Destiny 2
Credit: Bungie
You're stuck inside, and time is wearing on. The coronavirus crisis has literal billions of people around the world on lockdown, cooped up and cut off from the usual sources of work and entertainment. Video games, however, work as well as ever. They can be a great source of distraction, engagement, and even socialization in these difficult times, at least if you're quarantined without young kids and actually have time to play them. Even if you haven't a played a game in a long time, you might want to consider picking some up: all you need is a PC, even a weak one, a phone or a console. The public health crisis has come hand-in-hand with an economic crisis, however, and so you this might not be the moment to pick up some expensive new purchases. So if you're looking to game on a budget, here are some of your best options for free and cheap titles.
Free-to-Play Games: We all know the formula: free-to-play but you pay extra for bonuses. If you haven't checked in for a while, however, you might have missed that free-to-play design has come a long, long way since Farmville and there are some excellent titles out there that you can play without paying a dime. There are way, way too many to list here, but these are some excellent examples:
Destiny 2: New Light: One of the best shooters in the industry is free-to-play. This is what the people that created Halo are working on now, and it's built on tight shooter fundamentals, satisfying guns and, by this point, a huge amount of content to work through, even if you don't choose to pay extra. It's a little obtuse, so look for a guide if you're a new player. PC, console Warframe: Often compared to Destiny 2, Warframe is both an excellent loot-based combat game and every bit its own thing. It's a little wonky and a lot silly, but the fast-paced action of cosplaying an acrobatic immortal space ninja. It's hard to capture just what makes Warframe tick, but that's the beauty of free-to-play: just go try it. PC Battle Royale: The battle royale genre made massive by Fortnite is largely built on the free-to-play model. So go ham on these: the biggest examples are Fortnite, PUBG Mobile, Apex Legends and Call of Duty: Warzone. PC, Console and Mobile MOBAs: They're called "Multiplayer Online Battle Arenas", a genre that started as a spin-off of Warcraft 3 and went on to become of the dominant forces in the world of competitive gaming. They can be dense. But you've got time now, so try out League of Legends, DOTA 2 and Heroes of the Storm. Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty: Sure, you need to pay extra to get the two expansions to this game, but there's more than enough meat on the original campaign. Starcraft 2 is an engrossing title whether you play single-player, co-operative and multiplayer, and it requires intense focus to really maximize your capabilities. Intense focus is good these days. PC Hearthstone: Don't want to shoot things? Try a card game instead. Hearthstone is the flagship title in the card game genre, letting you try out strategic battles with other players as you try to outflank each other with cards representing Warcraft characters and creatures. Think Magic: The Gathering, if you haven't been around the space in a while. PC, Mobile Clash Royale: Most major mobile games are free-to-play, so you've got lots of choices there. But I'll pick out Clash Royale, a tense multiplayer game from the people that brought you Clash of Clans. You have to deploy various troops to try to take out your opponents base while defending your own, and it quickly evolves into a devilishly deep game of counters, deceptions, defeats and victories. It will suck you in quickly and keep you there. It will make you get so angry at your opponent that you might, briefly, stop being angry at those other things. Mobile Fortnite
Credit: Epic Games
Epic Games: If you have a PC or Mac, you should download the Epic Games launcher. You might already have done so, if you or someone who uses your computer plays Fortnite. Regardless, the Epic Games store offers at least one free game every week, no questions asked. You're obviously limited by what's on offer, but there's no reason not to click "buy".
Sea of Thieves
Credit: Microsoft
Subscriptions: Here we move to the "cheap" portion of the post. Subscriptions aren't free, or they wouldn't work all that well, but they are some of the best ways to get more games than you could ever play for a relatively low price.
Xbox Game Pass: The champ here. For $10 a month you get a ton of excellent games, including all of Microsoft's first-party titles. There are more games here than you could ever play in the time given, so go all the way to town. Works on Xbox and PC, and you can do both along with an Xbox Live Gold subscription for $14.99 a month. EA Access/Origin Access: Better for sports fans than anyone else, but not bad for others too. $4.99 a month for a bunch of games. Ubisoft: Want to spend your time hopping through historical eras stabbing people in the throat? The Assassin's Creed games are my favorite Ubisoft titles, but there are plenty of other things here too, from Rainbow Six Siege to medieval fighting sim For Honor and open world shooter Far Cry. $14.99 a month gets you a lot, but not quite as much as Game Pass. Apple Arcade: I feel like people stopped talking about this a week after it came out, but Apple Arcade is pretty good! $4.99 a month for a ton of curated, high-quality mobile games with no microtransactions. Google Play Pass: Honestly, I have no idea about this, I've got an iPhone. But it exists, and it's $4.99 a month. Humble: Here, you get to donate to help fight Coronavirus and pick up some games. Pay $30 to get an absolute ton of excellent games with proceeds going to charity.
This is an especially good option for those that only have a work laptop or other PC that isn't really geared for gaming, with a ton of low-spec games.
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