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FC 26 tops 2026’s PS Plus new-player ranking, per a post citing Alinea Analytics estimates

The September 8 post says FC 26 attracted an estimated 7.8 million new players through PS Plus. About 5 million accessed it during its May 6–June 17 claim window; many subscribers claimed it then but played later.

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1 Source, 22d ago, first seen 22d ago

TLDR

A September 8, 2026 post citing Alinea Analytics estimates ranks FC 26 first among the year’s PlayStation Plus games by new players through the service, at 7.8 million. Spider-Man 2 placed second with 4.3 million, while Grounded attracted an estimated 3.2 million. The post also highlights limited playtime for many Grounded players: about 42% of its PlayStation players had played for under an hour, and about 70% for under five hours.

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1 Source, first seen 22d ago

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Combined views

7.7K

1 Source, first seen 22d ago

58 likes6 comments12 saves6 reposts

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Sentiment

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Summary

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1 Source

@superhys2026's top PlayStation Plus games by new players via the service (@alineaanalytics estimates) FC 26 took the top spot, with 7.8M new players via its PS+ inclusion. It was free to claim for PlayStation Plus Essential subscribers between May 6 and June 17, during which about 5M players accessed it through their subscription. Many claimed FC 26 during the window but only played later – including over 1M players between the end of the window and the World Cup final. Spider-Man 2 swings in at #2 with 4.3M, having been added to PlayStation Plus Extra’s catalogue on Feb 18. There was a huge spike of new players when it landed on PS+, then it settled to about 100K a week. Though, the recent Spider-Man movie gave it a boost (just like its copies sold). To date, Spider-Man 2 has generated about $1.3 billion across platforms. All eyes are on Wolverine‘s release next week. Grounded, an Xbox port, pulled in 3.2M new players via PlayStation Plus, thanks to monthly PS+ Essential inclusion between June 3 and July 8. Most seem to have been curious – rather than committed – players. About 42% of Grounded‘s PlayStation players have played for under an hour, and about 70% under five hours. Still, it’s sold over 850K copies on PlayStation to date, generating over $25M. If I was a betting man, I’d say the PS+ deal was likely a precursor to a Grounded 2 PS5 release. But whether that still happens under the current administration looks shaky. Big Walk, one of the rare games to actually launch straight onto PS+ as a free monthly title, got 2.8M PlayStation Plus players. That cannibalised sales on PlayStation (a little over 10K copies and under $200K in revenue). But the PlayStation leg of the co-op-only game was likely meant as marketing (and server-filler) for the Steam version. Network effects, and all that. On Steam, Big Walk has sold 1.8M copies and generated $23M. Bangin’ for a 30-ish-person dev team. Undisputed managed 2.8M players via its PlayStation Plus Essential addition between Feb 4 and March 4. This boxing game was more one for the ball-and-gun crowd. In February, when Undisputed was on PS+, its top games by crossover were Fortnite (played by 31% of Undisputed players that month), NBA 2K26 (30%), GTA 5 (26%), Roblox (24%), and FC 26 (24%). The team is hard at work on a sequel, and they have a strong base to springboard off. GTA 5 pulled in another 2.5M PS+ players this year, thanks to its ongoing presence on the Extra tier (re-added for the third time last November). As you’d expect, the period after the GTA 6 extended gameplay reveal on August 27 enjoyed a small spike of new players via PlayStation Plus. More on the Alinea Substack (free!)
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    1 Source

    @superhys2026's top PlayStation Plus games by new players via the service (@alineaanalytics estimates) FC 26 took the top spot, with 7.8M new players via its PS+ inclusion. It was free to claim for PlayStation Plus Essential subscribers between May 6 and June 17, during which about 5M players accessed it through their subscription. Many claimed FC 26 during the window but only played later – including over 1M players between the end of the window and the World Cup final. Spider-Man 2 swings in at #2 with 4.3M, having been added to PlayStation Plus Extra’s catalogue on Feb 18. There was a huge spike of new players when it landed on PS+, then it settled to about 100K a week. Though, the recent Spider-Man movie gave it a boost (just like its copies sold). To date, Spider-Man 2 has generated about $1.3 billion across platforms. All eyes are on Wolverine‘s release next week. Grounded, an Xbox port, pulled in 3.2M new players via PlayStation Plus, thanks to monthly PS+ Essential inclusion between June 3 and July 8. Most seem to have been curious – rather than committed – players. About 42% of Grounded‘s PlayStation players have played for under an hour, and about 70% under five hours. Still, it’s sold over 850K copies on PlayStation to date, generating over $25M. If I was a betting man, I’d say the PS+ deal was likely a precursor to a Grounded 2 PS5 release. But whether that still happens under the current administration looks shaky. Big Walk, one of the rare games to actually launch straight onto PS+ as a free monthly title, got 2.8M PlayStation Plus players. That cannibalised sales on PlayStation (a little over 10K copies and under $200K in revenue). But the PlayStation leg of the co-op-only game was likely meant as marketing (and server-filler) for the Steam version. Network effects, and all that. On Steam, Big Walk has sold 1.8M copies and generated $23M. Bangin’ for a 30-ish-person dev team. Undisputed managed 2.8M players via its PlayStation Plus Essential addition between Feb 4 and March 4. This boxing game was more one for the ball-and-gun crowd. In February, when Undisputed was on PS+, its top games by crossover were Fortnite (played by 31% of Undisputed players that month), NBA 2K26 (30%), GTA 5 (26%), Roblox (24%), and FC 26 (24%). The team is hard at work on a sequel, and they have a strong base to springboard off. GTA 5 pulled in another 2.5M PS+ players this year, thanks to its ongoing presence on the Extra tier (re-added for the third time last November). As you’d expect, the period after the GTA 6 extended gameplay reveal on August 27 enjoyed a small spike of new players via PlayStation Plus. More on the Alinea Substack (free!)
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