Sony just kicked the door down for 2026. Honestly, after a somewhat lukewarm end to last year, the ps plus games of the month for January feel like a massive course correction. If you've been sitting on the fence about keeping your subscription active, this might be the month that actually justifies the price hike we all complained about.
It's a weird mix. We have high-octane street racing sitting right next to psychological horror and a literal mining sandbox.
The Essential tier is already live, and the Extra/Premium additions are dropping on January 20. But here is the thing: most people just see a list of titles and hit "add to library" without realizing which of these are actually worth the storage space on a cramped NVMe drive. Let’s get into what’s actually happening this month.
The Essential Tier: Street Racing and Mouse Magic
The baseline ps plus games of the month for January 2026 are Need for Speed Unbound, Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed, and Core Keeper. These are available to every single subscriber, regardless of whether you're on the budget plan or the "I want every classic game ever" plan.
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Need for Speed Unbound is a polarizing one. Some people hate the anime-style graffiti effects, but if you can get past the "vibes," the actual driving is some of the tightest Criterion has ever done. It’s basically a modern Burnout undercover. You’re racing through Lakeshore City—which is very much a fictional Chicago—trying to build enough "Heat" to get noticed but not so much that the cops impound your custom ride.
Then you have Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed. This isn't just a simple port. It's a full-on remake of the 2010 Wii classic. You play as Mickey, but it’s a darker, "Wasteland" version of Disney history filled with forgotten characters like Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. You use a magic brush to either paint the world back to life or thin it out to erase obstacles. It’s surprisingly deep for a "Disney game."
Finally, Core Keeper is the dark horse here. If you like Terraria or Stardew Valley, this will eat your life. It’s a 1-8 player mining sandbox where you’re stuck in an endless cavern. You farm, you fish, you build bases, and you fight massive Titans. It’s the perfect "podcast game"—something you play while listening to a show or catching up with friends.
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The Extra and Premium Catalog: Heavy Hitters Arrive
If you’re paying for the higher tiers, the ps plus games of the month additions for January 20th are objectively insane. Sony is clearly trying to build hype for upcoming releases.
- Resident Evil Village (PS4/PS5): With Resident Evil: Requiem scheduled for a February 27 launch, Capcom wants everyone caught up. Village is a "greatest hits" of the series. You get the stalker mechanics of RE2, the mansion vibes of RE1, and the crazy action of RE4. And yes, Lady Dimitrescu is still as tall as ever.
- Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth (PS4/PS5): This is a massive win for subscribers. It’s a huge RPG set in Hawaii. Ichiban Kasuga is arguably the most likable protagonist in gaming right now. Just be prepared: this game is 80+ hours long if you get distracted by the side content (and you will).
- A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead (PS5): This is a stealth-horror game where sound is your literal enemy. It takes a lot of cues from Alien: Isolation. If you breathe too loud or step on a can, the monsters are on you instantly. It’s stressful, but in a good way.
The Full Extra/Premium List:
- Darkest Dungeon II (Brutal roguelike, will make you want to throw your controller)
- Expeditions: A MudRunner Game (Like Death Stranding but with off-road trucks)
- The Exit 8 (A short, liminal space horror game about finding anomalies in a subway)
- Art of Rally (Beautiful, stylized top-down racing)
- A Little to the Left (Cozy puzzle game about organizing household objects)
- Ridge Racer (The PS1 classic, exclusive to the Premium tier)
Why Premium Subscribers Are Still Annoyed
The community reaction to the Premium tier this month is... mixed. While the Extra tier is stacked with modern masterpieces like Infinite Wealth, the "Classics" catalog for Premium is literally just Ridge Racer.
Don’t get me wrong, Ridge Racer is a legend. It’s the game that helped sell the original PlayStation. But when you’re paying the highest subscription fee, getting only one classic title feels like a bit of a letdown. Sony added some quality-of-life features like rewinds and save states, but for many, it's not enough to justify the "Premium" label this month.
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What You Should Play First
If you only have time for one or two of the ps plus games of the month, here is how to prioritize your SSD space.
For the Horror Fan: Play Resident Evil Village. It’s polished, it’s scary, and it’s the best way to prep for the new RE game next month. If you want something shorter, The Exit 8 can be finished in about 45 minutes, but it will stay in your head for days.
For the RPG Addict: Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth. Just do it. Even if you haven't played the previous games, the Hawaii setting and the turn-based combat are incredibly welcoming.
For the "I Just Want to Relax" Player: A Little to the Left or Art of Rally. Both are low-stress and perfect for winding down after work.
Actionable Next Steps for PS Plus Members
- Claim the Essential Games Now: You have until February 2, 2026, to add Need for Speed Unbound, Epic Mickey, and Core Keeper to your library. Even if you don't plan to play them today, add them now or you lose them forever.
- Check Your Storage: Infinite Wealth and Resident Evil Village are hefty downloads. You’re looking at over 100GB of combined space. Start clearing out those old "I'll finish this someday" games now.
- Wait for the 20th: Mark your calendar for the Tuesday drop of the Extra and Premium games. Usually, these go live around 10:00 AM EST / 3:00 PM GMT.
- Save Your Progress: If you're playing Darkest Dungeon II, remember that it's a roguelike. You will fail. A lot. Don't get discouraged by the early-game difficulty spikes; the game is designed to be a slow burn toward redemption.