Free PC games to keep: how the weekly giveaways work
"Free" means several different things in PC gaming, and only one of them gives you a game for good. Knowing which is which keeps you from missing a real giveaway and from wasting an evening on one that is not.
Four kinds of free
- Free to keep. You claim the game during a limited window and it stays in your library for good, even after the offer ends. This is what the weekly giveaways are.
- Free weekend. You can play for a few days. When the weekend ends, the game goes unless you buy it (some stores let you keep your progress if you do).
- Free to play. The game is always free to download and play, and makes its money from optional purchases inside it.
- A demo. A part of the game, free, with no claim on the full version.
Our Free page lists the first kind: games you can claim and keep right now, and the ones that are free next.
How the weekly giveaways work
The Epic Games Store gives away games every week, usually changing the selection on Thursdays. You need an Epic account. On the game's page, press the button that says "Get" (it is a free order at no cost) and the game is added to your library. After that it is yours: it does not matter that the price goes back up. The one thing you must do is claim it before the offer ends. Games can be claimed at any time during the window and downloaded whenever you like.
Other stores and sources run giveaways too, less regularly: some shops give away a game to promote a sale or a launch, and some publishers hand out copies. The Free page collects these with how long each one lasts, and shows when a set ends.
Staying safe
- Claim on the store's own page. If a site asks for your account password, or for a download of a "key generator" or a "claim tool", it is not a giveaway.
- A real giveaway never asks for payment details beyond what the store already has, and a free order costs nothing.
- If an offer looks too good for the game's age or reputation, check the publisher's or the store's official channels before you click.
Never miss one
Giveaways last days, not weeks, so the useful thing is to be told. The Free page can send a notification on your device when a new game is free, with no account and no email. The RSS feed works with any feed reader, and the Sunday email lists the week's free games next to its best deals.