Steam’s Free Weekend is back and this time the lineup is genuinely stacked. Five games spanning looter shooters, medieval combat, colony sims, Formula 1 racing, and co-op heists are all playable at zero cost right now through Sunday, September 14 at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET. Whether you’ve been on the fence about any of these or just want something new to sink a few hours into this weekend, this is a pretty solid spread across different genres and playstyles.
Quick note on how Steam Free Weekend works before diving in: these are not permanent free-to-keep games. You can play the full versions of each title during the promotional window with no purchase required, but access ends when the window closes. If you end up loving something, most of the games on this list have sale discounts running alongside the free weekend so you can lock in your progress and keep playing at a reduced price. Progress and save data carry over if you buy within the promotional period.
All 5 Steam Free Weekend Games (September 10–14, 2026)
- Borderlands 4 — Free until September 14 at 10 AM PT
- Mordhau — Free until September 14 at 10 AM PT
- Surviving Mars: Relaunched — Free until September 14 at 10 AM PT
- F1 25 (2026 Season Edition) — Free until September 14 at 10 AM PT
- Crime Boss: Rockay City — Free until September 14 at 10 AM PT
Borderlands 4 — The Biggest Name on the List
Borderlands 4 is the headliner of this particular free weekend, and the timing isn’t accidental — this is also the game’s first anniversary since launching in September 2025. Gearbox and 2K are using the milestone to pull in new players and welcome back anyone who bounced off it early.
The game takes the series to Kairos, a new planet under the iron rule of the authoritarian Timekeeper. You pick from one of four new Vault Hunters, each with their own distinct skill trees and Action Skills, and tear through the planet’s factions chasing increasingly chaotic weapons and gear combinations. It’s the same core loop Borderlands has always done — billions of procedurally generated guns, relentless humor, and satisfying build variety — applied to a new setting with refined mechanics.
The free weekend access includes the complete base game plus everything added to it since launch, including the Circle of Slaughter mode that was added as a post-launch update. Paid DLC story packs and the additional Vault Hunter (C4SH) remain behind a purchase, but the base game is the full experience. Cross-platform saves are enabled through a free SHiFT Account during the event, so progress carries between Steam, PlayStation, and Xbox if you play on multiple platforms.
Steam review scores are Mixed at 61% positive after over 43,000 reviews, which is worth acknowledging — the community has been divided on some of its design choices compared to earlier entries. But with the 50% discount currently running ($34.99 until September 24), it’s a low-risk way to form your own opinion this weekend before committing.
- Release Date: September 11, 2025
- Genre: Open-World Looter Shooter
- Developer / Publisher: Gearbox / 2K
- Steam Rating: Mixed (61% positive, 43K+ reviews)
- Sale Discount: -50% until September 24 ($34.99)
- Can you finish it this weekend? The main campaign is possible but it’ll be a push
Mordhau — The Best Deal on the List by Far
If you’ve never played Mordhau, this free weekend is genuinely one of the best opportunities you’re going to get to try one of PC gaming’s most uniquely chaotic multiplayer experiences. This medieval slasher from Triternion dropped back in 2019 and has maintained a dedicated community ever since, built around its deeply skill-expressive melee combat and the absolute insanity that happens when 64 players are let loose on a battlefield together.
The core of Mordhau is creating your own mercenary — fully customizable right down to facial features — and then taking them into battles that can feature anything from intimate sword duels to sprawling sieges with cavalry charges, ballistae, and catapults. The combat system rewards real mechanical investment: footwork, feints, timing, and directional strikes all matter in ways that make mastering it feel genuinely satisfying. There’s also a Horde mode for players who’d rather cooperate against AI waves than go head-to-head with veterans.
The big number here is the -80% discount running alongside the free weekend, bringing the game down to just $5.99 until September 17. With a Very Positive rating at 81% positive across 59,000 reviews, that’s one of the cleaner gaming purchases you can make if you like what you play this weekend. At $5.99, the decision-making process is basically zero.
- Release Date: April 29, 2019
- Genre: Multiplayer Medieval Slasher
- Developer / Publisher: Triternion
- Steam Rating: Very Positive (81% positive, 59K+ reviews)
- Sale Discount: -80% until September 17 ($5.99)
- Can you finish it this weekend? It’s multiplayer-focused, so there’s no campaign to finish — just battles to throw yourself into
Surviving Mars: Relaunched — The Colony Sim with Political Depth
Surviving Mars: Relaunched is Haemimont Games and Paradox Interactive’s definitive version of the 2018 colony management classic, which came out in November 2025. This isn’t just a visual remaster — it’s a substantial rework that bundles the original game with its entire back catalog of DLC expansions (Space Race, Green Planet, Below & Beyond, Project Laika, and more) alongside a brand new gameplay system that wasn’t in the original release.
That new system is the Martian Assembly, which adds a political dimension to the late game that the original completely lacked. Once your colony reaches a certain stage, you can start shaping its laws, managing factional tensions among colonists, and eventually pursuing independence from Earth entirely. It turns what was already a deep colony management game into something with real political and societal strategy layered on top of the core resource loop.
