Sony’s selection of free content available for all PlayStation Plus subscribers appears to have struck a chord with gamers this month. To be more specific, Asobo Studio’s indie title A Plague Tale: Innocence has earned itself a legion of new fans for its novel premise and unconventional mechanics.
Set in 1348 at the height of the Hundred Years’ War, the stealth horror adventure has players take control of Amicia de Rune, a young girl of noble descent who lives with her family in Aquitaine, France. Entrusted with the care of her chronically ill brother Hugo following the apparent death of their parents at the hands of the English Army, the siblings must make their way cross-country to meet Laurentius, a doctor able to help cure Hugo.
In an effort to sidestep spoilers and conserve the narrative laid before you by Asobo we’ll stop there, but suffice it to say, that the journey is one fraught with danger, and not just due to the English invasion.
Judging by an upvoted thread over on the PlayStation Plus Subreddit, PlayStation 5 owners have been having a blast exploring 1300s France, with particular praise going to the story, likened by some to that of a bite-sized, smaller budget The Last of Us.
Unfortunately for those still unable to locate one of Sony’s next-gen consoles, A Plague Tale: Innocence is only redeemable as a free download on PS5, with PlayStation 4 users having to make do with Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 and WWE 2K Battlegrounds. If neither of those takes your fancy, it’s worth noting that Virtua Fighter 5, the latest entry in Sega’s long-running fighting game series, is still free on both platforms for a few more weeks.