With our list of the best free Xbox games, we’ll show that you don’t always have to pay up to have fun. If you don’t enjoy a free-to-play game, all you’ve wasted is some hard drive space that can be quickly recovered.
Free-to-play games used to come with a stigma of being just not very good, but the best free Xbox games on this list are all pretty great. Sure, not all the titles are contenders to get on our best Xbox Series X games list, but they still offer hours worth of fun. That’s what matters, right? With the increasing popularity of free-to-play games, there’s plenty on free new Xbox games always readily available.
These are the best free Xbox games:
1. Halo Infinite
Microsoft’s classic space shooter has returned, and this time it has free-to-play multiplayer — nice. With the series’ return comes a return of its arena-style combat with a whole host of game modes. From casual play and Big Team Battle to full-on Halo Infinite ranked play, there is absolutely loads on offer in Halo Infinite.
Those who are a bit fed up of the last few years of twitch shooting dominance will find Infinite’s fun, slower-paced action refreshing. Chunk down enemies’ shields with energy weapons before delivering the Magnum’s coup de grace never felt so good. Or, the one-hit-kill melee from behind. Wonderful.
2. Warzone
While Warzone has had its fair share of criticism from fans of the first iteration of the battle royale, there’s no escaping the fact that this is an amazing free-to-play FPS experience.
The original game took the battle royale formula from progenitors like PUBG, Firestorm, and Fortnite, then perfected the formula by adding a Call of Duty twist in the form of loadouts. Warzone (the second one, confusingly) builds upon that, but with lots of new content in the form of maps and modes – including DMZ, a spin-off mode that taps into the extraction shooter genre.
To survive the battlegrounds of Al Mazrah and Ashika Island, you’re going to want to pick up the best Warzone guns and make sure you’re using the Warzone meta loadouts.
3. Overwatch 2
The sequel to the hero shooter has arrived and this time it’s free-to-play. It still features the same team-based shooting mechanics that you came to love in the first game, with a few small tweaks.
It’s not a massively different game at its core, but it still offers plenty of fun, especially if you want to take on the challenge of mastering several heroes on our Overwatch 2 tier list.
4. Rocket League
If you thought football games were fun, then how about a football game set in a large walled-in arena, but where the players are cars and the ball is the size of a house?
Rocket League’s main 3v3 mode pits two teams against each other in a bid to score as many goals before the match ends. Oh, and the cars have rockets attached to them and can jump, meaning you can fly around and do all kinds of crazy tricks. The skill ceiling is huge, and pro play in the Rocket League ranks will probably blow your mind after you see the manoeuvres that can be pulled off with Rocket League’s cars.
That’s also why it’s moreish. There’s nothing like the world around you blurring as you hurtle back towards your goal with your thrusters on, just making it there in time to throw yourself in front of the goal line, blocking the onrushing enemy’s shot. Then, there’re the times you get that perfect lob shot from the other end of the pitch. Get it on download now.
5. Fortnite
Can you believe that Fortnite once had a campaign? At this point, it has become one of the quintessential battle royale games, but don’t let the gaudy graphics fool you, Fortnite’s gameplay offers a lot of depth. Drop in alone or in a team, and scavenge the best Fortnite weapons and resources in a bid to survive with an ever-decreasing circle chasing you down.
In Fortnite, however, you have to also mine materials like wood and metal because you can actually build using these materials. Floors, walls, windows, and more can all be quickly erected anywhere in the world, meaning that when you start taking fire from other players, the norm is to stick up as many walls and ramps as fast as possible for cover.
By the end of a game of Fortnite, it’s not uncommon to see a horizon of wonky skyscrapers exploding as the remnants of the server duke it out. There’s also the addition of Fortnite Festival and LEGO Fortnite, giving a Guitar Hero-style concert in the palm of your hands. LEGO Fortnite is a huge RPG that could be its own game, but instead, its completely free inside of Fortnite.
6. Apex Legends
Yes, this is another battle royale; no, it isn’t just a clone of the others. The brilliant thing about Apex Legends is that it is part of the Titanfall universe, which means it’s set in a futuristic world where individuals compete in a combat arena to become Apex Champions.
Apex Legends might play similarly to other battle royales, but before you drop in, you have to select a character from a roster of distinct characters who each have their own unique abilities. Finding the right composition of these characters is the only way you’re going to climb the Apex Legends ranks.
Aside from its core battle royale experience, Apex now boasts a bunch of other modes, so even if you’re a BR-hater, you’ve got no excuse to drop in and give this amazing FPS game a go.
7. Destiny 2
Bungie’s looter-shooter Destiny 2 used to be a paid-for experience, but now the core game is available free-to-play for all. Don’t be put off by how long the game has been out, Destiny 2 still has a huge and dedicated player base. It combines the great feeling of first-person shooting Bungie is known for with story missions, strikes, and raids seen in more traditional MMOs.
The best thing about Destiny 2 is that it never ends. As a live-service game, it constantly receives updates and expansions that add more and more content for you to while away the hours. Bungie’s game will be right up your alley if you love embracing the grind, chasing that high you get when you finally get that hard-won rare drop.
Just make sure you’re wearing the best Destiny 2 armor and equipping the best Destiny 2 weapons when you do those raids, though.
8. The Sims 4
It’s been nearly a decade since The Sims 4 was released into the wild, but with all eyes on The Sims 5 release date, EA decided to make The Sims 4 free-to-play.
