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EA Play vs Lutris

EA Play logo

EA Play

Gaming

Subscription access to the EA back catalogue with timed trials of new releases

From
$5.99/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Lutris logo

Lutris

Gaming

Open source Linux game manager built around community install scripts and Wine runner management

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Lutris has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: EA Play the advertised early access on the standard tier is a ten hour timed trial, not the game, and the clock runs whether or not you are making progress.; Lutris it runs on Linux only, so it is irrelevant to the large majority of players and offers nothing to a Windows household.
  • They diverge on capability: EA Play covers Catalogue access, Lutris covers Community install scripts.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which EA Play and Lutris actually diverge.

Attributes where EA Play and Lutris differ
AttributeEA PlayLutris
Starting price$5.99/monthFree
Pricing modelPer user per monthOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWindows, PlayStation, XboxLinux

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Gaming).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in EA Play

  • Catalogue access
  • Ten hour trials
  • Purchase discount
  • Pro tier full releases
  • In game rewards
  • Bundled with Game Pass Ultimate

Only in Lutris

  • Community install scripts
  • Wine and Proton management
  • Multi-source library
  • Emulator support
  • Per-game configuration
  • Native Linux packaging

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

EA Play

  • Playing the current sports title a year late, when the previous edition has entered the catalogue and the gameplay difference is smallnot Lutris
  • Trying a new EA release for ten hours before deciding whether to buy it at full pricenot Lutris
  • A household already paying for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, where EA Play arrives at no extra chargenot Lutris
  • Working through a back catalogue such as Mass Effect, Dead Space or Battlefield over a couple of months for the price of one gamenot Lutris

Lutris

  • A Linux desktop user with a GOG or Epic library that Steam compatibility does not covernot EA Play
  • Running an older Windows game that needs a specific Wine build and configurationnot EA Play
  • Keeping emulators and native Linux games in one launcher rather than severalnot EA Play

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

EA Play

  • The advertised early access on the standard tier is a ten hour timed trial, not the game, and the clock runs whether or not you are making progress.
  • Titles are withdrawn from the catalogue when EA loses or ends a licence, so a series can lose an entry while you are part way through it and there is no warning period worth relying on.
  • On PC the subscription runs through the EA app, which is mandatory even for Steam purchases and has a long record of download, launch and cloud save faults.
  • Everything is limited to EA published titles, so it complements rather than replaces a general subscription and the ten percent discount never applies to anything else.
  • Cancelling ends access immediately, including to saves that only open inside the game, so a lapsed subscription during a busy month can strand a long single player campaign.

Lutris

  • It runs on Linux only, so it is irrelevant to the large majority of players and offers nothing to a Windows household.
  • Install scripts are community-maintained and rot without warning, so a game that installed in one click last year can fail today with an error that means nothing to a new user.
  • Diagnosing a failure requires understanding Wine prefixes, runner versions and library overrides, which is a substantial amount of knowledge for what is presented as a launcher.
  • Runner version management is manual and the naming is opaque, so users end up with several multi-gigabyte Wine builds and no clear idea which game needs which.
  • Multiplayer titles with kernel-level anti-cheat will not run regardless of configuration, and no amount of work in Lutris changes that.

Pricing, plan by plan

EA Play

$5.99/month
  • EA Play$5.99/month
    • Catalogue access on PC, PlayStation and Xbox
    • Ten hour trials of new releases
    • Ten percent discount on EA purchases
  • EA Play Pro$16.99/month
    • PC only
    • New EA releases in full at launch
    • Deluxe editions and their content included

Lutris

Free
  • LutrisFree
    • Full functionality
    • No account required for local use
    • Community install scripts free

Which should you pick?

Choose EA Play if

  • You need catalogue access.
  • You work on Windows, PlayStation, Xbox.
  • You also want ten hour trials.
EA Play review

Choose Lutris if

  • You need community install scripts.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux.
  • You also want wine and proton management.
Lutris review

Questions people ask

Is EA Play or Lutris better?
Neither clearly leads. EA Play starts at $5.99/month and Lutris at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, EA Play or Lutris?
Lutris has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $5.99/month for EA Play and Free for Lutris.
Does EA Play or Lutris run on more platforms?
EA Play runs on Windows, PlayStation, Xbox. Lutris runs on Linux.
Can I use Lutris for free?
Yes. Lutris has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. EA Play starts at $5.99/month.
What is EA Play best used for?
EA Play is most often used for playing the current sports title a year late, when the previous edition has entered the catalogue and the gameplay difference is small, trying a new ea release for ten hours before deciding whether to buy it at full price, a household already paying for xbox game pass ultimate, where ea play arrives at no extra charge, working through a back catalogue such as mass effect, dead space or battlefield over a couple of months for the price of one game. Of those, playing the current sports title a year late, when the previous edition has entered the catalogue and the gameplay difference is small and trying a new ea release for ten hours before deciding whether to buy it at full price are not what Lutris is typically brought in for.
What can EA Play do that Lutris cannot?
EA Play covers Catalogue access, Ten hour trials, Purchase discount, Pro tier full releases. Lutris covers Community install scripts, Wine and Proton management, Multi-source library, Emulator support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

EA Play: Do I keep the games if I cancel?

No. Access ends with the subscription. Only purchases made with the subscriber discount remain yours.

Lutris: Do I need Lutris if I use Steam on Linux?

Not for Steam games, which Steam handles with its own compatibility layer. Lutris is for everything outside Steam.

EA Play: Is EA Play included with Xbox Game Pass?

It is included with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. Lower Game Pass tiers do not necessarily include it, so check the current tier list before subscribing separately.

Lutris: Why did a game that used to work stop working?

Usually the install script or the runner it referenced changed. Check the script page for the game and whether anyone has updated it recently.

EA Play: What is the difference between EA Play and EA Play Pro?

Pro is PC only, costs about three times as much, and gives new releases in full at launch instead of ten hour trials.

Lutris: Will it run games with anti-cheat?

Often not. Kernel-level anti-cheat blocks Linux regardless of the launcher, and this is a publisher decision rather than a technical gap in Lutris.

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