PS Plus October 2026 Monthly Games Bring F1 25, Hunt: Showdown 1896 and EDF: World Brothers 2

PlayStation has confirmed the three monthly games headed to PlayStation Plus in October 2026, and the selection is an unusual fit for a month traditionally associated with ghosts, monsters, and horror marathons. Beginning October 6, active PlayStation Plus members can add F1 25, Hunt: Showdown 1896, and Earth Defense Force: World Brothers 2 to their libraries.

The trio covers very different corners of gaming. F1 25 is a modern motorsport game built around Formula 1 competition. Hunt: Showdown 1896 is a PvPvE extraction shooter with monsters, hostile players, and an ominous late-19th-century setting. Earth Defense Force: World Brothers 2 is a lighter, block-styled action spin-off about battling alien invaders. Of those, Hunt is clearly the closest match for the Halloween season, while the other two make October's collection feel more like a broad sampler than a dedicated spooky-season package.

All three games will be available to subscribers on the Essential, Extra, and Premium tiers of PlayStation Plus. Members have until November 2 to claim the games. Once claimed, they remain attached to a player's PlayStation library and can be downloaded and played later, provided that person continues to have an active PlayStation Plus subscription.

October's PS Plus monthly games

• F1 25 -- PlayStation 5
• Hunt: Showdown 1896 -- PlayStation 5
• Earth Defense Force: World Brothers 2 -- PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5

The arrival date of October 6 gives PlayStation players a few days at the start of the month to decide which game to prioritize. For anyone who enjoys vastly different genres from session to session, it is a lineup with a distinct option for almost every mood: meticulous circuit racing, stressful online survival battles, or arcade-like co-op destruction.

For useful background on this topic, read Directive 8020 online co-op Set to Arrive in October.

Hunt: Showdown 1896 supplies the strongest October atmosphere

Hunt: Showdown 1896 is likely to be the centerpiece for players seeking something suitably dark. The game mixes competitive multiplayer with PvE threats in matches where hunters enter dangerous territory, track monstrous targets, collect bounties, and attempt to escape alive. Other players are pursuing their own goals at the same time, turning every gunshot, broken branch, and distant encounter into a possible threat.

Its appeal comes as much from tension as action. Players must balance the desire to pursue a bounty against the possibility that making noise will reveal their position to rivals. The setting's swamps, woods, decaying structures, and supernatural enemies create a grim mood that fits October considerably better than a standard competitive shooter might. Even when no one is firing, the prospect of another team waiting nearby gives matches an uneasy edge.

The PS Plus release may be especially useful for players who have been curious about Hunt but hesitant to buy it without a regular group. A monthly-game drop lowers that initial barrier, and it could encourage friends on PlayStation to try the game together. Hunt can be demanding, particularly for newcomers learning how its weapons, sound cues, objectives, and extraction systems work. Going in with familiar teammates can make the first few hours feel far less intimidating.

That said, the game's PvPvE structure means its creepy presentation is not the same as a traditional single-player horror campaign. The pressure frequently comes from unpredictable human opponents as well as monsters. It is horror-adjacent in mood and imagery, but multiplayer suspense is at the heart of the experience.

F1 25 takes the grid in a very different direction

At the opposite end of the tonal spectrum, F1 25 brings the speed, strategy, and presentation of Formula 1 racing to PS5. There is little inherently frightening about chasing lap times under bright lights, although a last-lap battle or an ill-timed mistake at high speed can certainly raise a player's pulse.

The inclusion gives PS Plus members a current racing option at a time when the service's monthly games are often spread across multiple genres. F1 games tend to appeal to players who want to master braking points, tire management, track layouts, and racecraft, while also offering an accessible route into the spectacle of the real-world sport. For fans already following the F1 season, having the game available through a subscription can be an easy opportunity to jump onto the virtual grid.

It also provides a relatively straightforward change of pace from Hunt: Showdown 1896. One is about reading danger in haunted-looking environments and deciding when to escape; the other is about precision driving and shaving fractions of a second from a lap. The contrast may make the October lineup more flexible, even if it does not make it especially thematic.

F1 25 is the only game in this month's selection listed specifically for PlayStation 5. Players still using PlayStation 4 will need to look to the other two titles in the lineup.

Earth Defense Force: World Brothers 2 brings blocky alien-blasting action

Earth Defense Force: World Brothers 2 rounds out the month on both PS4 and PS5. The game is a spin-off from the long-running Earth Defense Force series, using a more colorful, stylized visual approach than the mainline games. The basic appeal remains familiar: enormous alien forces threaten the planet, and players fight back with exaggerated weaponry, squads of distinct characters, and plenty of screen-filling chaos.

Its blocky presentation separates it from the more realistic or grim tone associated with other EDF entries. Rather than trying to create dread, World Brothers 2 leans into the series' playful, oversized action. The Earth Defense Force brand has long been known for turning destructive mayhem into cooperative fun, and this entry gives October's offering a less serious choice for players who simply want to battle waves of enemies with friends.

The fact that it is available across both PlayStation generations is important. Subscribers on PS4 are not receiving F1 25 or Hunt: Showdown 1896 in this particular monthly update, so World Brothers 2 is the one title in October's batch that reaches them directly. It may not be the season's most obvious headline game, but cross-generation availability gives it a valuable role in the selection.

How claiming monthly PS Plus games works

October's games can be claimed from October 6 through November 2. Players do not need to download every title immediately to keep access. Adding each game to the account library during the claim window is what matters. Once a game has been claimed, it can be installed at any point while the account has an active PlayStation Plus Essential, Extra, or Premium membership.

That distinction is useful for anyone with limited console storage or an already crowded backlog. A player may want to claim all three titles now, then wait until later to download the one that fits their schedule. F1 25 may suit a longer career-focused stretch, Hunt may work best when friends are ready to play, and EDF can be kept for a future co-op session.

Players should also remember that monthly games are different from the broader Game Catalog available on higher PlayStation Plus tiers. October's three titles are claimable by subscribers at every tier, including Essential, but they must be added before the deadline. Missing the November 2 cutoff means waiting to see if a game returns through another promotion or service offering in the future.

September games are still available briefly

Before October's lineup arrives, there is a final opportunity to claim September's PlayStation Plus monthly games. Subscribers have until October 5 to add Sniper Elite: Resistance, MLB The Show 26, Wobbly Life, and Chained Echoes to their libraries.

That means the first week of October has two separate deadlines to track. September's four games leave first, on October 5, and October's three-game slate becomes available the next day. Anyone who has not yet redeemed the outgoing selection should do so before it rotates away, even if they do not plan to play those games right away.

A varied month, even without a full horror focus

October 2026's PS Plus lineup does not commit fully to Halloween, despite the calendar's strong association with horror releases and spooky game nights. Hunt: Showdown 1896 delivers the closest thing to a seasonal centerpiece through its creatures, tense extraction gameplay, and forbidding environments. F1 25 and Earth Defense Force: World Brothers 2, meanwhile, take the lineup toward racing and cheerful alien-smashing action.

For subscribers, variety may ultimately matter more than a rigid theme. The three selections span competitive driving, online tactical combat, and accessible action, while the PS4 and PS5 split ensures at least one option reaches players on either PlayStation generation. The important dates are simple: claim September's games by October 5, begin adding October's games on October 6, and make sure the new trio is in the library before November 2.