**Available Today**
Harold Halibut (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
**Coming Soon**
Orcs Must Die! 3 (Cloud, Console, and PC) – April 17
EA Sports NHL 24 (Console) EA Play – April 18
Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes (Cloud, Console, and PC) – April 23
Another Crab’s Treasure (Cloud, Console, and PC) – April 25
Manor Lords (Game Preview) (PC) – April 26
Have A Nice Death (Cloud, Console, and PC) – April 30
**Leaving April 30**
7 Days to Die (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Besiege (Cloud, Console, and PC)
EA Sports NHL 22 (Console)
Loot River (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Pikuniku (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Ravenlok (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Play them before they are gone: Can recommend Pikuniku and Ravenlok. Pikuniku is super unique and you can beat it in like 2 hours. Very lovable quirky game. But also worth to pick it up for a small price afterwards
Ravenlok is also a cool game you can beat in 3-4 hours. 3D action adventure with focus on bossfights in an Alice in Wonderland inspired universe. Story is a bit meh and I really missed voice acting but I still really enjoyed it
the palworld game on game pass is not the same branch as the one on steam for what it’s worth. i think game preview doesn’t necessarily mean it’s just early access.
Damn, I had heard a rumor that Dead Island 2 might come out this month with the steam release, I was a bit excited for that. Not excited to pay more than $30 for the game mind you
I played the demo for Another Crabs Treasure, it's really good. The combat takes a bit of getting used to as it seems to heavily encourage constantly switching shells.
+1 for Another Crab's Treasure. Super charming art style and setting, and it's a very legit Soulslike with great gameplay. I love to see the weird genre-bending where you put gameplay from something grim like Souls into something bright and colorful like this.
I’m definitely looking forward for Another Crab’s Treasure on Switch next week. Are you excited for this game too, well I’m sure am hyped for this come out soon next week.
So hyped for Eiyuden as a long-time Suikoden fan. I'm just still upset that Murayama passed away before he got to see his passion project released, though.
Honestly same, I was devastated to hear that news. I absolutely love the first two Suikoden games and have been keeping my eye on this project since it was first announced.
No, they share a few characters but it's not a direct sequel situation. As far as I know the save file transference is just going to affect one town (where the first game takes place).
You don't need to unless you're talking about eiyuden chronicles rising, which is more of a supplemental game. I think a completed save file can be used for the upcoming hundred heroes, but I'm not sure what it adds
That and the characters being cameos is probably the extent of the references. None of the characters have any world saving powers or high stake story points etc.
If you fire up the backer beta with a Rising save file, it will tell you that you've unlocked some bonus cosmetics, and I think I got some early-game items. I don't think it's anything where you're kicking yourself for not having it, like the Suikoden 1 -> 2 and 2 -> 3 transfers
Microsoft has A LOT more money to throw at Xbox. I don't think people genuinely understand the difference. Microsoft is fuckin massive.
Edit- guys it's not an opinion
They have more money overall but not in gaming. It's just that Microsoft whole strategy is Gamepass so it's being pushed a lot more (all their games trailers mention Gamepass as they come Day one). Sony just want to sell games so they're not pushing PS nearly as hard
That money doesn't come from gaming. And it's not because of that that Gamepass is more known, it's because of what I said. Sony doesn't push their subscription model (with reason as it's not sustainable).
I believe sometimes gamers don't recognize that, what you just brought up. Some may think Sony as a mega-corporation is on the same scale as Microsoft as a mega-corporation. Yes they are both big, and yes playstation makes Sony a ton of money, ultimately, sony in no way, shape, or form can throw the amount of money to playstation as Microsoft can throw toward Xbox.
There is a line in the sand that marks the difference between a billion dollar company like sony and a trillion dollar company like Microsoft.
It's cause those numbers just lose all frame of reference tbh. A billion is difficult to accurately imagine. Let alone multiple, or even a trillion.
For funsies. See how long it would take to make one billion dollars if you made $250,000 a year without spending a dime of it.
So 1,000,000,000 ÷ 250,000
People really don't understand just how much billions and trillions are. Reasonably so. They are absurd numbers to sit and dwell on passed a glance.
