Xbox Free Play Days Unlocks Train Sim World 6, Icarus and Lynked Until Sunday
Xbox Free Play Days has opened for the weekend with three games unlocked in full: Train Sim World 6: Standard Edition, Icarus: Console Edition and Lynked: Banner of the Spark. The trial runs from Thursday, August 20 until Sunday, August 23, and it is open to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Premium and Essential members on Xbox Series X|S.
These are full games, not demos. Save data, Gamerscore and achievements you earn during the window stay on your account if you buy the game afterwards, which is the main practical difference between Free Play Days and a timed trial.
Which games are in Xbox Free Play Days this weekend
- Train Sim World 6: Standard Edition — Dovetail Games, $49.99. Three routes are included: the Riviera Line along the Dawlish sea wall with the GWR Class 802 and Class 150/2, and the Leipzig–Dresden line with the DB BR 411 ICE-T. Optimised for Xbox Series X|S, with Smart Delivery and Xbox Play Anywhere.
- Icarus: Console Edition — GRIP Studios, $39.99. A PvE survival game for one to four players on a hostile planet, built around shelter, crafting, hunting and weather. Optimised for Xbox Series X|S.
- Lynked: Banner of the Spark — Dreamhaven, $14.99. A roguelite with a life-sim base-building layer, where parts salvaged from robot enemies feed back into upgrading your village. Optimised for Xbox Series X|S.
Which Game Pass tiers can play it, and what it costs to keep
Microsoft lists Game Pass Ultimate, Premium and Essential as eligible. There is no free-for-everyone tier here — Free Play Days sits behind a subscription, unlike a Steam free weekend. If your membership lapses mid-weekend, access to the three titles goes with it.
Icarus: Console Edition is the one with a stated discount: 30% off the base game and all of its available DLC for the duration of the promotion. Microsoft did not publish percentages for Train Sim World 6 or Lynked, and it notes that discounts and title availability vary by region, so the store page for your account is the only reliable figure.
How to install the three games
On console, open the Xbox Store, go to the Subscriptions tab and scroll to the Free Play Days collection — it is reachable on Xbox One as well as Xbox Series X|S. From a browser or phone, open each game's product page on Xbox.com and install from there; you need to be signed in to the account holding the membership before the install option appears at all. That last part trips people up every rotation.
Watch the download sizes before you commit the evening to this. Icarus and Train Sim World 6 are both large installs, and a train simulator with three routes is not a game you sample in twenty minutes. If storage is tight, our guide to the new local save manager in the Xbox Insider build covers how the console is changing the way it handles space.
When does Free Play Days end
Microsoft gave the window as Thursday, August 20 through Sunday, August 23, without publishing a cut-off time or timezone. Treat Sunday as the last full day rather than assuming you have all of Sunday night, and finish anything you care about before then. Achievements already unlocked are yours regardless of what happens to access.
How this fits the rest of the August rotation
This lands at the tail of a busy month for the service. The second Game Pass wave brought Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy on day one, and a separate batch of titles including Firewatch and Aliens: Fireteam Elite left the catalogue on August 15. Free Play Days is the cheapest of the three to act on, because it costs nothing beyond the membership you already have and it does not permanently change what is in your library.
None of the three games has an Android version, so this one is console-only. If you want something to play on a phone with the same pad, our round-up of Android games with proper gamepad support was tested with an Xbox controller.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you need Game Pass for Xbox Free Play Days?
Yes. Free Play Days is limited to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Premium and Essential members, so there is no way to join this weekend's trial without one of those subscriptions. It is not an open free weekend like the ones Steam runs. If your membership expires during the window, access to the three games ends with it.
When does this Free Play Days weekend end?
Microsoft listed the window as Thursday, August 20 through Sunday, August 23, 2026, but did not publish an exact cut-off time or timezone. Plan on Sunday being the last day rather than counting on Sunday night. Anything you unlock before then stays on your account.
Do achievements and save data carry over if I buy the game?
Yes. Microsoft confirms that Gamerscore and achievements earned during Free Play Days are kept, and your progress continues if you buy the game or another edition of it. That applies to all three titles in this rotation.
How much do the games cost after Free Play Days?
Train Sim World 6: Standard Edition is listed at $49.99, Icarus: Console Edition at $39.99 and Lynked: Banner of the Spark at $14.99. Icarus and all of its available DLC are 30% off for the duration of the promotion. Microsoft says discounts and availability vary by region.
Which consoles can play these Free Play Days games?
All three are optimised for Xbox Series X|S, and the Free Play Days collection can be browsed from the Subscriptions tab on both Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S. Train Sim World 6 also supports Smart Delivery and Xbox Play Anywhere. None of the three has an Android or mobile version.
