With the New Year having now officially arrived, it's safe to presume there are plenty of gamers out there that are still spending time with some of the top games of 2018, as they look forward to the fresh releases to come. While anxiously awaiting the new games in store for this year, Xbox Live Gold subscribers can choose to pass the time with a couple of free titles that are now available thanks to the Games with Gold program's lineup for January 2019.

Starting today, Xbox One owners who have an active subscription to Xbox Live Gold can get their hands on the indie darling, Celeste, at no additional cost, with the platformer from Matt Makes Games being available for free all month long. The very same fans can also obtain the isometric action-adventure game Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light right now and play via Backward Compatibility. However, there's a shorter window in which one can acquire the Lara Croft release, as it will go back to full price after January 15, 2019.

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At the halfway point of the month, Microsoft will provide Xbox Live Gold subscribers with two more free games. For starters, the racing game WRC 6: World Rally Championship will become available at no additional cost from January 16 through February 15, with Far Cry 2 being offered free from January 16 through January 31. Much like with the aforementioned Guardian of Light, though, FC2 will go back to full price after a little more than two weeks.

When it comes to the titles available right now by way of the Games with Gold program, Xbox fans would do well to know that both Celeste and Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light are both solid selections well worth their time. As a matter of fact, we named Celeste one of the hidden gems of 2018 that some players might've missed, while Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light received a four-out-of-five from our review back in 2010.

The first two titles from Xbox's Games with Gold program lineup for January 2019 are available now.