At the start of each month, PlayStation Plus subscribers wait with bated breath to see what free games the powers that be at Sony will deign to bestow upon them. It’s a tense moment where extending that monthly subscription hangs in the balance.

For August 2019, the lineup from Sony isn’t half bad and includes the classic breakneck racing of WipEout Omega Collection alongside tactical World War II shooter Sniper Elite 4. PlayStation Plus users can dive into both titles from August 5th and keep them for free as long as they remain subscribed to the service.

Here are your PlayStation Plus free games for August! Say hello to WipEout Omega Collection and Sniper Elite 4: https://t.co/sAz4ymhAPE pic.twitter.com/0MJtRrULmo — PlayStation (@PlayStation) July 31, 2019

Sony has made a concerted move in recent years to ramp up the quality of the free games it offers as part of PlayStation Plus in response to growing ire from underwhelmed players. The Japanese gaming company appears to be all too aware of how vital the quality of the monthly free games is to subscriber retention.

PlayStation Plus Is Nothing Without Free Games

The guarded PlayStation 4 eco-system means players have no option other than subscribing to PlayStation Plus if they want to play online. Bitterly parting with money for a service many feel should be free hasn’t done Sony any favors.

Although players are unlikely to jump ship to hop over to Microsoft’s equivalent Xbox Live Gold service due to the inherent need to buy an entirely new console, a poor show of games is a powerful deterrent against keeping a subscription going.

Other than access to online multiplayer – in itself, a questionable paywall – and lackluster discounts on the PlayStation Store, the free games are the service’s main selling point. With the addition of titles that are arguably among the best the platform has to offer, the appeal of PlayStation Plus grows.

Within the industry, services like Xbox Live Gold and Humble Monthly are known as the place where games go to die. Bolstering the monthly games on offer helps PlayStation Plus to distance itself from that unflattering accolade.

From Just Cause 3 to Bloodborne

Last month included PlayStation 4 exclusive Detroit: Become Human, Quantic Dreams’ dystopian adventure built on diverging narrative paths and an intriguing, if a little cliche, take of AI sentience.

The likes of Bloodborne, Hitman, Destiny 2, and Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain have featured in the past 18-months, marking a notable departure from the obscure indies and very occasional triple-A titles that Sony was accustomed to flogging.

Few will disagree that we’d all rather play Bloodborne than Just Cause 3.

At $79.95 a year or $11.95 a month, PlayStation Plus doesn’t come cheap, but with the addition of in-demand, big-budget titles that still retail for as much as $30, players can secure some pretty significant savings.

If you’ve toyed with the idea of subscribing, there’s never been a better time.