Xbox Free Play Days: 5 Ubisoft Games Free Without Game Pass, End Date and PC Copy Details

There are a few catches, though. The end date depends on which announcement you read, one game's platform listing has been reported wrongly, and "free" multiplayer comes with an asterisk. Here's what's confirmed.

The lineup and the window​

Xbox Wire, Microsoft's official Xbox news site, announced the promotion on October 1. Far Cry 6, Assassin's Creed Odyssey, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, Skull and Bones, and The Crew Motorfest are free for all Xbox members to try from Thursday, October 1 until Sunday, October 4 (Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Premium and Essential membership not required).

Pay attention to the end date. Neowin said the promotion ends Sunday, October 4, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Xbox Wire's announcement doesn't give a time or time zone. Ubisoft's own news post about its 40th-anniversary sale says all five of those titles are included in Xbox's Free Play Days running from October 1-5. So Microsoft says the 4th and Ubisoft says the 5th. Play it safe and treat Sunday as your last day. If you get Monday too, that's a bonus.

Summary: Five Ubisoft games, no Game Pass needed, and access ends Sunday, October 4 by Microsoft's date (Ubisoft says the 5th).

What each game is, and what it costs if you keep it​

These are full games for the weekend, not demos. You don't keep them unless you buy. Here's what each one offers, with the US prices Xbox Wire showed at announcement time:

• Far Cry 6 (Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S): Xbox calls it a first-person open world guerrilla shooter set in the island nation of Yara. You can lead the revolution alone or with a friend. Xbox advertises it at up to 85% off, and its listing showed $8.99, down from $59.99.
• Assassin's Creed Odyssey (Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S): A Spartan-warrior action RPG set in Ancient Greece, with Sparta-versus-Athens battles of 150 soldiers per side. Xbox labels it Xbox One X Enhanced. It was listed at $11.99, down from $59.99.
• Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora: Open-world exploration of Pandora's Western Frontier, where you play a Na'vi reconnecting with your heritage. It was listed at $16.49, down from $29.99.
• Skull and Bones (Xbox Series X|S): Ubisoft's pirate live-service game. Xbox is using the weekend to promote Year 3 Season 2: Crimson Waters, where you can take command of the new large ship, the Junk, built for relentless fire damage, face new challenges including the Abyssal Fleet and Abyssal Envoy, and experience new progression features like Modification Transfer and Mastery Loadouts. Xbox Wire showed no sale price for it.
• The Crew Motorfest (Xbox Series X|S): Open-world racing across the Hawaiian islands with more than 800 vehicles. It was listed at $47.99, down from $59.99.

Xbox says discounts, percentages and availability vary by title and region, so prices in your local store may differ. Ubisoft also describes the wider sale differently. It says the Ubi40 sale is running in the Microsoft Store until October 7, offering up to 80% off Ubisoft titles. That means the sale runs a few days past the free weekend, so you don't have to buy before Sunday night.

A correction on Avatar's platforms​

Neowin listed Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora as playable on Xbox One. The game's Xbox Store page disagrees: it's marked "Optimised for Xbox Series X|S," and under "Play with" it lists only Xbox Series X|S and Xbox Cloud Gaming. If you're on an Xbox One, you're realistically looking at Far Cry 6 and Assassin's Creed Odyssey.

Summary: Everything is discounted, prices vary by region, and Xbox One owners get two of the five games, not three.

How to install the games​

Xbox gives two ways in.

On console (Xbox One or Xbox Series X|S):

1. Open the Xbox Store.
2. Click on the Subscriptions tab in the Xbox Store and navigate down to the Free Play Days collection.
3. Pick a game and install it.

Neowin describes the same path as going to the Store's Home section in the sidebar and then opening Subscriptions. The Subscriptions tab is the part that matters.

From a browser: Go to each game's details page on Xbox.com. It sends you to the Microsoft Store, where you have to be signed in to see the install option.

A practical tip: these are big open-world games, so check your free storage before you queue all five. You might want to pick the one or two you actually care about rather than spending half the weekend downloading. Fans of the 2021 Far Cry 6 Free Play Days weekend will recall that Game Rant suggested preloading the game through the official Xbox mobile app by searching Far Cry 6 and selecting download to console. That shortcut is from an earlier event, so whether remote install works this time isn't confirmed. It's still worth trying if your console is set up for it.

Summary: Store → Subscriptions → Free Play Days. Clear some drive space first.

The multiplayer catch​

Neowin says the multiplayer parts should also be playable without the usual Ultimate, Premium or Essential memberships. Xbox's announcement says no membership is needed to try the games, but it doesn't say anything specific about online play.

The store pages complicate things. Avatar's Xbox Store listing says it requires an online multiplayer subscription to play on console (Game Pass Core or Ultimate, sold separately) and that online features need an internet connection, a Ubisoft account and a Microsoft account. Skull and Bones needs a constant internet connection plus both accounts. Microsoft hasn't explained how those standing requirements work during an event that's open to everyone.

So don't promise your friends a free co-op night until you've tried it. Single-player is the safe bet. Online co-op in Far Cry 6 or Avatar might work, or it might not.

Summary: No membership is needed to play. Whether every online mode works without a subscription is unconfirmed.

Why a PC gamer should care: progress carries over, and some games come with a PC copy​

Xbox says if you buy a game or another edition during the limited-time discount, you keep playing and keep the Gamerscore and achievements you earned over the weekend. Ubisoft says the same: if you buy one of the games afterwards, all your progress will carry over.

For Windows users, there's more to it than that. In July, PC Gamer reported that Ubisoft had added titles to Xbox's "console-to-PC" program, and if you buy a digital version of any of those games on Xbox, you'll get both the Xbox version and the "Xbox on PC" version. Four of this weekend's five games are on that 13-game list: Far Cry 6, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, Skull and Bones and The Crew Motorfest. Assassin's Creed Odyssey is not on it.

Pure Xbox reported that the PC versions are playable through the Ubisoft Connect app on PC, and that 'in-game currency and one-time-use content' may not make the jump. GamingBible says you claim them by linking your Xbox and Ubisoft Connect accounts. Not everyone has found it smooth, though: some players in Pure Xbox's comments said owned games weren't showing up in their Ubisoft Connect libraries.

Here's a back-of-envelope calculation, assuming the US listing and the program both work as described. A $8.99 Far Cry 6 bought on Xbox could also give you a PC copy. That's far more interesting than the usual weekend trial. Before you buy, check that your accounts are linked and that the game actually appears in Ubisoft Connect.

Summary: Buying after the trial keeps your progress, and four of the five games may also come with a PC copy through Ubisoft Connect.

The bigger picture​

The timing isn't a coincidence. Ubisoft is marking its 40th anniversary with sales on several storefronts, and Free Play Days works as a big try-before-you-buy funnel for that sale. That's a promotion, so take the "best price yet" language with some skepticism. It's still a good deal for players: five complete games, no subscription, and progress that carries over if you buy.

It also shows how much Free Play Days has changed. Game Rant's coverage of a 2021 event described Free Play Days as being for Xbox Live and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers, and as recently as 2025 a Skull and Bones weekend required a Game Pass tier. Opening it to anyone with a console, at least for this event, makes the program more of an open demo than a perk for paying members. Microsoft hasn't said whether that will continue.

Bottom line: Start downloading tonight, assume access ends Sunday, check before counting on online play, and if you'd like a PC copy too, link your Ubisoft account before you buy.