Depending on what city you live or whether you have received your stimulus check yet times could be darker for some than others during this pandemic. We as American citizens have been forced to give up some of the things we love while we practice social distancing to combat COVID-19. We cant go out to eat or to the movies, we can go have a drink at the bar or hit the beach. We live in the quarantine life.
Sony has announced the “Play at Home” initiative partnering with developers like Naughty Dog to bring you free to play games for a limited time. We hope this to be the first of many released as we still do not have a clear picture of when the nationwide quarantine will lift. A special thanks to Sony and its developer partners for making this happen and giving us free content to help pass the time.
Jim Ryan President & CEO, Sony Interactive Entertainment issued this statement via the PlayStation blog today.
People all over the world are doing the right thing by staying home to help contain the spread of COVID–19. We are deeply grateful to everyone practicing physical distancing and take our responsibility as a home entertainment platform seriously, so we are asking our community to continue supporting the safe choice and the need to Play At Home.
As a thank you to all who are doing their part to lessen the impact of this pandemic, Sony Interactive Entertainment is pleased to announce the Play At Home initiative.
Play At Home has two components: first, providing free games to help keep the PlayStation community entertained at home; and finally, establishing a fund to help smaller independent game studios who may be experiencing financial difficulties continue building great experiences for all gamers.
Free Games to Play At Home
To support Play At Home, PlayStation will try to make those occasionally dull moments more exciting by offering Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection and Journey available for free* for a limited time through digital downloads from April 15 at 8pm PDT through May 5, 2020 at 8pm PDT Once you redeem the games, they are yours to keep.
For most of you, Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection will need no introduction. This three-game collection from the masters at Naughty Dog includes Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, and Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception—all meticulously remastered for PS4. We can’t imagine a better time for globe-trotting adventures with Nathan Drake, an iconic cast of characters, and thrilling treasure-hunting action gameplay.
Then there’s Journey, a beautiful, celebrated adventure that is as moving as it is mysterious. The game’s life-affirming message is timeless, and perhaps more important now than ever before.
In alignment with SIE’s goal in preserving Internet access in the US and Europe, game downloads may take a little longer, but we appreciate the understanding from our community as we take these measures in an effort to preserve access for everyone.
Creative Funding
Independent developers are vital to the heart and soul of the gaming community and we understand the hardships and financial struggles that many smaller gaming studios are facing. With that, SIE has developed a fund to support them during this time. We have earmarked $10 million to support our independent development partners. More information about the fund, including participation criteria, will be made available soon.
During these days of physical distancing, fans have turned to gaming for moments of respite and enjoyment. At Sony Interactive Entertainment, we are privileged to bring this much-needed entertainment. We know this is just one small step and we are thankful to be able to offer this support to our players, our communities, and our partners.
*In Germany and China, users will have access to Knack 2 and Journey for free for a limited time (April 15, 2020 at 8pm PDT through May 5, 2020 at 8pm PDT).
