Metacritic can be a great tool to discover which games are worth your time. It’s a depository of well-written reviews that get into the nuts and bolts of different games, but the Metascore is a nice shorthand if you’re eagerly looking for something to play.
Forza Horizon 5 is the top Game Pass title on Metacritic
For Xbox Game Pass subscribers, there are plenty of games that score big on Metacritic and showcase some amazing titles. In the top ten selection, you’ll find driving games, co-op gems, scary adventures, and some great RPGs. Any of these games are worth your time.
Forza Horizon 5 - 92 Metascore
Forza Motorsport is Microsoft’s key racing title, a racer that borders on simulation. Horizon is its unruly younger sibling that throws out the rulebook and causes chaos. There’s more drifting, more lavish settings for race courses, and lots of competition that breaks out of the bounds of traditional lap-counting racing. The cars are flashier and there’s a carefree attitude throughout each event. Forza Horizon 5 is a breath of fresh air that allows players to race like a kid holding their favourite toy car.
Microsoft Flight Simulator - 90 Metascore
Flight simulators can be quite an experience. They used to appear on PC using practically every key on the keyboard as the games tried to properly emulate the act of piloting a plane. With the latest iteration, Microsoft brought the game to Xbox Series and made it a little more accessible. What came out at the end was a visually stunning and enthralling experience. Microsoft Flight Simulator features all kinds of aircraft and practically every airport in the world. You can take off from a tiny runway in South America and pilot your plane to Alaska, all in real-time, should you want to.
It Takes Two - 89 Metascore
A brilliant co-op title that can strengthen, or break apart, the closest connections between players - all depending on how the challenges and puzzles play out. This adorable game creates plenty of opportunities to work together playing out over a genuinely funny and touching storyline. It Takes Two creates a big bundle of emotions, but also a trail of wonderful moments to bring your characters together to tackle some fiendish experiences in a visually gorgeous world.
Dead Space - 89 Metascore
The remake of Dead Space is an absolute banger and very much deserves a place on this list. It might not be for everyone as it goes through waves of terrifying darkness and gory, gross aliens. The original was an almost perfect trip through the desolate isolation of space and the remake goes just as hard. If you’re into films like Alien and Event Horizon, you’re going to love this action-packed adventure that tries to claw and bite at you at every opportunity. It’s worth playing Dead Space just for the wealth of weaponry that can blast apart necrotic horrors, leaving them as limbs and entrails.
Persona 4 Golden - 89 Metascore
Considered one of the finest JRPGs ever made, Persona 4 Golden is a masterpiece. Persona 4 Golden is part teenage high school drama, featuring friendships and flirting; but it’s also an action-driven detective story that centre on mysterious deaths in the area. It’s up to you to control this ragtag group of teens to deduce mysteries, hold each other up, and battle bizarre monsters using Personas, a creature who will fight for our cast. It’s lush to look at and features a superb soundtrack. It’s the full package, particularly for those who love some anime melodrama.
Cocoon - 89 Metascore
The most recent addition to this list is a brain-bending puzzler that will take you through a vague and mysterious world of bugs and dimension-hopping. Cocoon sees players control a moth-type insect who must use parallel dimensions to solve complex puzzles. Each dimension stands out against the others in mood, tone, and theme. Some are desolate with atmospheric wisps of plants, while others are waterlogged swamps flourishing with flowers. Some of the later puzzles will make you feel like a genius when the solution finally comes to you - it’s a wonderful experience.
Deathloop - 89 Metascore
Time-traveling and weapon-wielding assassinations are on the menu with Deathloop. It’s your job to take out eight Visionaries across an island, which sounds simple, right? But you’re pitted against a rival assassin, oh, and if you die, the island loops back to the start - hence ‘Deathloop’. It’s all about learning patterns, moving pieces, and people across the island so they eventually line up in a loop and you can take out all eight targets at once. It’s far less complex than it sounds and you can use a balance of stealth and action, or whichever suits your playstyle.
Sea of Stars - 89 Metascore
Next up is a gorgeous pixel-based RPG with lots of wonderful characters and deep world-building. Sea of Stars kind of came out of nowhere and ended up being a stellar title for so many players. It features turn-based combat, but with a delightful twist that adds an extra layer. There’s a lot to love here, but what truly sets it apart from other RPGs is the visuals - sure, pixel graphics seem to be ten a penny nowadays, but Sea of Stars is glorious, particularly in its enemy design.
Hitman 3 - 87 Metascore
The Hitman franchise has pretty much always delivered bangers and the newer releases have cemented that. Hitman 3, now a part of the Hitman collection on Xbox Game Pass is a standout assassination simulator where if you believe something could happen, it’s likely you can pull it off. You’re given missions to undertake, usually offing an important NPC, but you’re essentially given a large sandbox level to commit the act however you choose. There are countless ways to pull off the task from ridiculous scenarios to more straightforward kills after you’ve crept through each area or changed clothes umpteen times.
Psychonauts 2 - 87 Metascore
A platformer for you here, but not just your bog-standard platformer. Psychonauts 2 is a clever and often hilarious game made by some of the most talented people in the industry. Players control Raz, a psychonaut in training who must take down nefarious people intent on breaking the minds of others with their psychic abilities. Psychonauts 2 is a hypnotic and surreal adventure that takes you through the minds of various characters where they may be calm and peaceful, or twisted landscapes.
Featured Image Credit: MicrosoftTopics: Xbox, Xbox Game Pass, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, Forza, Dead Space, Persona, Deathloop