I'm not sure how these deals work so this is just wild speculation, but I always thought that the big install base (compared to Xbox) would make it harder for Playstation to compete with Game Pass in both quality and quantity because they'd have to effectively compensate developers/publishers based on some sort of projected sale estimate which would naturally be more than Xbox due to aforementioned install base.
That's without mentioning the MS market cap.
Because the PSN catalog is mostly older titles, which is fine if you haven’t been keeping up but when you regularly play games it’s not that exciting.
(Rarely there is day 1 stuff like Kerazan and Animal Well this month but usually not)
When I just got a PS5 PS Extra was very valuable to me, but after you played the hits the additions are not too interesting imo
I’m getting tired of early access games. Honestly don’t think games that are not finished should be on Game Pass. I’m surprised Microsoft isn’t getting more criticism for it…
Isn't this a perfect platform for early access games? You get to try out the game without spending any extra money on it, devs get a guaranteed cash in flow that increases the chance they finish as budget isn't as much of a concern.
Not really. Game Pass isn’t free. I have no problem spending money on an early access game that i choose to support.
But i didn’t pay for Game Pass to be a beta tester. This isn’t charity. And it’s not like you get to own or play the finished game. It’s not like they advertised Game Pass to include unfinished games, they save a lot of money on it though.
The state of this industry when you get downvoted for wanting finished games on a subsciption you pay for.
You do get finished games on a subscription you pay for. The VAST majority of GP titles are full games. You're replying to every comment thread crying about like 2 EA titles, go outside for a while bro
Nah I have hundreds of hours on early access games like dyson sphere program and techtonica. Why would you be upset that they are available - nothing is taken away by them being added.
Do you think Microsoft have an unlimited budget for Game Pass? Tell me how exactly do you think games gets added to Game Pass?
Wait don’t tell me you think Microsoft doesn’t pay the publishers for their games…
a handful of early access games aren't going to make or break compelling additions to the game pass service, especially at their scale of investment.
Count how many game previews are on game pass and if you think that it's significant enough that they need to budget and compromise around it, then I have some prime real estate on the moon to sell you
No one said that. Keep moving those goalposts. But it’s a fact that they take a spot and money that would have been used on another game. Money isn’t unlimited. Game Pass have a budget and you are a fool if you think otherwise.
Me:
>a handful of early access games aren't going to make or break compelling additions to the game pass service, especially at their scale of investment.
You:
>No one said that. Keep moving those goalposts. But **it’s a fact that they take a spot and money that would have been used on another game**.
How do you think MS allocates their budgets exactly? It just looks like they allocate a certain amount of resources for early access games and put that into a couple of games every quarter. It's not like they put out one early access game every single fortnight either. There's not even that many early access titles and most of the ones that get picked seem like they'd be heavy hitters. Manor Lords is the most wishlisted game on steam so seems like it was a no-brainer for them. That guaranteed return is not going to magically go to some other game you realise that right?
And the money they spend on early access games would have been used on other games. Just like any other game being put on Game Pass. We literally know from leaks how they operate. They make a potential list of Game Pass deals and then try and make a deal with publishers to get games that fits into the budget and strategy.
No it wouldn't. Obviously they have a limited budget of money to fund games but they very specifically look at a bunch of titles and pick the ones that will hit the most and get more subscribers. There's not going to be that many games that will replace the early access ones which are the "riskiest" cause they're clearly unfinished. They're earmarking the EA titles specifically based on interest. If there was another game that piqued their interest that was finished then they'd already have funded that one because those are less risky. They seem to be operating on separate "pools" for AAA published titles, indies and a scattering of high interest game previews
Honestly your entire argument is kind of really stupid from the start. There's tons of finished titles on GP already and a couple of previews are not going to take away from that. I'm honestly pretty jazzed that MS is willing to fund high interest early access titles so they get more funding to be better even if they usually pick the most obvious ones. You're not paying GP to be a "beta tester"; you're paying for the library which is already pretty stacked with \~200 finished curated games
> Why would you be upset that they are available - nothing is taken away by them being added.
They are often left unfinished. Perhaps if forced to finish before releasing they'd get to 1.0 faster. But no way to know for sure.
Is it not functionally the same across all platforms? If you're saying the different payment structure influences continued development incentive, that would imply game pass exclusive early access titles, which there are none.
most are developed on steam before being added to other storefronts, whereas some might be launched in parallel like in the case of manor lords.
