PlayStation Plus’ free roguelite action-RPG will have you hooked for hours

PlayStation Plus has seriously got it all. Each month, Sony never fails to add at least a few brilliant gems to its ever-growing lineup of free games, especially in the Extra and Premium tiers.

At the time of writing, there’s over 460 games available to play via the Extra and Premium PS Plus game catalogues, which is ludicrous. Honestly, it’s pretty overwhelming to sit down and look at the entire list (although if you wish to do so, you can right here). Today though, I’m here to talk about one game and one game only, which is currently available to Extra and Premium-tier subscribers - Moonlighter.

Take a look at the trailer for Moonlighter right here.

I’ll admit, I first went into Moonlighter with the idea of a much cosier, laid-back game in my mind, since protagonist Will’s primary goal centres around making a living by running his shop. Each in-game day is spent putting stock out on the shelves, taking requests from customers, catching thieves, and figuring out how much your customers are willing to pay for your items through the process of trial and error. Using your hard-earned profits, you’re able to expand Will’s store and construct entirely new shops to be run by others in the village. From that description alone, you’d be forgiven for thinking that this was an Animal Crossing, Story of Seasons or Stardew Valley-esque title where you spend your time befriending villagers and making the best shop you can.

Well, the latter part of that statement is true, but where do you get your stock from? That’s where the real fun begins, and all the cosy vibes go out of the window. Each evening, after his shop closes, Will must head into the village of Rynoka’s mysterious dungeons. There, he can collect goods by defeating enemies - the tougher the foe, the more valuable treasure they’ll drop. I’ll be honest, I have no idea why there’s such a market for broken batteries, plant flesh and flammable dust in Rynoka, but these are just some of the things that Will’s customers can’t seem to get enough of.

Each of the dungeons are procedurally generated, but they follow a certain formula. All of them are home to a powerful boss which you’ll need to defeat in order to unlock the next dungeon - each is even more dangerous than the last, but as you’d expect, as the danger increases, so do Will’s profits.

11 bit studios.

There’s plenty of challenge involved in overcoming the dungeons’ many hurdles - you can expect to see poor Will swatted to the ground numerous times as you find your feet as an adventurer. However, beyond simply improving at the game, and becoming more adept at slashing and stabbing all the foes that cross your path, you’re also able to use your profits to buy better armour and weapons. In true roguelite fashion, these serve as permanent upgrades, so you don’t need to worry about being thrown right back to square one each time you get knocked out in a dungeon.

Moonlighter is an absolute feast for the eyes, too - the vibrant pixel art world is genuinely stunning, and the fluid animations (from the gentle sway of the trees in Rynoka, to Will’s backpack bouncing around as he runs and his hair subtly swaying as he attacks) are mesmerising. All of this is topped off with an entrancing soundtrack, which pumps out chill and mysterious vibes as you wander through the depths of the dungeons and idle around the village, but also knows exactly when to amp it up a notch and ensure that you’re fully aware that a boss means business.

Amongst all the big AAA titles in PS Plus Extra’s game catalogue, including Horizon Forbidden West, Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade, it’d be understandable if you’d overlooked Moonlighter, but I implore you to give it a try. Once it’s got its teeth in you, it’s impossible to put down, and you can’t ask for much more from a game that’s totally free if you already have an active subscription.