10 Upcoming Free-To-Play Games People Are Excited For

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10 Upcoming Free-To-Play Games People Are Excited For

 Free-to-play games sound fantastic on paper and can serve as a way to keep someone entertained in between premium products. Plenty of titles showcase this model's potential, and this selection is set to expand significantly over the coming months and years. What are the most highly-anticipated new free games announced for 2024 or beyond? At the moment, there are not all that many no-cost projects with confirmed release dates; however, several games are in the pipeline, and they could very well debut over the next few months.

 Updated August 3, 2024 by Mark Sammut: July 2024 will go down as one of the biggest months for free games ever. Zenless Zone Zero, The First Descendant, and Once Human all had successful launches, garnering healthy player bases and quite a bit of praise. They were not all equal – The First Descendant attracted way more criticism than the other two – but they all seem to have found places in the wider gaming climate. Another month like July is unlikely to happen anytime soon, but there are plenty of exciting upcoming free games that are worth keeping an eye on.

1 - Throne And Liberty

- Epic MMORPG

- Platform(s) PC , PS5 , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S

Released September 17, 2024 Developer NCSoft

- Anyone into MMORPGs has likely heard of NCSoft. The company and its subsidiaries are responsible for Guild Wars 2, Blade & Soul, Lineage, and WildStar; sure, not all those projects can be classified as roaring successes, but they nevertheless showcase the developer's expertise Throne and Liberty is shaping up to be among NCSoft's most ambitious projects to date, especially since the MMORPG has been in development for more than a decade by this point.

- Following countless delays, the game has finally reached a state when a release date can be announced, with the MMORPG dropping on September 17, 2024. Throne and Liberty should include traditional quests, a weather system, and a mechanic that permits players to transform into animals. Beyond that, the title focuses on guild-based conflicts, with players trying to spread their chosen group's influence across the nation. Marketed as PvPvE, Throne and Liberty looks set to target quite a wide range of gameplay styles; hopefully, it proves to be successful.

2 - Smite 2

- A Popular MOBA Gets An Unreal Engine 5 Upgrade

- Platform(s) PC , PS5 , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S

- Released August 27, 2024 Developer(s) Titan Forge Games

- With early access set to launch in July 2024, Smite 2 should be a very big deal, especially since its predecessor is still a popular MOBA. However, the reaction to the game's announcement was somewhat muted, with the tone being almost defined by confusion rather than excitement. That's not to say Titan Forge and Hi-Rez's sequel looks bad, as it seems to be an evolution of the original Smite that comes with a notable graphical upgrade thanks to the use of Unreal Engine 5  When it debuts, Smite 2 should be among the genre's most accessible representatives, and a fresh start might help attract newcomers who feel too intimidated to jump into the 10-year-old original game.

Still, Smite 2 does not seem to be all that different from its predecessor. Going on the currently available information, the upgrade appears to be more in line with Counter-Strike 2's improvements instead of a traditional sequel  Hi-Rez has confirmed that the first game will not be shutting down to coincide with its successor's debut, a decision that might discourage fans from swapping products. At the same time, one has to assume the clock is ticking on Smite's life.

3 - Marvel Rivals

(Super)Hero Shooter

Platform(s) PC , PS5 , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S

Developer(s) NetEase Games

Marvel Rivals ' open beta ends on August 5, 2024.

Coming to PC and consoles, Marvel Rivals brings together some of the most famous comic characters and throws them into an Overwatch-style game, with matches pitting two teams of six against each other. Heroes like Spider-Man, Black Panther, Iron Man, and Hulk have been confirmed, and there will even be a couple of villains (or anti-heroes) like Venom, Loki, and Magneto All-in-all, the confirmed roster is impressive and covers a reasonable range of properties, even if most of the inclusions are mainstream (except for Magik and Peni Parker, both of which are surprising picks). From the footage shown so far and the beta impressions, Marvel Rivals' gameplay should be hectic, fast-paced, and fun, with the characters' unique abilities seemingly shining through.

4 - Arena Breakout Infinite

     Extraction Shooter

Platform(s) PC

Developer(s) Morefun Studios

Launching a beta period in May 2024, Arena Breakout: Infinite has been gathering steam in recent weeks, hopefully paving the way for a successful full debut in the future. An extraction shooter that shares similarities with projects like Escape from Tarkov, the game aims for realism in its presentation, weapon customization, and gun feedback, which tends to be the case with these sorts of titles ,The beta version shows promise, particularly in its visuals, quality-of-life ideas, and weapon options; however, the game is fairly rough around the edges in places and does not seem to contain too many new ideas. However, betas are specifically designed to promote player feedback, so Arena Breakout could and should improve in the coming months.

