Psyonix has announced that Rocket League will be permanently free to play from September 23. It was already known that this was coming, although the developer had not yet set a date for when this will take effect.
With Rocket League becoming free, the football racing game will also appear in the Epic Games Store, the developer said. With that, Rocket League will disappear from Steam for new players; PC players who already own the game through Steam will be able to continue using that platform and will receive all updates as well.
It was already clear that Rocket League would become free-to-play, a move already expected after Epic Games took over Psyonix last year. Playing the game for free also applies to consoles. No PlayStation Plus or Nintendo Switch Online subscription will be required to play Rocket League online, but Xbox Live Gold does not.
Players can connect different platforms via the Epic Games Account from Thursday. That makes cross-platform progress possible. That means items, Rocket Pass progression, and Competitive Rank achieved will be retained if a player is playing the game on a different platform.
Those interested in purchasing the game before it becomes playable for free will receive the so-called Legacy Status, with which they will receive all Rocket League DLC and the necessary cosmetic items.