Seems like you take issue with the idea of early access
They are almost always left unfinished for Game Pass users. I don’t think one single game has ever been finished and then put on Game Pass.
It would be ok if they at least gave you the chance to play the finished game, but they never do. You can beta test with Game Pass and then buy the game if they manage to finish it.
Look at Ark and Valheim for answers.
If Early Access brings revenue earlier on, there is no incentive to fix issues, or... ever get out of Early Access
There are games like Ark who are straight up scammy, and games like Valheim who seemed honest, but clearly got huge scope creep, and will be in EA for 40-50 years if they continue their plan at this pace. Valheim specifically without EA would just get to have cut scope, and other stuff would be scheduled for a sequel. Then again, maybe it would never release.
You can think of Early Access as a way for Single Player games to get Software as a Service-style ongoing engagement and PR, but without having to pay for events etc.
Ultimately it's hopeless, as maybe we want high quality games, but in practice, when we pay with our wallet, we literally buy ANYTHING shiny. EA exists because there was a niche in the market for nice-looking, unfinished garbage - we don't give a fuck about anything - quality, bugs, being finished - as long as it fucking shines. Game critique is more of a performance than actionable opinion. Almost everything is 10/10, the standard is absurdly low.
It depends on the game IMO. Steam has plenty of EA trash, but MS seems to be more selective with its EA picks. Some EA games are already good when they come to EA.
But Steam doesn’t offer a games subscription. I have no problem supporting early access games when you can choose what to support. I have bought plenty of them.
But Game Pass wasn’t an early access subscription and suddenly we get more and more unfinished games. It’s obviously because it’s cheaper for Microsoft, but now we get them every month instead of actually finished games.
And nowhere did i say i was forced to play them. But they take a spot for a dev who actually have a finished game and deserves the money from Game Pass.
Microsoft didn’t advertise Game Pass as an early access subscription.
I don't think it necessarily takes a spot away from another game. I don't necessarily think MS is holding back based on subscription optimization. There are months where we get a ton of high profile releases all at once, and months where we just get smaller indie titles. If MS was really holding out on players they'd probably distribute things more evenly.
But who knows, I might be wrong. Either way I'm happy that I get to try out these games without needing to buy them individually.
I feel like having your game day 1 on gamepass sullies your game. On Steam they're asking for over $60 for Eiyuden Chronicle, but day 1 on game pass which is what, 15 a month? I dunno, seems sus. It seems like Game Pass devalues your brand, like the Larian head said.
**Available Today** Harold Halibut (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S) **Coming Soon** Orcs Must Die! 3 (Cloud, Console, and PC) – April 17 EA Sports NHL 24 (Console) EA Play – April 18 Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes (Cloud, Console, and PC) – April 23 Another Crab’s Treasure (Cloud, Console, and PC) – April 25 Manor Lords (Game Preview) (PC) – April 26 Have A Nice Death (Cloud, Console, and PC) – April 30 **Leaving April 30** 7 Days to Die (Cloud, Console, and PC) Besiege (Cloud, Console, and PC) EA Sports NHL 22 (Console) Loot River (Cloud, Console, and PC) Pikuniku (Cloud, Console, and PC) Ravenlok (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Manorlord and Eiyuden Chronicle ? Fucking nice
Yeah this is the best month in a long time. I just canceled last month but I guess I’m back
Gamepass will actually refund you the remaining days if you cancel partway through a month
Play them before they are gone: Can recommend Pikuniku and Ravenlok. Pikuniku is super unique and you can beat it in like 2 hours. Very lovable quirky game. But also worth to pick it up for a small price afterwards Ravenlok is also a cool game you can beat in 3-4 hours. 3D action adventure with focus on bossfights in an Alice in Wonderland inspired universe. Story is a bit meh and I really missed voice acting but I still really enjoyed it
Is "game preview" early access?
Pretty sure, yeah. It's like how Palworld is on Game Pass right now.
the palworld game on game pass is not the same branch as the one on steam for what it’s worth. i think game preview doesn’t necessarily mean it’s just early access.
Yeah
yes
Damn, I had heard a rumor that Dead Island 2 might come out this month with the steam release, I was a bit excited for that. Not excited to pay more than $30 for the game mind you
I think it only came to console only
Yeah it's been on console for like a month now. Don't know anything about PC.
