WWE 2K26 is free on Xbox this weekend, no Game Pass needed

WWE 2K26 (Metacritic 78) and Wildgate are free for all Xbox members through Sunday with no Game Pass required, Corsair Cove launches day-one on PC Game Pass today, eight games including Celeste leave Game Pass today, and OTXO and Sol Cesto stay free on Epic through August 6.

Xbox Free Play Days: WWE 2K26 and Wildgate free for all, through Sunday August 2

A new Free Play Days round went up on Xbox Wire on July 30, and the headline is two games free for all Xbox members with no Game Pass required through Sunday, August 2.

WWE 2K26 (2K, $69.99, on sale to $34.99 to keep) is the big one. Critics like it, Metacritic 78 Generally Favorable across 38 reviews, with the series' best-feeling matches and a 400-plus Superstar roster. Players do not: the user score sits at 3.5 over a Ringside Pass that locks much of the roster behind grind or pay, so try before you buy.

Wildgate (Dreamhaven / Moonshot Games, $29.99, on sale to $23.99 to keep) is a PvPvE spaceship shooter critics have called "Sea of Thieves in space," Metacritic 72 Mixed (10 reviews). Game Informer praised the crew dogfights; PC Gamer called it "a better concept than it is a game." It shines with a coordinated crew and goes shallow solo, so the free weekend is the right way to judge it.

On the Game Pass-required side, Polterguys: Possession Party (Amplified Games, $4.99) is an eight-player ghost-possession party brawler free for Ultimate, Premium, and Essential members through Sunday, August 2. Reviews are thin, so expect a lightweight weekend novelty rather than a keeper.

And from the prior round, For Honor (Ubisoft, Metacritic 78) stays free for all Xbox members, no Game Pass, through Tuesday, August 4.

Corsair Cove hits PC Game Pass day-one today

Corsair Cove, a pirate city-builder published by Hooded Horse (the label behind Against the Storm and Manor Lords), launches day-one on PC Game Pass today, July 31, on the Ultimate and PC Game Pass tiers (PC only, no console version yet).

It also lands on Steam at $39.99 with a 25 percent launch discount to $29.99, plus Epic and the Microsoft Store. There is no critic consensus yet because it releases today, but a free demo has been on Steam since May 28 if you want to test the building loop before committing the install. It is a catalog addition, so there is no end date while your subscription is active.

Eight games leave Game Pass today, including Celeste

Deadline day. Eight titles leave Xbox Game Pass today, July 31, per Polygon and the Xbox "Leaving Soon" page: Celeste (Metacritic 92, the acclaimed precision-platformer), Crusader Kings 3, Mount and Blade 2 Bannerlord, Rain World, Sniper Elite Resistance, Back to the Dawn, My Friendly Neighborhood, and Whiskerwood (PC).

Most are at least 20 percent off to buy before they disappear. Celeste and Rain World are the standout losses if you have not finished them, and both are short enough to clear this weekend through cloud or PC before they go.

Epic: OTXO and Sol Cesto still free to keep, through August 6

Status. OTXO ($14.99, Metacritic 81, top-down action roguelite with a Hotline Miami feel) and Sol Cesto ($13.99, tactical roguelite with a thin critic pool but a strong Polygon impression) remain free to keep on the Epic Games Store through Thursday, August 6 at 8am PT. Claim both before the next Thursday swap. The following pair has not been revealed yet.

Forward: PS Plus August Essential and a Game Pass wave land August 4

The next convergence hits Monday and Tuesday. PS Plus August Essential goes live Tuesday, August 4, claimable through August 31: Dying Light 2 Stay Human Reloaded Edition (Metacritic 76), Big Walk (day-one, from the Untitled Goose Game team), and Signalis (Metacritic 81, retro survival horror). This is your last full weekend to claim July's Essential trio of Modern Warfare III, For the King II, and CrossCode, which rotate out Monday, August 3.

On Game Pass, August 4 brings Heretic and Hexen (the classic 90s FPS pair) and Beast of Reincarnation (day-one, from Game Freak). For Honor's free-for-all Xbox run also ends August 4, and Steam's Cyberpunk Fest runs August 3 to 10.