The Epic Games Store is giving away two full PC games this week, and both are yours to keep permanently. Through Thursday, October 8, 2026 at 11 a.m. ET, System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster and BURIED STARS are free to claim.
At their normal store prices those two titles cost $69.98 combined — $29.99 for the sci-fi horror remaster and $39.99 for the Korean mystery adventure. You pay $0, and no subscription or paid membership is involved.
The catch is timing rather than money. Epic rotates its giveaway lineup every Thursday morning, so the moment the clock passes 11 a.m. ET on October 8, both listings flip back to full price.
We pulled the live offer data straight from Epic's own store promotions feed on the morning of October 2, so the prices, dates, and titles below are the current live ones. Here is the full breakdown, plus the claim mechanics that quietly cost people a free game every single week.
Quick Summary: Epic Games Store Free Games This Week
Item | Detail |
|---|---|
Free games | System Shock 2 Remaster, BURIED STARS |
Combined value | $69.98 |
Your cost | $0, keep forever |
Claim window | Oct 1 – Oct 8, 11 a.m. ET |
Where | Epic Games Store, web or launcher |
Account needed | Free Epic account |
Next lineup | Out of Sight, TerraScape, Oct 8–15 |
Platform | Windows PC |
What Is the Deal, Exactly?
Epic Games Store runs a standing weekly promotion in which one or more PC titles are discounted to $0 for a seven-day window. You "buy" the game at checkout for nothing, and it stays in your library permanently — there is no subscription, no time limit on playing it, and no requirement to install it during the free week.
This week the promotion is a two-game bundle. Both titles went free on Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 11 a.m. ET and remain claimable until Thursday, October 8, 2026 at 11 a.m. ET.
That is the same pattern Epic has used all year, and DHU has tracked the weekly lineups through earlier giveaways such as Mindcop and Shogun Showdown and Astral Ascent with LUFTRAUSERS.
The important distinction is claim versus install. Claiming takes about ninety seconds and locks the game to your account. Installing is entirely optional and can happen months later. People who wait until they have free disk space still keep the game, as long as they claimed it before the deadline.
Every week we see the same failure in the comments: someone adds a game to their cart, gets distracted, and comes back after 11 a.m. ET on the closing Thursday. The cart is not a claim. You have to complete the $0 checkout.
What Is Free This Week
Game | Store price | Developer |
|---|---|---|
System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster | $29.99 | Nightdive Studios |
BURIED STARS | $39.99 | Studio LARGO / LINE Games |
Out of Sight (from Oct 8) | $14.99 | The Gang Studio AB |
TerraScape (from Oct 8) | $16.99 | Bitfall Studios |
System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster
This is the headliner, and it is the more expensive of the two. Nightdive Studios — the remaster specialist that Atari acquired — rebuilt the 1999 immersive sim on its proprietary KEX Engine for a June 26, 2025 release. The original was developed by Looking Glass Studios and is widely cited as the ancestor of BioShock and Prey.
The remaster is not a cosmetic patch. Nightdive added up to 4K resolution at 144 FPS on PC, full cross-play co-op for up to four players, integrated mod support at launch so community campaigns still work, 50 achievements, and gamepad support. It is also Steam Deck Verified on Valve's storefront.
The horror setup is unchanged from 1999: you wake from cryo-sleep aboard the starship Von Braun with cybernetic implants grafted to your body, 42 years after the events of the first System Shock, while the rogue AI SHODAN infests the crew. Nightdive has stated the remaster was chosen over a full remake specifically to keep the modding community intact.
At full price the game sits at $29.99 on Steam, GOG, Humble, and Epic. On the official System Shock site and Nightdive's game page, there is no discount deeper than the one Epic is running this week — it is simply free.
BURIED STARS
The second title is the rarer find. BURIED STARS is a Korean mystery adventure built by Studio LARGO with publisher LINE Games Corporation, and it first launched on July 30, 2020 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, and Nintendo Switch before arriving on Steam in late 2021.
The premise is a survival audition show whose studio collapses live on air. Trapped in the rubble, the surviving contestants and crew discover a murder among them. You work the case by reading physical evidence, following in-game social media feeds, and managing your character's sanity and rapport with the others — choices branch into multiple endings.
It carries a 78/100 critic average and won two awards at the 2020 Korea Game Awards, plus Best PC/Console at the 2021 Made with Unity Korea Award. It is fully voice acted in Korean and Japanese, with English subtitles, and the LINE Games product page confirms the platform list.
At $39.99 listed, it is the higher-priced of this week's pair. It is also the type of game that rarely drops below half price, which makes a zero-cost claim the single best price it has ever had.
Why the $69.98 Figure Actually Matters
The headline number is not marketing padding. Here is how it breaks down against what you would pay elsewhere the same day.
Store | Same two games | Difference |
|---|---|---|
Epic Games Store | $0 | This week only |
GOG | $29.99 for SS2 alone | No bundle price |
Steam | No active bundle deal | Full price |
PlayStation Store | Console only | Not PC |
If you add next week's pair — Out of Sight at $14.99 and TerraScape at $16.99 — Epic is handing out $101.96 in PC games across fourteen days, which is a useful benchmark when people ask whether the weekly freebie is still worth the two minutes.
Epic has also been running this harder than usual in 2026. Trade coverage of the store's giveaways reports roughly $1,591.34 worth of games and DLC handed out since January 1, an increase of about $164.82 over the same stretch of 2025. The first three quarters covered around 70 products, split between 65 games and five DLC packs.
