A lot of gamers have subscribed to the Xbox Game Pass specifically to take advantage of the hotly anticipated arrival of Gears 5. And that's more than understandable! Immediately gaining access to one of 2019's biggest titles at launch alongside more than a hundred other games is a fantastic value. But while subscribers are busy blasting and chopping their way through Gears 5 with its naturally awesome arsenal of weapons, they might want to be careful not to overlook the treasure trove of great games they now have access to.
The Game Pass features more than a hundred awesome video games to delve into, but some of the true gems buried in that abundant collection are a lot less obvious than all the rest. And if you happen to be wondering which ones to keep an eye out for while you're sifting through the collection, then Game Rant's got you covered. Scroll down and check out ten of the best hidden gems available in the Game Pass selection for this fall.
10 Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun
Shadow Tactics is a stealth-forward strategy game taking place in feudal Japan. Placed in command of five unique and brilliantly designed characters, players will sneak, misdirect, and assassinate their way through heavily guarded fortresses and other areas in order to fulfill their various missions. Anyone familiar with classic strategy titles like the Commandos series will find themselves in vaguely familiar territory.
Each of the five characters at the player's disposal has a unique skillset meant to work in tandem with the others in order to carry out complex assignments. It's immensely satisfying to queue up multiple actions for each and then watch the plot unfold, and puzzling out different strategies and approaches in order to solve difficult situations is as engaging and fun as it is challenging.
9 Bloodstained: Ritual Of The Night
Because who doesn't enjoy a good Metroidvania romp? Especially when its executed with such an immense respect for its roots. The gameplay almost entirely calls back to that of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, as it should when you're referring to the brain child of Castlevania's former producer. And we wouldn't have it any other way.
Players will guide protagonist Miriam through masterfully designed platforming sections, slaying demons, besting bosses, and collecting new powers and gear as they go. It's a near perfect marriage of classic game design philosophy with just enough modern convention to keep it feeling fresh and original.
8 Battle Chasers: Nightwar
Where modern JRPG-style titles have continuously strayed further and further from their core design, Battle Chasers is a love letter to the old school gameplay tenets that made so many of the genre's original offerings into timeless classics. But that isn't to say it's without enough modern sheen and unique gameplay to put it neck-and-neck with contemporary RPG titles.
The vibrant cast of characters and overall gameplay definitely call back to older Final Fantasy titles in the best way possible, but not without including a litany of unique mechanics to lend depth and strategy to what would otherwise be a straightforward turn-based battle system.
7 Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams
Giana Sisters is a somewhat recently revived property that was originally a sort of Mario clone produced in 1987 to little fanfare. And although the most recent entry in the franchise, Dream Runners, was more or less a critical flop, Twisted Dreams was conversely excellent.
Twisted Dreams is a straightforward and simple platformer, but most importantly, it doesn't need to be anything more than that. Its foundation is rock solid, and the visuals extremely charming in nature. It's an altogether pleasant, casual and family-friendly experience that's perfect for chipping away an hour or two at a time.
6 Shadow Warrior 2
The original Shadow Warrior released in 1997 was a thoroughly tongue-in-cheek first person shooter falling very close to the vein of Duke Nukem 3D, though it never quite saw the same popularity as Duke did. But where Duke Nukem absolutely fumbled its attempted 2011 revival, Shadow Warrior's 2013 reboot was pretty great, if largely under the radar.
Shadow Warrior 2 aimed at and succeeded in continuing that trend. Continuing to follow the antics and exploits of hilariously badass protagonist Lo Wang, players will shoot and slash their way through baddies and bosses using an absurdly bloated selection of weapons and abilities. It's good, gory fun, and any FPS enthusiast will find it endlessly gratifying.
5 Kingdom: Two Crowns
Kingdom is a unique, side-scrolling strategy game charmingly rendered in retro-style pixel art. The player is tasked with building and establishing a kingdom, utilizing various found resources and hiring wandering travelers to populate their new domain as craftsmen and soldiers.
However, equally important is the task of defending the player's claim from strange, dangerous creatures that roam the night. Kingdom: Two Crowns can also be played cooperatively, roping in friends to help. It's a surreal and immersive experience that has to be experienced in order to fully grasp just how engaging it truly is.
4 Fuzion Frenzy
Fuzion Frenzy is a nostalgia gem that's easy to overlook alongside the bevy of big titles featured on Game Pass. Released as a launch title in 2001 for the Xbox, it's a simple, mini-game driven four player party game along the lines of a simplified, pared down version of Mario Party.
This is a title that has aged surprisingly well, despite being nearly two decades old at the time of this writing. The mini-games are a great deal of straightforward fun requiring little thought, and it's the perfect distraction for a small group of friends with some disposable time on their hands.
3 Absolver
Absolver is a truly innovative third-person ARPG concept that visually evokes a martial arts centered rendition of Dark Souls, at a glance. And while that's pretty accurate in summation, it definitely goes on to be much more than that.
Set in the fantasy world of Adal, players will venture out to fight in a seamless mixture of PVE, cooperative, and PVP elements to gain equipment and hone their skills by assembling cards for a "Combat Deck," a series of cards that ultimately determine the player's move set in combat. There are a lot of cards to try, making for almost limitless variations and combat styles.
2 Wasteland 2: The Director's Cut
Based off of of the 1988 spiritual ancestor of the Fallout series, Wasteland 2 is the game to pick up for any gamer finding themselves disappointed with the first-person, action oriented direction that Bethesda took the Fallout franchise in.
Rooted in classical CRPG stylings, Wasteland 2 offers a much more tactical and unforgiving experience without compromising the gallows humor and sometimes zany atmosphere that made the two original Fallout titles so great. Players will need to take care when generating and leveling up their characters, paying special attention to the party's strengths and weaknesses, but surviving combat is immense gratifying, and their choices truly shape the narrative.
1 Stellaris
Stellaris accomplishes an often insurmountable feat by bringing a truly layered and complex grand strategy game to consoles in fine fashion. With players placed at the helm of their chosen space-faring civilization taking its first steps into the galaxy at large, Stellaris is not a casual experience, but a deeply immersive one that will command your utmost attention.
Players will explore and chart new star systems, uncover relics left behind by ancient precursor civilizations, and engage in acts of diplomacy and trade with alien species as they discover them. The galaxy isn't exactly a friendly place, though, with warfare and calamity always lurking on the next horizon. The level of depth here is outstanding, and extremely satisfying for strategy and management fanatics.