Yes, the big Disney Animal Crossing clone rolls out on Game Pass today. But Microsoft’s popular games-on-demand service is set to take a big hit in September with the loss of some of its best games, including a must-play Final Fantasy and some intriguing indies. Here’s everything coming to and going from Xbox Game Pass in the coming weeks:
September 6
- Disney Dreamlight Valley: Founder’s Edition (Cloud, Console, PC)
- Opus Magnum (PC)
- Train Sim World 3 (Console, PC)
September 13
- Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation (PC)
- DC League of Super-Pets: The Adventures of Krypto and Ace (Cloud, Console, PC)
September 14
- You Suck At Parking (Cloud, Console, PC, Every single day you drive IRL)
September 15
- Despot’s Game (Console, PC)
- Metal: Hellsinger (Next-gen console, PC)
Disney Dreamlight Valley, basically the Disney+ catalog by way of Animal Crossing and The Sims, is the obvious headliner, a hotly anticipated life-sim perfect for the folks who jet off to Disneyland at least once a year (you know who you are). I’m also eager to see what Metal: Hellsinger, a rhythm-based first-person shooter with heavy Doom Eternal vibes, is all about, though it’s a bummer that console players who have yet to secure an Xbox Series X or S are unable to check it out.
But two cool-looking games makes for a relatively thin lineup compared to the raft of titles heading out the door. The following are all gone as of September 15:
- A Plague Tale: Innocence (Cloud, Console, PC)
- Aragami 2 (Cloud, Console, PC)
- Bug Fables: The Everlasting Sapling (Cloud, Console, PC)
- Craftopia (Cloud, Console, PC)
- Final Fantasy XIII (Console, PC)
- Flynn: Son of Crimson (Cloud, Console, PC)
- I Am Fish (Cloud, Console, PC)
- Lost Words: Beyond the Page (Cloud, Console, PC)
- Mighty Goose (Cloud, Console, PC)
- SkateBird (Cloud, Console, PC)
- The Artful Escape (Cloud, Console, PC)
The moody stealth game A Plague Tale: Innocence has been a longstanding staple of Kotaku’s list of the best games on Game Pass. (Its sequel, A Plague Tale: Requiem, is slated for release next month.) Though divisive, Final Fantasy XIII is far and away one of the most interesting entries in Square Enix’s RPG series. The platforming in Lost Words: Beyond the Page may be rudimentary, but a top-notch script—helmed by Tomb Raider and Mirror’s Edge scribe Rhianna Pratchett—anchors a gut-wrenching tale wrapped in fantasy escapism. Aragami 2 is a solidly fun co-op stealth game. SkateBird is THPS…except you’re a little baby bird. The Artful Escape is a four-hour fever dream of prog rock and bright lights. All are worth checking out.
Collectively, it’s a huge ding to the library, leaving a ton of holes that seemingly aren’t getting filled by any of the new additions. But hey, Disney Animal Crossing!