Epic Games Store's New Free Game Is Its Most Controversial Yet

Epic Games Store has a new free game available to all users to download over the next 24 hours. Tomorrow, at 11am EST, it will be replaced with 2023's final Epic Games Store free game. Many are expecting this final free game to be one of the biggest of the year, but one day ahead of this Epic Games has surprised many giving away a pretty big, albeit contentious, game for free on the second to last day of the year. 

The new Epic Games Store free game is none other than 2022's reboot of Saints Row, aptly dubbed Saints Row. Unfortunately for its developer Volition, it is one of the biggest flops of this generation, so much so it led to the closure of the studio after 30 years of business, a long time for the video game industry. Why did it flop? Well, it was fairly contentious from the start. The game's reveal trailer is one of the most disliked video game trailers of all time. And this was fore a variety of reasons, but mostly because it was not the return to the series' roots fans had been begging for. Piling on this, the game ended up being weighed down by a formulaic and outdated open-world design, plagued by amateurish writing that was too often cringe, and brimming with bugs and performance issues. And all of this shows in it "Mixed" rating on Steam and 65 on Metacritic. 

If you are interested in checking the game out -- now that it is free -- you will be treated to a game that is roughly 13 hours long if you just mainline the main campaign. That said, completionist playthroughs will take roughly 50 hours. 

"As the future Boss, with Neenah, Kevin, and Eli by your side, you'll form The Saints – and take on Los Panteros, The Idols, and Marshall as you build your empire across the streets of Santo Ileso and battle for control of the city," reads an official blurb about the game "Ultimately Saints Row is the story of a start-up company, it's just that the business The Saints are in happens to be crime."

The game's official description continues: "Experience the biggest and best Saints Row playground ever created; the unique sprawling world of Santo Ileso is the backdrop for a wild, larger than life sandbox of thrilling side hustles, criminal ventures and blockbuster missions, as you shoot, drive, and wingsuit your way to the top."

Once downloaded, Saints Row will be yours to keep. This is not a free trial or locked behind any type of subscription. Anyone with an Epic Games Store can claim this free offer, but it has to be before the aforementioned deadline. That is the only requirement.