Epic will give away a free game every day starting next week

Epic Games Store Holiday Sale 2020
(Image credit: Epic Games)

Steam sales sneak up on us. Plentiful leaks mean we generally have a pretty good idea about when they're coming but even so, it's never official until, bam, the green flag drops and the sale is live. Epic, on the other hand, is giving us plenty of notice about its upcoming Holiday Sale, which it announced today will kick off on December 17.

Games will be discounted by up to 75 percent during the sale, which isn't bad, but the big hook will more likely be the free games that Epic will be flinging around like a fat guy on a rooftop. Instead of the usual weekly giveaway, the Holiday Sale will see a new freebie every day until the end of the month—15 games in total.

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The bad news is that you've only got 24 hours to claim each game, and if you miss a day, you miss out—this isn't some cumulative, "12 Days of Christmas" kind of thing. But the good news is, 15 games, zero dollars, which is a heck of a way to bulk up your collection in a hurry.

The 2019 Epic Store Holiday Sale also gave customers "coupons" for $10 off eligible games, with additional $10 discounts on subsequent purchases. There's no word at this point whether we'll see coupons or anything similar return for 2020, but we'll let you know if it happens. 

And speaking of free games, two more went on the block today: The outstanding Oblivion RPGs Pillars of Eternity and Tyranny, which are up for grabs until the Holiday Sale begins.

Andy Chalk

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.