Two free games landed on the Epic Games Store this week, and the combo leans hard into the chill-out corner of PC gaming. Nova Lands and Tattoo Tycoon are both available to claim at no cost right now, with a combined retail value sitting at around $50. The window closes on Thursday, July 16, so you have a few days to grab them.
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What Nova Lands actually is
Nova Lands is the more substantial of the two offerings. Released in 2023 by BEHEMUTT, it sits somewhere between Factorio, Forager, and Satisfactory, which is exactly the kind of elevator pitch that gets factory-brained players paying attention. The premise is simple enough: you land on a new planet, harvest materials, and build up infrastructure from scratch. The further you push, the more automation opens up.
Here's the thing, though. It is not purely a base-building exercise. You can sail between islands, trade with inhabitants, find landmarks, and crawl through caves. There are creatures to fight, including what the developers describe as giant moth-type aliens, and if combat is not your thing, there is a full pacifist route through the game.
On Steam, the game holds an 89% positive rating, with players consistently calling it "satisfying" and "pretty chill." Average playtime sits around 19 hours, with completionists pushing closer to 28. For a game that normally retails at $19.99, free is a strong deal.
Running a tattoo parlour in Tattuga Bay
Tattoo Tycoon is the second pick, a 2025 simulation game from HandyGames with a retail price of $29.99. The setup is exactly what it sounds like: you take over the last surviving tattoo shop in a fictional district called Tattuga Bay and build it back up into something worth visiting.
The loop involves decorating your parlour (furniture sourced from the amusingly named INKEA), managing bookings, keeping customers comfortable, and eventually hiring staff. The cast of characters around you includes eccentric customers, struggling artists, and a shadowy local businessman simply known as the Tycoon.
What most players miss with tycoon games like this is that the open-ended structure cuts both ways. There is no fixed endpoint, which gives it a sandbox quality, but it also means the experience depends heavily on how much you enjoy the systems themselves. Steam sentiment is mixed at 61%, with some players finding the formula engaging and others bouncing off it. At free, though, the risk calculus is pretty straightforward.
The bigger picture for Epic's free tier
Epic has been running its weekly free game program for years now, and the quality of picks varies week to week. This batch skews toward lower-key, longer-session games rather than the flashier drops that tend to generate bigger headlines. That is not a knock on either title. Nova Lands in particular has a dedicated audience that genuinely rates it.
For players who have been building out their Epic library without spending much, this is a reasonable week. Fortnite players who spend time in tycoon-style modes might find the Tattoo Tycoon loop familiar, and if you have been following our Fortnite Droid Tycoon guide on how to use the Rebirth Station, the management-game mindset carries over more than you would expect.
Both games are PC-only through the Epic Games Store. Once claimed before the July 16 deadline, they are yours to keep permanently. If you want more on what is worth playing right now, the gaming guides hub has you covered across a range of titles, and the reviews section is worth checking before committing time to anything new in your backlog.