With plenty of pre-built houses to move into and lots to build onto, the possibilities for The Sims 4 are endless, giving you hours and hours of fun at your fingertips. If you’d rather play God and throw a pool party without ladders, then you can do that too – we’re not your boss.
Just remember that only the base game is free, though. So if you want to dabble in the DLC, you’ll have to buy those.
9. Enlisted
A multiplayer World War 2 shooter with a focus on team play, Enlisted is great for those looking for their original Call of Duty or Battlefield 1942 fix. You can either play against players only, or you can hop in a game mode that allows each player to command their own historically accurate squad.
As you gain XP and level up your squads, you can spend the resources you gain in-game to outfit them with better weapons, more soldiers, and more equipment. But the battle isn’t limited to just infantry; tanks, aircraft, and other vehicles are all available, meaning if you’re more of a dogfighter you can outfit your plane with cannons or bombs and take to the skies.
There’s nothing like listening to the screech of your Stuka as you dive-bomb the enemy trying to capture objectives your team holds.
10. PUBG: Battlegrounds
PUBG: Battlegrounds is famous for having its roots first as a mod, then being developed into a full standalone release that you had to buy, but now it’s free. PUBG is a battle royale that overlaps other titles like Apex Legends and Fortnite, but it plays much slower than both.
If you enjoy realistic combat and weapons, and the nuances like bullet drop that go with it, then PUBG might be your game. You’ll find yourself stuffing your combat gear full of all kinds of assault rifle magazines and grenades, as well as bandages and medkits.
When you do finally put down the loot and venture outside of your hidey-hole, your reward might just be the single sniper shot that ends your game.
11. Smite
Imagine a MOBA where you actually control your character in third-person, attacking and using abilities like an action game. Now, imagine that all the characters are gods – real historical and mythological gods from past cultures, like Zeus or Aphrodite. Combine these two aspects and you have Smite.
Smite has a stand-out level design, and the third-person camera gives players the ability to be crept up upon, making assassins all the more lethal in the jungle as you don’t have a top-down camera like in most other games of this ilk. There’s something freeing about being in direct control of your in-game avatar, and playing as your favorite deities adds a unique angle to a crowded genre.
There’s nothing like hunting down your prey as the bow-wielding Artemis and summoning your good friend the Calydonian Boar to mangle your enemies in their tracks.
12. Warframe
A fast-paced online action game, Warframe is a slick and stylish third-person shooter that is designed to be played at lightning-fast speeds as you dive, dash, and slide across the game’s levels, switching from shooting guns to up close and personal slasher combat on the fly.
Did we mention that a Warframe is actually a big mech suit that covers your entire body making you a walking metal death-machine badass?
Part story-driven experience and part online looter-shooter, Warframe is Destiny on speed. The game is constantly being updated too, and it has added things like ship-to-ship space battles over the years. Grab some friends or squadmates, tackle co-op missions, and get those rewards in order to customize your warframe even further.
13. War Thunder
War Thunder started out as an online multiplayer aviation combat game where players started with some ratty old biplanes that had some guy firing a belt-fed machine gun from the backseat and slowly bought and upgraded new planes with in-game currency. It has since evolved into a game where players can also drive tanks and crew ships too.
There are all kinds of different game modes, from straight dogfights to objective-based gameplay where you have to brave the AI anti-air flak to bomb airfields and important strategic locations, dodging defending enemy fighters. Now, players can control tanks, planes, and ships simultaneously in one large combined-arms battlefield.
14. Fallout Shelter
If you’re a Fallout fan who’s played Fallout 4 and Fallout 76, then it might be worth checking out Fallout Shelter. It’s a Vault management simulator with stylish animated graphics and puts you in charge of keeping vault dwellers happy and alive – or not.
You’ll come to personally know each of your underground denizens as the game goes on, and you’ll be responsible for expanding your underground fallout vault with new rooms, managing the community, and even sending some of them to the peril of the wasteland above to find what loot they can for the vault.
15. Path of Exile
Those with a hankering for Diablo-like action will likely find lots to love in similar fantasy RPG Path of Exile. The game’s expansive and gritty world of Wraeclast is where you’ll while away the hours, tackling its lengthy campaign solo or with friends, and then inevitably spend more time trying out different builds and equipment.
But it goes far beyond that. Path of Exile has a deep skill tree and character customization system, and it has an almost never-ending amount of content to sink your teeth into. There’s also PVP available, as well as different classes, sub-classes, and skills for that added replayability factor.
16. The Finals
Embark Studios’ The Finals is an essential addition to this list, and provides FPS thrills far different than other shooters you can play right now. Developed with former Battlefield and Mirror’s Edge at the helm, The Finals puts players into a ficitious game show where stealing cash is key to victory. You’ll master three different classes, all of them with unique weapons and abilities to learn along the way. Oh, and pretty much everything you see is destructable.
The environment is a character in itself in The Finals, and you’ll need to shape it to your advantage. Whether is crushing other teams or protecting your Cash Out, buildings are nothing more than another instrument of destruction.
Even though this list is about the best free Xbox games, if you’re one of the lucky few who nabbed one of the newest consoles you might be interested in the best Xbox Series X games. Or, you might be inclined to wonder how you can pick up even more games that are almost as good as free – and that’s with Xbox Game Pass.
You can read our Xbox Game Pass list to find out everything that’s available there, but it’s worth noting that while you will have to fork out some dough, you’re more than getting your money’s worth as the service regularly adds hundreds of dollars worth of new titles every month.
And they said Xbox has no games. For options outside of the Xbox sphere, you should read our free shooting games guide. Have fun!