Worth repeating because it comes up every week: Epic's free games are DRM'd to the Epic Launcher and are not Steam keys. If you prefer keeping everything in one library, claiming these will not help you — but nothing else changes. You do not need to launch the launcher to claim.
How to Claim Both Games Step by Step
The whole process takes about two minutes on a browser and slightly longer in the desktop app. Here is the sequence that avoids the common traps.
Sign in to a free Epic account. If you do not have one, creating it takes an email address and no payment method.
Open the free games page. Go to the Epic Games Store free games hub or the Epic Games Store home page and look for the "Free Now" section.
Add each game and complete the $0 checkout. Both titles must be claimed separately. Do not assume claiming one claims the other.
Confirm the order. Epic sends an email receipt for $0.00. If that receipt never arrives, the claim almost certainly did not complete.
Install now or later. Installation is optional and can wait indefinitely. Claiming is the only step with a deadline.
The two product pages to check are the System Shock 2 remaster listing and the BURIED STARS listing. If either page shows a price instead of "Free," the window has already closed for that title.
Who Is Eligible?
The giveaway is open to anyone with a free Epic Games account, which means there is effectively no eligibility filter beyond having an email address and accepting the store's terms. There is no Prime membership gate, no region restriction on the US storefront, and no purchase history requirement.
Two practical limits are worth knowing. First, this is the Windows PC version — not a console code, and not a Steam key. Second, Epic requires a valid payment profile in some regions even for $0 orders, so if checkout refuses to complete, adding a payment method and removing it afterward resolves it in most reported cases.
The offer runs on the US storefront pricing, and Epic's giveaway schedule is synchronized globally at 11 a.m. ET regardless of where you are reading this.
Important Fine Print
The deadline is 11 a.m. ET on Thursday, October 8, 2026. Once it passes, both games return to $29.99 and $39.99 respectively.
Claiming is not the same as installing. You only need to complete checkout during the window.
Both games must be claimed individually. Two separate $0 checkouts.
The games are Epic Launcher titles. They are not transferable to Steam or GOG.
No subscription is created. This is not a trial that converts into a charge later.
Available while the promotion is scheduled. Epic has occasionally swapped or extended a title mid-week, so verify the listing before you rely on the timing.
The next lineup starts the moment this one ends. Out of Sight and TerraScape go live on October 8 at 11 a.m. ET.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I have to claim the Epic Games Store free games this week?
You have until 11 a.m. ET on Thursday, October 8, 2026. That is exactly seven days from when the pair went live on October 1. Epic rotates the lineup at that hour every week without exception, so treat the deadline as hard. If you are reading this on October 7, you have less than 24 hours. The free games hub shows a countdown on the current offer.
What happens if I claim a game and never install it?
Nothing is lost. Claiming permanently attaches the license to your Epic account, and there is no installation deadline attached to free weekly giveaways. You can install years later at no cost. The only thing that expires is the ability to claim, which is why the standard advice is to claim first and decide later, rather than waiting for disk space.
Do I need a paid Epic subscription to get these games?
No. A free Epic Games account is the only requirement. There is no equivalent of a Prime gate here, and no payment method is charged. Some regions ask for a payment profile to be on file before a $0 checkout will finalize, but nothing is ever billed for a free weekly title, and the profile can be removed afterward.
Is the System Shock 2 remaster the same game as the 1999 original?
It is a remaster, not a remake. Nightdive Studios rebuilt the 1999 Looking Glass title on its KEX Engine with 4K visuals, 144 FPS support on PC, cross-play co-op for four players, and mod support, but the level design, story, and systems are the originals. The Nightdive game page documents the changes in full.
Can I play BURIED STARS without knowing Korean?
Yes. The game ships with full Korean and Japanese voice acting plus English subtitles and an English interface. It was released worldwide on Steam in 2021 with localized text, so no prior familiarity with the language or with the earlier Studio LARGO titles is needed. It is a self-contained story with multiple branching endings based on your choices and your character's mental state.
When does the next set of free games start?
The next lineup begins immediately when this one ends — Thursday, October 8, 2026 at 11 a.m. ET — and runs through October 15. It features Out of Sight ($14.99) and TerraScape ($16.99), a combined $31.98. Both can be claimed from the same free games hub, and neither has appeared in an Epic giveaway before.
Similar Deals Worth Checking Out
If you are already in the habit of collecting weekly PC giveaways, a few other live offers are worth stacking alongside this one.
The original Castlevania on mobile — Konami's 40th-anniversary giveaway is free through October 24 on iOS and Android, with no purchase required.
Earlier Epic weekly lineups — if you missed prior weeks, DHU tracked Alone With You and Breathedge, both of which have since expired.
Restaurant freebies running in parallel — if you want something outside the PC library, our running list of restaurant and fast-food deals covers the current promos.
About Epic Games Store
The Epic Games Store launched in December 2018 as a digital storefront for PC and, later, mobile titles, operated by Epic Games. It differentiated itself from established platforms through a lower revenue share for developers and a now-familiar weekly free game program, which has given away hundreds of titles since the store opened.
Epic runs the giveaway on a fixed Thursday-to-Thursday cadence at 11 a.m. ET. During particularly busy periods the store has offered two or more titles in a single week, and it traditionally expands to daily giveaways across the final two weeks of December. All free weekly titles are claimed through an Epic account and redeemed through the Epic Games Launcher on Windows.
