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There are certain patterns Sony has established when it comes to PlayStation Plus. PlayStation Plus subscribers expect to learn about the next batch of free games on the last Wednesday of every month, with the new titles then added to the service on the first Tuesday of the following month. Sony rarely breaks from this pattern, but there are instances when it happens, like with one of the free PS Plus games for March 2022.
Sony has yet to reveal all the free PS Plus games for March 2022, but one game has already been confirmed for the lineup. The PS5 version of Grand Theft Auto Online will be free for PS Plus subscribers starting Tuesday, March 15, and it will remain one of the freebies on the service for a three-month period. Grand Theft Auto Online being a free PS Plus game for March 2022 actually breaks a couple of PS Plus patterns, and makes next month’s offerings more of a mystery than usual.
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For one, GTA Online isn’t going to be added to PS Plus until March 15, whereas the first Tuesday of the month is March 1. It’s possible that this means PS5 gamers will simply have to wait a little longer to get their PS Plus offering in March, but it’s also possible that GTA Online is being treated as a “bonus” game instead of a proper PS Plus title. Because of this, it’s entirely possible that there will be two free PS5 PS Plus games in March 2022, with something else joining GTA Online, but that’s just speculation at this time.
Free PS Plus Games for March 2022
Grand Theft Auto Online (PS5) - March 15
It wouldn’t be the first time that the free PS5 PS Plus game came a bit later than the PS4 games. As some may recall, Bugsnax wasn’t added to the free PS Plus games lineup until November 12 in the month that it was available, though that was a special circumstance. The PlayStation 5 didn’t even launch until November 12, 2020, and so it wasn’t really possible for Sony to give away the free PS5 game for November at the beginning of the month like it usually does. Regardless of the reason why Bugsnax didn’t come to the free PS Plus games lineup until later in the month, it still sets a precedent that this is something that can happen.
The other pattern that’s being broken is how Sony typically reveals the games coming to PS Plus. As previously mentioned, the next batch of free PS Plus games are usually confirmed on the last Wednesday of the month, but GTA Online is already confirmed as one of the free PS Plus games for March 2022. This is also due to a unique situation. The PS5 version of Grand Theft Auto Online was confirmed as a free PS Plus game as soon as it was revealed to the public, and so fans only had to wait for the release date to be announced.
Originally, the PS5 version of Grand Theft Auto Online was going to launch last November, but Rockstar delayed it to March 2022. The next thing fans were waiting on was a specific release date, and so now that’s been answered, PS Plus subscribers know that they will be getting one of the free games for March 2022 on March 15 in the form of the PS5 version of GTA Online. Clarification on what this means for the rest of the free PS Plus games for March 2022 lineup will have to wait, with Sony likely keeping quiet until Wednesday, February 23.
In the meantime, it’s worth pointing out that while PS Plus subscribers will be getting free access to the PS5 version of GTA Online come March 15 and will have three months to claim it, it will also be available as a standalone purchase as well. Pricing information for the next-gen version of Grand Theft Auto Online has not been made available at the time of this writing, but it will be available as a separate purchase from the single-player Grand Theft Auto 5 experience.
That’s something else that fans may want to keep in mind. Rockstar is selling the PS5 versions of Grand Theft Auto 5 and Grand Theft Auto Online separately, and GTA 5 is not part of this PS Plus deal. So anyone interested in the full GTA 5 experience will still have to pay extra beyond what they already pay for their PS Plus subscription regardless.
While PS Plus subscribers wait for more information on the March 2022 lineup, they can claim the free PS Plus games for February 2022. The free PS Plus games for February 2022 are EA Sports UFC 4 and Tiny Tina’s Assault on Dragon Keep: A Wonderlands One-Shot Adventure on PlayStation 4 and Planet Coaster: Console Edition on PS5. The games will be available to claim until February 28, then they’ll get replaced by the March 2022 free games on March 1.
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