PlayStation Just Made 2026's Highest-Rated Game Free For Millions

PlayStation Plus Just Added The Highest-Rated Game Of 2026 Published Aug 5, 2026, 5:56 AM EDT Nicholas Becher is a gaming journalist with an MFA in Creative Writing from FAU. With extensive experience playing video games, he covers all forms of gaming content at Screen Rant, from breaking news to the latest fan theories. Most-played games range from Clair Obscur to Civ to Elden Ring to Halo 2 and beyond. PlayStation Plus has been under fire in recent months among subscribers after rolling out some controversial titles to its free monthly releases. While Sony's subscription service has still delivered the occasional standout, many fans argue the overall quality and variety of the Essential lineup has been lackluster and doesn't justify the price hikes in recent months. With expectations continuing to rise alongside the cost of a subscription, each monthly announcement now faces greater scrutiny than ever. Fortunately, despite the criticism surrounding recent offerings, August has received a wave of pretty decent titles, including Dying Light 2 Stay Human: Reloaded Edition and Signalis, both of which come highly rated among gamers. However, probably the biggest surprise addition to the PS Plus monthly lineup in August comes in the form of 2026's highest-rated game so far, which currently has a whopping 94 rating on Metacritic. The Best Rated Game Of 2026 Has Landed If you're looking for a truly unique and standout new game to play for free on PS Plus, Big Walk is the best-rated game of 2026 according to Metacritic, currently ranked above major hits such as Mina the Hollower, Forza Horizon 6, DOOM: The Dark Ages' recent Revelations expansion, and more. While Big Walk doesn't have a ton of reviews on Metacritic just yet, it's enough to show that the game is an undisputed banger, especially alongside its 87% Steam user score. While you've likely heard rumblings of Big Walk since its release earlier this year, it's a bit surprising to see it on the slate of free games for August on PS Plus. Big Walk is a quirky cooperative adventure game from the developers behind Untitled Goose Game (House House) where players essentially just team up and get lost in a massive open world together, exploring and adventuring across a seemingly endless landscape. Set out with your friends through a wide-open world full of challenges, puzzles, and discoveries. You’ll need to work together to find your way around, stay in contact using an assortment of tools and toys, and figure out new ways to communicate when you suddenly find yourself speechless. The game incorporates a unique proximity voice chat system where sounds will "fade across distances, echo down corridors, muffle through walls, and crackle through walkie-talkies," while you can also play with any number of friends ranging from doubles all the way up to 12 members of a party. You can also do random funny stuff like steal items from your friends and boot them into the ocean and run away. Big Walk Is A Hit Big Walk is inspired by the massive Australian Outback, which makes sense as it was developed by a team based out of Australia. It's highly recommended among players for how it adapts that region of the world in a truly authentic and immersive way without being a blatantly "Hey, This Is Australia!" sort of experience. The game is chock-full of interesting puzzles that require cooperation and teamwork to solve, but also allows parties to simply sit around and talk if they want to enjoy a sunset or take in the sights. It's exactly the kind of follow-up game to Untitled Goose Game that you'd expect, ripe with hilarious gameplay quirks and perfect for fans of open-world adventure games. You can officially grab it for free as part of PlayStation Plus' August lineup, and this is one that subscribers definitely should not skip. Brand Sony Original Release Date June 29, 2010 Original MSRP (USD) $59.99 (Essential), $99.99 (Extra), $119.99 (Premium) - Per Year App Store PlayStation Store