Xbox One Free Play Day feature posted then removed, game trials possibly in the pipeline

A recent post to Reddit shows that a new perk may be coming to Xbox One Gold members. Dubbed “Free Play Day” (seen on Max: The Curse of Brotherhood), the feature appears to be offering trial periods of specific games to Gold subscribers, allowing them to sample a title in a manner not unlike demos.

The news comes from Reddit user JBurton90, who snapped the image seen here from his Xbox One dashboard before Free Play Day disappeared. Microsoft addressed the feature’s abrupt disappearance in a follow-up statement to GameInformer:

“A promotional tile for ‘Max: The Curse of Brotherhood’ was posted briefly on the US dash in error yesterday. We apologize for any inconvenience. We’re constantly exploring different ways to offer more benefits to our Xbox Live Gold members and will keep them updated when special offers become available.”

Although no hard details have been given, the prospect of Microsoft hopping on the free sample bandwagon isn’t far-fetched. The company’s acceptance of EA Access is proof enough that they’re interested in streaming content straight to consumers—an avenue which direct, temporary access to games would support—and Free Play Day could give them an excellent answer to the likes of Steam’s free weekends and Sony’s PlayStation Now.

However, especially given at the limitations on Play Share for PS4 and EA Access, it’s best to expect Free Play Day to be just that—a day.

[Reddit via GameInformer]