that many casual fans of the racing genre would appreciate having in their PlayStation library. Need for Speed Unbound is sitting at a 75 Top Critic Average on OpenCritic, meaning it’s far from the best-reviewed entry in the Need for Speed franchise, but it’s also very far from the worst. Generally speaking, critics didn’t think Unbound did much to push the series forward, but its art style was vibrant and its gameplay mechanics were thoroughly polished. That makes it more than worthy of a few hours of playtime, especially via PS Plus.

Need for Speed Unbound marked Criterion Games’ long-awaited return to the franchise following its final entry in 2012: Need for Speed: Most Wanted. As can be expected from a Criterion-developed Need for Speed game, Unbound features a lively open world filled with side activities and collectibles, along with an extensive suite of customization options for a plethora of distinct vehicles. While hardcore racing game fans might not gel with Unbound‘s fast-paced, arcade-y driving mechanics, casual racing genre fans can easily lose themselves in the game’s thoroughly enjoyable story and multiplayer modes.

Need for Speed Unbound Tag Page Cover Art

Released: December 2, 2022
ESRB: Teen
Publisher(s): Electronic Arts

PS Plus Essential Free Game for January 2026 – Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed

Target Two: Family-Friendly Platformer Fans

A remake of the 2010 Nintendo Wii exclusive, Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed is an engaging 3D platformer that’s perfect for slightly younger gamers while still having plenty to enjoy for older audiences. As its name suggests, players take on the role of Mickey Mouse himself, who’s tasked with saving the world with a magic paintbrush. Gameplay sees players hopping through a variety of Disneyland-inspired environments, bringing life to the world around them via painting, and using paint thinner to defeat enemies and remove obstacles.

The original 2010 version of Epic Mickey earned a mixed reception from critics, but the 2024 remake achieved a slightly warmer reception, with it sitting at a 77 Top Critic Average on OpenCritic. Most critics considered Epic Mickey: Rebrushed to be a sizable improvement over the original, with it streamlining some of the 2010 game’s more frustrating gameplay elements while adding to the game’s charm via new Easter eggs and references. Given Epic Mickey: Rebrushed‘s source material, vibrant aesthetic, charming world-building, and relatively simple gameplay mechanics, it’s a great game for younger gamers who are looking to try their hand at 3D platformers, and for older players looking for a hefty hit of nostalgia.

Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed Tag Page Cover Art

Released: September 24, 2024
ESRB: Everyone 10+ // Fantasy Violence
Developer(s): Purple Lamp

PS Plus Essential Free Game for January 2026: Core Keeper

Target Three: Survival Crafting Sandbox Fans

By far the most critically acclaimed game in PlayStation Plus Essentials’ January 2026 line-up (currently sitting at an 87 Top Critic Average on OpenCritic), Core Keeper is a sandbox crafting survival game that shouldn’t just appeal to fans of the genre but should also interest fans of games like Stardew Valley and Terraria. Released onto Steam Early Access in March 2022 and given a full 1.0 launch in August 2024, Core Keeper is played from a top-down perspective and sees players exploring a procedurally-generated underground world filled with fantastical hazards and otherworldly architecture.

Core Keeper is getting an official Nintendo Switch 2 Edition on January 28, 2026, coinciding with the release of the ‘Void & Voltage’ update that will be available on all platforms.

Similar to games like Minecraft and Ark, the general goal of Core Keeper is to continue crafting increasingly more elaborate tools so that players can keep exploring and mining the environment around them, and in turn receive more valuable resources that are then needed to craft better gear. It’s a simple gameplay loop that’s been well-worn over the last decade or so, but Core Keeper manages to keep things fresh by delivering some pulse-pounding combat and boss fights, offering a rewarding and consistent sense of progression, and wrapping it all up in a gorgeous pixel art style.

The cherry on Core Keeper‘s cake is that the entire game is also playable in 2–8 player drop in/drop out online co-op. Getting new multiplayer experiences for free via PlayStation Plus is always a positive thing, especially when they’re a game like Core Keeper, which feels tailor-made for bite-sized, laid-back gaming sessions with friends and loved ones.