Free Stuff To Do During Quarantine (Entertainment Edition)

Carl Sinclair
Covid-19 concept locked with a chain with a lock. 3d rendering
Photo: iStock/Getty Images

We know, you’re stuck at home because of the stupid quarantine, bored out of your mind, and switching back and forth between Candy Crush and social media just isn’t cutting it anymore.

Fret not, we’ve come to your rescue with a whole bunch of things you can do, for free, to stay entertained during your quarantine. If you’d rather be productive instead, check out our other post.

Free PC Games

Epic

First off, we’ve got Epic’s usual free weekly games that you can own forever by getting while they’re free:

Still taken from World War Z promotional video. Image courtesy: https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-US/product/world-war-z/home
World War Z. Photo: Epic Games
  • World War Z is not your typical zombie shooter. It’s got a very engaging campaign story that will have you traveling the world and completing missions across different kinds of terrains. It’s got a stealth-first approach and an AI-powered adaptive difficulty to remain engaging without getting too overwhelming. (Free until April 2nd)
  • Drawful 2. Draw something awful and have everyone try to guess what it is! (Free until April 9th)
  • Figment is a 3D action-adventure platformer with great music and a sense of humor. Fun for the whole family. (Free until April 2nd)
  • Tormentor x Punisher is a fast-paced top-down action game with no health bars. Everything, including you, dies with one hit. Very reminiscent of arcade games from the 80s. (Free until April 2nd)

Steam

Goat of Duty. Image courtesy: https://store.steampowered.com/app/555000/GOAT_OF_DUTY/
Goat of Duty. Photo: Steam Powered

If none of those tickle your fancy then keep an eye on Steam’s free trial weekends. They’ve also got a couple of free games right now too:

  • Goat of Duty is a hilarious spin-off based on the popular franchise, only here all the characters are goats. Reviews so far have been “very positive” so you can’t go wrong with this free game. (Free until March 31st)
  • Barro is a graphically simple car racing game that is surprisingly a ton of fun. It also has multiplayer support so you can race with your family or roommates. (Free until April 3rd)
  • Project Mercury is another game with 80s vibes. This indie 2D platformer puts its own twist on the Megaman game style. (Free until April 8th)
  • Drawful 2 is also available on Steam, if you prefer to get your games through them, or if you missed Epic’s deadline. (Free until April 11th)

Good Old Games

Character from the game Hello Neighbor sitting on a couch. Is he on quarantine too? Image courtesy: https://www.gog.com/game/hello_neighbor_demo
Hello Neighbor. Photo: GOG

If you like to “own” your games and be able to run them without a third party launcher, well Good Old Games (GOG.com) has released 27 free games to help you stay inside.

If you’re more into indie games, itch.io has a list of 29 games that are currently free, but that number could grow as some games can be made free if enough people donate. Also, don’t forget to check out the Itch.io’s Sales page to see both the 29 aforementioned games as well as any others that are currently free. I counted 111 free games before I gave up.

Free to play games

Don’t forget about all the games that are always free. A lot of these are multiplayer-based too, which means you can enjoy them with your friends over voice chat to co-ordinate.

Dota 2 banner showing some heroes. Image courtesy: https://www.dota2.com
Dota 2 banner. Photo: Dota 2.

Free movies and TV

Video streaming offers plenty of entertainment options during the quarantine. Image courtesy: https://www.pxfuel.com/en/free-photo-obmhe
So many options… Photo: Pixabay
  • Kanopy and Hoopla are free video streaming services for anyone with a library card.
  • Showtime is offering a 30 day free trial if you sign up before May 3rd.
  • Shudder, a horror/thriller service, is now letting people extend their free trial by up to 30 days, using the promo code “SHUTIN”.
  • Sundance Now is offering a 30 day free trial with the promo code “SUNDANCENOW30”.
  • AcornTV is offering a 30 day free trial with the promo code “FREE30”.
  • Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Video have always had 30 day free trials.
  • YouTube TV has extended their 14 day free trial by one week.
  • Disney+, HBO Now, AppleTV+ and Philo only offer 7 day free trials.

Free sports event streaming

Disappointed fan watching soccer. Image courtesy: https://www.pxfuel.com/en/free-photo-jmtqk
Not a goal, I take it? Photo: Pixabay

While, yes, sporting events have been canceled, the NBA, NFL and NHL have all made their archives available for free during the quarantine. If you’re more of a baseball fan, Ken Burns’ got you covered.

Free books

E-book reader next to coffee and notebook. Image courtesy: https://www.pxfuel.com/en/free-photo-oefjd
Some morning reading. Photo: Pixabay

Free experiences

Girl wearing a virtual reality headset while riding bike.
A virtual reality headset can go a long way during a quarantine. Photo: Source.

If you’re all tuckered out from all this entertainment, check out our other article on how to be more productive during this quarantine using all the free stuff available to us.