Microsoft has just revealed the next batch of new games headed to their games downloading service, Xbox Game Pass. Late February 2019’s games will feature some great older titles that make this a great pickup for any gamer looking to play hundreds of new and classic games on Xbox One, all without spending all that extra cash.
And yes, many of the titles on Game Pass also support cross-play with Windows 10 without any additional configuration, which is pretty cool.
Now onto the actual games that were announced.
First up is Batman: Return to Arkham, the Rocksteady-developed action title which features the iconic caped crusader beating and blasting his way through legions of bad guys. This collection includes both the original Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: Arkham City in one bundle. It also includes all of the DLC for both games. So if you wanted to play these games and somehow haven’t know is the best chance for Xbox One owners.
Next is the Double Fine Metroidvania title Headlander. This 2.5D game features lots of platforming and exploration which takes a ton of the undeniable charm from Double Fine and blends the whole experience into a weird but fun experience. The game is pretty sparse in terms of story, but Headlander brings mechanics to the forefront in place of a deeper story. By the way, the main mechanic in this game involves being a rocket-powered and dismebodied head.
There’s also the sequel to a Disney Wii game featuring the iconic mouse in Epic Mickey 2. Taking classic art and animation styles of Disney animations into a new world where Mickey has to paint his way out sounds like plenty of fun to me.
The Walking Dead: Season 2 comes shambling up next. This continuation of the story of Clementine sees the return of some old characters, and the introduction of new storylines and mechanics that inject new life into the adventure formula revived by Telltale. While definitely not as strong or impactful a narrative as the first season, this game still manages to score some points with heavy and emotional moments that force the player to pay attention. If you need to catch up ahead of finishing off the Final Season, now’s the time.
Finally, there’s Alien: Isolation, the 2014 horror title from Creative Assembly which managed to inject some fresh meat onto the bones of the Alien game franchises that had been sundered by previous garbage like Aliens: Colonial Marines. Alien: Isolation has no combat, and is all the more immersive for it. You need to flee from the deadly xenomorph before it rips you to pieces in this excellent title.
The newest Game Pass reveals will be released between February 21 and February 28. More game announcements are likely to follow for the first week of March. In the meantime, here’s the full list of planned additions for the rest of this month.
- Batman: Return to Arkham – February 21
- Headlander – February 21
- Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two – February 21
- The Walking Dead: Season 2 – February 28
- Alien: Isolation – February 28