5 - Blue Protocol

  Bandai's Anime Action JRPG

Platform(s) PC , PS5 , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S

Released 2024

Developer Bandai Namco Studios

Set to be published by Amazon Games, Blue Protocol is an anime-style JRPG with real-time combat and a weapon-based class system. Announced at the 2022 Game Awards, Bandai Namco's project promises to offer customization, a large world to explore, multiplayer gameplay, and a detailed storyline So far, Blue Protocol has showcased beautiful visuals, fun hack and slash combat, and a good amount of variety via its five classes. As an MMORPG, the game includes dungeons that players will be able to take on either solo or with a team. With titles like Tales of Arise and Scarlet Nexus under its belt, Bandai Namco definitely knows how to piece together a fun action RPG.

6 - Tom Clancy's The Division Resurgence

Mobile Third-Person Shooter

Platform(s) Android , iOS

Released 2024

Developer(s) Ubisoft

While Ubisoft canceled Heartland, a free-to-play The Division game that was fairly hyped up for a while, the publisher seems set to release a mobile game set in the same universe. Resurgence looks to adapt the franchise's MMO structure for Android and iOS devices, delivering similar third-person shooter gunplay, missions, exploration, and loot. Returning to New York, the setting for the first game in the series, the upcoming free game will also feature an open-world that supports both PvE and PvP content, with the latter coming courtesy of the Dark Zone , The former will include a brand-new campaign and storyline that focuses on the early days of the virus' spread, casting players as early members of the Strategic Homeland Division.Going on the beta footage released so far, Tom Clancy's The Division: Resurgence looks pretty promising, especially for a mobile device. While the pre-release gameplay shows some stutter, that could be ironed out by the time the final product launches; even then, the game still looks good in its current state. The Division has kind of a weird reputation. Despite not being as talked about as some other live-service projects like Destiny 2, the franchise has been largely successful, and The Division 2 is still quite active.

7 - ARC Raiders

From The Developer Behind The Finals

Embark is really knocking things out of the park when it comes to upcoming free games. Naturally, it remains to be seen whether these projects live up to the hype, but The Finals has already proven it has more to offer than just empty promises. Arc Raiders appears to be a bit further away from completion than the developer's other project, although the game has had a fairly successful closed beta ,Extraction shooters are an acquired taste, and the subgenre is very niche compared to other types of multiplayer games on the market. Still, titles like Hunt: Showdown and Deep Rock: Galactic demonstrate its potential, and ARC Raiders' free-to-play nature might attract a new audience that has largely ignored these projects.

8 - Path Of Exile 2

Sequel To One Of The Best Free Games

Platform(s) PC , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S , PS5

Developer(s) Grinding Gear Games

Grinding Gear's Path of Exile enjoyed its 10-year anniversary in 2023, and the game is still among the best free-to-play options on the market. Presented as an alternative to Diablo, the isometric action RPG delivers stellar customization, gameplay, and a lot of content that can be enjoyed without requiring any cash investment. Path of Exile prides itself on not being pay-to-win, and the developer has generally stuck to that commitment. Now, the sequel is on the horizon, and it is shaping up to be an exciting expansion of an already beloved hack and slash dungeon crawlerGenerally, when an upcoming free project vows to deliver the stars and moon, skepticism should be the natural reaction; however, Grinding Gear's words are backed by years of generally good work. Therefore, when Path of Exile 2's Steam description promotes a six-act campaign and extensive endgame content in the form of 100+ maps with unique boss fights, there is a chance that the final product might actually deliver on these promises. The sequel will also feature 12 base classes, 36 Ascendancy classes, a skill gem system, and hundreds of unique equipment.

9 - Arknights: Endfield

   Landing On PC

Platform(s) Android , iOS , PC , PS5

Developer(s) Hypergryph

Debuting in 2019 on mobile devices, Arknights is nowadays well established as one of the industry's most famous projects. It was even successful enough to warrant an anime adaptation, and the franchise looks set to continue its expansion with a spin-off game set on a new planet. Endfield Industries has taken measures to bring civilization to Talos-II, but the world and its locals have been less than welcoming. Set following a disaster that greatly hurt this movement, players step into the shoes of PFRD operatives tasked with taming the alien planet , Arknights: Endfield looks set to be fairly different from the mainline entry. For one, the spin-off will utilize real-time strategy combat, although exact details on the system's mechanics have yet to be provided. It is also unclear whether the game will employ gacha mechanics, although that seems likely. More importantly, Endfield will be available on PC, an ecosystem that Arknights has yet to target specifically.

10 - Perfect New World

Boundless MMO

An Eastern MMORPG that completed an Exploratory Closed Beta Test in June 2023, Perfect New World has a ways to go before reaching completion, but Ironcore is working on implementing a wide range of changes inspired by user feedback. Cast as Soul Tamers, players will strive to find Prime, a journey that involves exploring a seemingly fairly attractive fantasy world filled with dungeons, enemies, and NPCs. Obviously, the MMORPG will support co-op/multiplayer, and PvP is also part of the overall experience and is being tweaked following the closed beta,Perfect New World's combat system seems to lean into real-time hack and slash territory, with fast-paced action being the name of the game. As with most MMORPGs, players will be able to pick from a range of classes that come with their own skill trees. Although there is nothing too unique about these ideas, they could combine to create a fun addition to the free-to-play market.

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