Not every freebie on Steam comes with a countdown timer. Alongside the usual limited-time giveaways, there’s a second category worth watching: games that used to cost money and quietly switched to a free-to-play business model. Once that happens, the price tag doesn’t come back, so you can grab them whenever you want.
A recent example was the well-liked 2D platformer Hayfever, which dropped its $14.99 price and became free for everyone on PC. Now five more former paid titles have joined that club.
The five games that are now free
- Tactical Mission: Target Rush – tactical FPS with zombies, previously $4.99
- Journey Through The Nightmare Realm 2 – retro co-op roguelite, previously $4.99
- Cosmo Chaser – retro sci-fi shoot ’em up, previously around $2
- Twin Trials – FPS and 3D platformer hybrid, previously $5.99
- Donut Smash – arcade rhythm-style incremental game, previously $3.99
All five are indie projects and most of them have only a handful of user reviews, but at least one of them – the tactical shooter – deserves a closer look than its review count suggests.
Tactical Mission: Target Rush
This is a realistic first-person shooter that draws obvious comparisons to Bodycam, just on a much smaller budget. It offers several modes spread across different shooting range layouts. One of them throws a horde of zombies at you in a way that feels close to Back 4 Blood, while a hostage rescue mode lets you sharpen your aim against human opponents. The game dropped its price on September 1 and you can add it to your library straight from its Steam page.
Journey Through The Nightmare Realm 2
JTTNR 2 is a retro-styled bullet hell with local couch co-op. You drop into different maps, shoot targets and weave through an endless stream of projectiles. The whole thing is built like an arcade cabinet, so the leaderboard chase is a big part of the appeal, and you collect power-ups and abilities along the way like in most roguelites. The game launched in 2025 and went free-to-play on August 24, 2026.
Cosmo Chaser
Vertical shoot ’em ups never really went away – there’s even a brand-new one called Razing Core that released on the Sega Master System with the look and feel of genuine 80s and 90s classics. Cosmo Chaser takes the same proven formula and adds a modern twist: besides moving vertically, you can circle giant space stations and keep fighting in a 360-degree mode. Boss fights also switch the camera from vertical to side-scrolling.
Twin Trials
Twin Trials is the experiment of the bunch, mixing first-person shooting, 3D platforming and arcade scoring. You carry a dual gun that opens up new paths and blows apart barricades, while the actual goal is to clear parkour routes and rack up as many points as possible.
Donut Smash
The concept here is as simple as it gets: donuts fall from the sky and you smash them. Every now and then the game tosses broccoli your way to test your reflexes, much like the bombs in Ninja Fruit. Donut Smash came out in May 2026 and developer Enigma Verse made it free on Steam in August.
Where to look next
If you’re building a library out of freebies, we’ve covered other recent opportunities too – for example Knight’s Empire and Space Menace on Steam, plus a time-limited offer on For Honor for PC players. More news and roundups are waiting in our gaming articles section.
FAQ
No. These aren’t limited-time giveaways – all five titles changed their business model from paid to free, so they stay free on Steam and you can add them to your account at any time.
Tactical Mission: Target Rush stands out the most. It’s a realistic tactical FPS in the vein of Bodycam, with several modes including a zombie horde mode and hostage rescue.
Yes, it supports local couch co-op. It’s a retro bullet hell roguelite built around arcade-style leaderboard scoring, with power-ups and abilities to pick up during runs.
Tactical Mission: Target Rush and JTTNR 2 were $4.99, Twin Trials $5.99, Donut Smash $3.99, and Cosmo Chaser roughly $2.
Tactical Mission: Target Rush dropped its price on September 1, JTTNR 2 went free-to-play on August 24, 2026, and Donut Smash became free in August after its May 2026 release.