With 2020 and 2021 marking the biggest years for Xbox Game Pass's growth since it launched in 2017, fans of the service will agree that while the major AAA titles have been its biggest draws, its indie games have kept them occupied even during the more quiet months. Now, despite new heavy hitters coming slated to come out, Xbox Game Pass is to recieve another major indie addition next month with the latest title from cult game director Hidetaka "SWERY" Suehiro, The Good Life.
SWERY is a Japanese game director and founder of development studio White Owls Inc. He is known for directing cult classic titles such as Deadly Premonition, D4: Dark Dreams Don't Die, and The Missing: J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories. While the director's often surreal titles have been the subject of controversy over the years, SWERY's games have been praised for their unique atmosphere, with The Missing being nominated for The Game Awards 2018's Games For Impact award.
The creator's latest work, The Good Life is a self-dubbed "Debt repayment RPG" taking inspiration from games like Animal Crossing, while blending the mystery and Twin Peaks-inspired elements from Deadly Premonition. The game is being developed in collaboration with Grounding Inc., the studio founded by Panzer Dragoon creator Yukio Futatsugi. The game raised over ¥81 million ($740,000) on Kickstarter in 2018. After missing its initial launch window of November 2019 by a longshot, The Good Life will finally launch on October 15.
Xbox players looking forward to The Good Life have the added benefit of recieving The Good Life on Xbox Game Pass, as it was confirmed in 2018 that the game will join Xbox Game Pass upon its release. This makes sense considering SWERY has somewhat of a lineage on Xbox, given that Deadly Premonition launched as an exclusive for the Xbox 360 in the west, with the PlayStation 3 version remaining a Japan exclusive before the release of the Director's Cut in 2013 for PS3 and PC.
D4: Dark Dreams Don't Die launched as an Xbox One console exclusive in September 2014, although the game was canceled after the release of its second episode. The Missing also released for Xbox One in 2018, however it was a multiplatform release at launch. Likewise, The Good Life will also release for PC, PS4, and Switch.
The Good Life will release for PC, PlayStation 4, Switch, and Xbox One on October 15. The game will be part of Xbox Game Pass at launch.