To end 2025, Sony announced its PS Plus Essential free games lineup for January 2026. This time around, the lineup includes three games members can grab as part of their subscription. Although the lineup has some solid additions, like Need for Speed Unbound and Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed, it is Core Keeper that some players consider a hidden gem.
What’s PS Plus January free game Core Keeper all about?
Core Keeper is a 2D survival game developed by Pugstorm and published by Fireshine Games. Up to eight players can explore a long-forgotten cavern to mine for resources, build a base, farm, and fight mysterious creatures. Here is a description and trailer of the game, giving PlayStation players an idea of what to expect:
“Awaken as an explorer in a long-forgotten cavern teeming with untold secrets. In this award-winning, 1-8 player mining sandbox adventure, your choices shape an epic journey. Harvest relics and resources, craft advanced tools, build your base, and explore a dynamically evolving world waiting to be unearthed.”
When Core Keeper was originally released last year, it received solid review scores. According to the review aggregate site Metacritic, it garnered an average score of 85 across 9 critic reviews. Players seem to share that same sentiment, as many have expressed their excitement for the game’s inclusion in the PS Plus Essential free games lineup in a recent Reddit post.
“Core Keeper rules. Anyone who liked Terraria or similar should give it a shot,” said Reddit user Cheeetooos.
“I have a feeling no one knows what Core Keeper is. If you like games like Undermine, Terraria, Survivalists, and Moonlighter, you have to give Core Keeper a chance,” said Reddit user medicated_in_PHL.
“Core Keeper is actually a nice game! It doesn’t have DLC, all updates have been free after launch,” said Reddit user OdyZeusX.
