Remember Amazon? Bezos’ e-retail empire that officially showed up in SA back in May? Of course you don’t. Amazon wasted its talents locally, barely managing to compete with its largest competitor – Takealot – despite a far larger budget. No matter. Even if South Africa won’t be privy to the company’s massive Prime Day sale later this month, we can still join in on the fun. You’ll need an R80/m Prime Video subscription first, though.

Subscribing to Prime Video gets you access to Prime Gaming – a side of Amazon many have forgotten exists. You’ll need to dust off the ol’ ‘Forgot Password’ to get back into your account because Prime Gaming is offering 15 free PC games in the build-up to the international Prime Day sales. Some of those are fairly… forgettable (we’re looking at you, Card Shark) but others, like Star Wars: KOTOR II are well worth the hassle.

Free games, you say?

Hitman Absolution – free on Prime Gaming from Wednesday, 3 July

“Hassle” may be a bit of an overstatement. These are free games, after all. But you’ll need to put in some legwork to get them (hitting Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V a couple of times). Of the fifteen free games, only eight are available right now. You’ll need to wait for Amazon to drip-feed the remaining six titles, three of which should turn up in the system later today, 3 July. The final trio of games are set to become free next week Thursday, 11 July.

Before you can start claiming games like your life depends on it, you’ll need to register some new accounts in your name to claim the codes Amazon is offering. The first of which is the Epic Games Store, which many PC players likely already have hooked up against their will. How else would you play Rocket League? Next, you’ll need a Good Old Games (GOG) account, followed by a login to Legacy Games.

Once you’re done with that, head over to Prime Gaming and find the ‘Free Games’ banner. Click on those titles you’d like to add to your collection, and you’ll see a redeem code waiting for you. Visit the accompanying site (Epic Games, GOG, Legacy Games), enter the code, and you’re good to go. Those listed as ‘Amazon Games’ below will automatically be deposited into your Amazon account upon claiming.

Free PC Games available now:

Deceive Inc. – Epic Games Store – Fill the shoes of “the world’s greatest spies” in this little-known multiplayer title from Sweet Bandits Studios.
Card Shark – Epic Games Store – We may have clowned on it earlier, but with Devolver Digital at the publishing helm, there’s no harm in trying out this side-scroller that involves cheating in cards.
Soulstice – Epic Games Store – It isn’t Shadow of the Erdtree, but Soulstice should hold you over with its action-filled gameplay that lets you control two sisters in a coming-of-age fantasy story.
Call of Juarez – GOG – Mom didn’t get you Red Dead Redemption 2 for Christmas? Weird West is a FPS Western with half the charm and 0% of the cost. Enjoy.
Forager – GOG – Step into this cutesy survival title that’ll have you gathering resources, farming and crafting to ultimately put you in mind of Terraria, Stardew Valley and The Legend of Zelda.
Tearstone: Thieves of the Heart – Legacy Games – A puzzle adventure that’ll have you on the hunt for the Heart of Tearstone? It sounds delightfully fantastical. Where do we sign up? Oh.
The Invisible Hand – Amazon Games – If being a stockbro in the real world led to your friends constantly laughing at you, The Invisible Hand is just for you. Play as a mid-level stockbroker wishing for wealth.
Heaven Dust 2 – Amazon Games – An ode to Resident Evil, Heaven Dust 2 steps into the ‘classic survival horror experience’ genre with a genuinely interesting art style and evolved combat system that might be worth your time.

Free PC Games available later today, 3 July:

Hitman Absolution – GOG – If you haven’t yet experienced Absolution, we’d advise changing that immediately. It’s not IO Interactive operating at its best, but it’s a fun entry into Agent 47’s world that’ll distract you for a good couple of hours.
Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood – GOG – Set seventeen years before the first game, Bound in Blood brings back its FPS roots to the McCall brothers during the American Civil War.
Wall World – Amazon Games – All we needed to hear about Wall World was that players could take control of a giant robospider. Throw in the rogue-lite elements mixed with tower defence gameplay that make up the crux of the game, and we might just give this one a go when it goes free later today.

Free PC Games available next week, 11 July:

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge – Epic Games Store – A classic arcade beat ’em up that stars the entire gang taking on Shredder. We played the first level when it hit Netflix, but you can’t beat PC, can you?
Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX – Epic Games Store – A revival of the 2D platformer of the same name, DX incorporates new levels and puzzles that serve to expand Alex Kidd’s lore.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II – The Sith Lords – Amazon Games – Probably the most iconic Star Wars game of all time, KOTOR II is some of Obsidian’s best work in the RPG genre that you won’t mind losing a couple of hours to each night.
Samurai Bringer – If the name alone wasn’t enough to convince you, Samurai Bringer’s rogue-lite elements that’ll see you cutting down hordes of samurai and… demons might do the trick.