As with PlayStation Plus, Xbox still surprises Game Pass members with free games each month.
However, amongst the release of AAA titles and day-one additions, it is easy for some underrated gems to get buried.
So if you are looking for something to play that you may have missed out on AND will cost nothing if you are already an Xbox Game Pass Standard member, we have you covered.
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First up is Shady Part of Me, a touching indie puzzle game filled with twists and surprises.
You will overcome emotional struggles and embark on a dream-like journey as you follow the story of a little girl and her shadow.
Featuring the voice of Game of Thrones’ Hannah Murray, this poetic journey will stay with you long after the credits have rolled.
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Fans of Spiritfarer should try Starbound, an online-multiplayer title which sees you finding your home on a damaged ship floating through space.
With just the planet below your feet to explore, you must embark on an intergalactic journey to take on the role of a bounty hunter and track down a series of criminal gangs.
Those who want to go on a road trip in a 90s-inspired America can do so with Road 96.
Set in the summer of 1996, this first-person adventure will see you hitchhike to freedom across a procedurally generated road trip.
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Flee the Regime and escape to the border all whilst meeting incredible people, discovering their stories and making choices that could maybe even change the world.
Next is Arcade Paradise which will task you with managing your very own arcade during the 90s.
When you decide to turn the family laundromat into a retro arcade, you soon discover that a lot goes into running a business.
In between managing profits, scraping off gum and doing the laundry, you must play, profit from and purchase new arcade machines to build your very own Arcade Paradise.
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Now it’s time for some horror with CARRION, a “reverse” horror game which sees you take on the role of an amorphous creature of unknown origins.
Upon waking, you find yourself trapped in an unknown facility with the people who imprisoned you.
Now it’s time to get your own back by stalking and hunting down your prisoners in order to upgrade your abilities and evolve on the path to retribution.
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This next one is a game we have reviewed and it is safe to say that we loved it.
Botany Manor is an exploration/puzzle game set in a stately home in 19th-century England.
You will become Arabella Greene, a retired botanist who fills her days by exploring the home and gardens, researching various botanicals and growing plans to discover the mystery qualities they each hold.
This is definitely a game to spend the weekend relaxing with.
Those who wish to visit the south of France from the comfort of their own living room can check out Dordogne.
This unique narrative experience will see you “explore the thousand summer colours of Dordogne” as you revisit your childhood home to uncover lost family secrets.
As Mimi remembers the time spent there with her grandmother, she soon sets off on an adventure through a watercolour landscape as the past meets the present.
Now for a total genre change, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is a exploration-focused, side-scroller action RPG that follows Miriam, an orphan affected by an alchemist’s curse.
With crystals slowly taking over her body, she must battle through a demon-infested castle and defeat its master in order to save both herself and humanity as a whole.
One for the family now.
Broken Age is a hand-animated, puzzle-filled adventure game which just so happens to feature the voices of Elijah Wood, Jack Black, and Masasa Moyo.
In this point and click, coming-of-age story, the game will follow teenagers Vella Tartine and Shay Volta who find themselves in similar situations but in vastly different worlds.
As you switch between their stories, you will soon help them take control of their own lives and give them the strength to overcome the challenges that stand before them.
Last but certainly not least is Genesis Noir.
This time and space-spanning adventure tells the story of a love triangle between cosmic beings.
When the romance leads to confrontation, a gunshot will be fired, otherwise known as the Big Bang.
Now it is up to you to navigate this point-and-click adventure and search for a way to destroy creation and save your love from the depths of space.
Topics: Xbox, Xbox Game Pass, Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, Free Games, Features