PlayStation Plus' second biggest free game of the year is a shocker

Sony’s PlayStation Plus subscription service offers customers a wide variety of games to enjoy from AAA big-hitters to indie darlings, and much more.

In most cases, when a new game arrives on PS Plus, the likelihood is that it will be somewhat critically acclaimed or a title with a name that would garner at least some excitement, even on a small scale. However, we know that is not always the case, as recently seen with the PS Plus September 2023 line-up, which some fans considered to be so bad, that they refused to download any of the games included in the Essential tier.

Check out the Saints Row trailer below!

The games included in the PlayStation Plus Essential September 2023 tier are Black Desert - Traveler Edition, Generation Zero and the rebooted Saints Row. I must admit, while each game is subjective to the individual, this month's Essential offerings aren't all that exciting and the only reason I’d be downloading any one of them, would be to complete PlayStation Stars campaigns.

According to Metacritic, Black Desert scores 61, Generation Zero scores 45, and Saints Row also scores 61. So just by taking a look at those Metacritic scores, it’s perhaps understandable as to why many PlayStation Plus subscribers were feeling underwhelmed.

Yet, despite the Saints Row game being poorly received by fans, it’s still managed to become the second biggest inclusion on PlayStation Plus this year. Yes, really.

TrueTrophies.com reports that as of the week ending 10 September 2023, Saints Row is only being beaten by one game and it is another troubled title, none other than Battlefield 2042.

So far, the best-performing PS Plus Essential games for 2023 are:

1. Battlefield 2042 (March 2023)
2. Saints Row (September 2023)
3. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (July 2023)
4. Minecraft Dungeons (March 2023)
5. Chivalry 2 (May 2023)

In related news, PlayStation Plus members can claim six bonus free downloads now, and you only have a few more days to play this Bethesda classic. Furthermore, seemingly due to poor sales, Saints Row series developer Volition has shut down after 30 years of working in the video game industry.

Saints Row is out now on PC, PlayStation and Xbox.