Xbox Game Pass Adds Its First Game of 2025

Xbox Game Pass members can play Carrion as part of their subscriptions starting today, January 2. This is the first title to make its way to Xbox Game Pass in 2025.

Microsoft typically announces new additions to its game subscription service twice a month. The company deviated from this pattern four weeks ago, as the first wave of December 2024 Xbox Game Pass games also ended up being the only one for that month. Another unusual thing about that lineup is that it stretched into early January 2025.

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What to Expect From Xbox Game Pass in 2025

2024 has been a good year for Xbox Game Pass, and if everything goes to plan, 2025 could be an even bigger year for the subscription service.

The first title from that 2025 portion of the roster has now reached Xbox Game Pass in the form of Carrion. Developed by Warsaw, Poland-based Phobia Game Studio, this 2D horror experience reached the XGP content catalog on Thursday, January 2. This is the second occasion on which Microsoft is offering the Devolver Digital-published game to its subscribers, as Carrion previously debuted as a day-one Xbox Game Pass release in July 2020 before being pulled from the service in July 2022.

As for what’s actually on offer here, Carrion is a self-proclaimed “reverse horror game” that has players controlling an amorphous blob determined to consume all who imprisoned it. In doing so, the alien protagonist will spread panic throughout a mysterious facility and acquire new powers that will help it wreak havoc more efficiently. Although this premise isn’t entirely unprecedented, it is fairly well-realized, to the point that Carrion has developed a reputation as one of the best horror games starring a monster ever made.

Upcoming Xbox Game Pass Games in Q1 2024

In terms of critical acclaim, Carrion has a “Strong” rating on OpenCritic, based on an average score of 76 and a 75% reviewer recommendation rate. Its player scores are just as impressive, with the game boasting nearly 24,000 “Very Positive” user reviews on Steam, as well as a 4.5-star rating on the Xbox Store, which is based on approximately 1,900 impressions. Carrion is hence looking like a strong addition to the selection of high-quality horror experiences on Xbox Game Pass.

Since it’s not a day-one title, Carrion is now available across all non-Core tiers of Xbox Game Pass. Microsoft’s subscription service has four more releases confirmed for this month, starting with 2021 adventure game Road 96, another returning title that’s scheduled to land on January 7. Day-one ARPG Eternal Strands is then set to arrive on January 28, followed by two more day-one titles in the form of Sniper Elite: Resistance and Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector, which are slated to launch on the 30th and 31st of the month, respectively.

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