The essentials of survival are still the foundation: landing on Mars, building your domes, managing oxygen, water, food, and electricity, expanding your infrastructure, and dealing with the planet’s nasty habit of trying to kill everyone through sandstorms and equipment failures. But the Relaunched version gives veteran players a lot more to chew on once the colony is stable. Reviews sit at Mixed (54% positive) on Steam with a relatively small number of reviews compared to the other games on this list, which likely reflects some player adjustment to changes made from the original. At 32+ hours to really dig into what the game offers, this one is less about beating it this weekend and more about seeing if the concept clicks for you.
- Release Date: November 10, 2025
- Genre: Colony Management Sim
- Developer / Publisher: Haemimont Games / Paradox Interactive
- Steam Rating: Mixed (54% positive, ~1.4K reviews)
- Sale Discount: -50% ($19.99)
- Can you finish it this weekend? Not really — this is a 30+ hour experience. Treat it as a sampler
F1 25 (2026 Season Edition) — Surprisingly Approachable for Racing Fans
F1 25 is Codemasters and EA’s official Formula 1 game for the 2025 season, and what you’re accessing during this free weekend is the 2026 Season Edition — which adds the full 2026 season content on top of the base game. That includes the new Audi and Cadillac teams, new drivers like Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar alongside Max Verstappen and the rest of the established grid, and the new Madrid street circuit. If you’ve been following the real-world 2026 F1 season at all, this is basically the game version of it.
The broader game includes the updated My Team career mode, the latest chapter of Braking Point (the narrative-driven story mode that’s become a signature feature of recent F1 games), and the full multiplayer offering. F1 25 carries a Very Positive rating at 87% positive across over 10,000 Steam reviews, making it the most critically well-received game on this weekend’s list. The story mode is relatively short, so if you’re purely interested in that narrative element, you could realistically get through it before the weekend ends.
The -30% discount brings it to $34.99 until September 17. If you’ve been thinking about getting into F1 games or want to experience the new-era cars and teams without paying full price, this weekend is your window.
- Release Date: May 30, 2025
- Genre: Sports Simulation / Racing
- Developer / Publisher: Codemasters / EA
- Steam Rating: Very Positive (87% positive, 10K+ reviews)
- Sale Discount: -30% until September 17 ($34.99)
- Can you finish it this weekend? The Braking Point story mode is short — yes, probably
Crime Boss: Rockay City — The Wildcard Pick
Crime Boss: Rockay City is probably the most overlooked game on this list, and arguably the one that deserves a second look the most given how far it’s come since launch in June 2024. The premise is pretty simple: you and up to three friends pull off heists in a neon-drenched fictional Florida city, grab the loot, and try not to get taken down by rival crews or law enforcement before you can escape. First-person shooting, co-op chaos, and a cast of characters with distinctly B-movie energy.
What makes it worth revisiting now is that the game has received a significant amount of content updates since launch, including the Rockay Rumble battle royale-style survival mode and a roguelite option. The single-player roguelike campaign has you building up a criminal crew, taking over territory district by district, and earning permanent upgrades that carry across runs. It scratches a similar itch to Payday without quite reaching those heights, but as a co-op heist game to mess around in with friends for a weekend, it does the job.
The purchase discount here is the most absurd one on the list: -90% off until September 24, bringing it to just $1.99. At that price point, if you play it this weekend and like it even a little, buying it is essentially a no-brainer. Honestly, even if you’re just mildly entertained, two dollars is not a meaningful decision.
- Release Date: June 18, 2024
- Genre: Co-Op First-Person Heist / Roguelike
- Developer / Publisher: Ingame Studios / 505 Games
- Steam Rating: Mostly Positive (73% positive, 4K+ reviews)
- Sale Discount: -90% until September 24 ($1.99)
- Can you finish it this weekend? The roguelite campaign is finishable, but the multiplayer gives you more
Which One Should You Actually Play?
If you’ve got limited time this weekend and can only commit to one, here’s a quick breakdown by situation. For the best deal with the lowest barrier to permanent purchase, Mordhau at $5.99 is a steal and the Very Positive rating backs it up. For the biggest game with the most content, Borderlands 4 is the one to try — just go in knowing the community is split on it. For the best reviewed game on the list, F1 25 is the clear pick if you have any interest in racing games. If you want something to play with friends this specific weekend, Crime Boss: Rockay City at $1.99 is practically free even after the weekend ends. And if deep strategy is your thing, Surviving Mars: Relaunched is worth at least a few hours to see if the colony management loop grabs you.
The free window runs through Sunday, September 14 at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET, so you’ve got the rest of the weekend to dive in. All five games can be accessed directly through their Steam pages. If you’re into heist-adjacent content right now, it’s also worth noting that GTA 6’s Bonnie-and-Clyde dynamic between Jason and Lucia just got a full official breakdown, and PlayStation’s Fairgames resurfaced as Project Espresso with actual gameplay footage and an open playtest sign-up — both worth checking out while you’re here. And if you’re a Pokemon Champions player, there’s a free Mystery Gift code active until December 31 that’s worth grabbing before you forget about it.
