Sonic Mania Leads Epic Games Store's Free Games This Week

The free games on the Epic Games Store have rotated once more, and this week there are two big titles up for grabs. The first free game is a rather simple racer with a ton of style, and the second free game is quite possibly the best Sonic the Hedgehog game in the past 20 years. Both of them will be available for a week, at which point they'll rotate out, and another free game will rotate in to replace them.

The first game up for grabs is Horizon Chase Turbo. While Horizon Chase Turbo is a relatively simple racing game – especially compared to some of the simulation racers out there – it has beautiful graphics and a killer soundtrack. The gameplay isn't too bad either, even though it's straightforward. Horizon Chase Turbo is definitely one to pick up if you're a fan of arcade racers.

The second free game on tap this week is none other than Sonic Mania. Sonic Mania was released in 2017 and served as a big throwback to the era of 2D Sonic games. For a franchise that has been plagued with middling – and sometimes even outright bad – games for the past two decades, Sonic Mania definitely felt like a breath of fresh air.

Of course, the fact that Sonic Mania is free on the Epic Games Store this week probably isn't a coincidence. The Sonic the Hedgehog franchise is turning 30 years old this year, and in fact, that anniversary happened earlier this week. Therefore, it's safe to assume that Sonic Mania is free on the Epic Games Store because of the franchise's big anniversary.

The Epic Games Store is offering two excellent games this week, so if you game on PC and don't already own them, you should claim them before they rotate out next week. Both Sonic Mania and Horizon Chase Turbo are free until July 1st at 11 AM EDT, at which point they'll be replaced by The Spectrum Retreat.