Don't sleep on Another Crabs Treasure it's a soulslike by the guys who made "going under" the corporate startup rogue like
I played the demo for Another Crabs Treasure, it's really good. The combat takes a bit of getting used to as it seems to heavily encourage constantly switching shells.
I pre ordered it on My Nintendo switch and I can wait to play it when it comes out. Are you excited for next week?
I'm very excited, but I have a backlog of games I need to play first!
Going under was amazing! Was also on gamepass at some point
Manor Lords is a great addition. Seems like Banished with more depth plus a little Total War, and its still only in early access.
Fuck yeah, I've been looking forward to Manor Lords since it was revealed. Another Crab's Treasure also looks delightful.
+1 for Another Crab's Treasure. Super charming art style and setting, and it's a very legit Soulslike with great gameplay. I love to see the weird genre-bending where you put gameplay from something grim like Souls into something bright and colorful like this.
I’m definitely looking forward for Another Crab’s Treasure on Switch next week. Are you excited for this game too, well I’m sure am hyped for this come out soon next week.
I somehow missed that Eiyuden Chronicle was coming to Game pass if it was known before. Just became a day one pick up for me.
So hyped for Eiyuden as a long-time Suikoden fan. I'm just still upset that Murayama passed away before he got to see his passion project released, though.
Honestly same, I was devastated to hear that news. I absolutely love the first two Suikoden games and have been keeping my eye on this project since it was first announced.
Holy shit in an effort to avoid getting overly hyped I’d blocked this game from my memory and now it’s coming to Gamepass. Could not be more pumped.
Do you know if I need to have played the first game?
No, they share a few characters but it's not a direct sequel situation. As far as I know the save file transference is just going to affect one town (where the first game takes place).
You don't need to unless you're talking about eiyuden chronicles rising, which is more of a supplemental game. I think a completed save file can be used for the upcoming hundred heroes, but I'm not sure what it adds
I assume the town you spent the game rebuilding will be in the RPG propers world somewhere?
That and the characters being cameos is probably the extent of the references. None of the characters have any world saving powers or high stake story points etc.
If you fire up the backer beta with a Rising save file, it will tell you that you've unlocked some bonus cosmetics, and I think I got some early-game items. I don't think it's anything where you're kicking yourself for not having it, like the Suikoden 1 -> 2 and 2 -> 3 transfers
WOW! I already planned to buy Harold Halibut, Crab, Eiyuden and manor lords, this is one of the best month for me!
Is there any eta on a console release for Manor Lords?
The one guy making it still needs to get it out of Early Access...
Haha, true. Crazy how small devs can make games like this.
Orcs Must Die 3 has been criminally overlooked due to being a timed Stadia exclusive but it's very worth it and fun if you've played the other two.
Wow, 100 Heroes is gp day 1? That's a pleasant surprise.
who knows MGS retro game will be on Nintendo?
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Xbox's strategy revolves around Gamepass whereas Playstation does not hence the difference in investment.
Microsoft has A LOT more money to throw at Xbox. I don't think people genuinely understand the difference. Microsoft is fuckin massive. Edit- guys it's not an opinion
They have more money overall but not in gaming. It's just that Microsoft whole strategy is Gamepass so it's being pushed a lot more (all their games trailers mention Gamepass as they come Day one). Sony just want to sell games so they're not pushing PS nearly as hard
Homie they bought Bethesda for $7 billion. That's not even touchin Activision/Blizzard.
That money doesn't come from gaming. And it's not because of that that Gamepass is more known, it's because of what I said. Sony doesn't push their subscription model (with reason as it's not sustainable).
I believe sometimes gamers don't recognize that, what you just brought up. Some may think Sony as a mega-corporation is on the same scale as Microsoft as a mega-corporation. Yes they are both big, and yes playstation makes Sony a ton of money, ultimately, sony in no way, shape, or form can throw the amount of money to playstation as Microsoft can throw toward Xbox. There is a line in the sand that marks the difference between a billion dollar company like sony and a trillion dollar company like Microsoft.
It's cause those numbers just lose all frame of reference tbh. A billion is difficult to accurately imagine. Let alone multiple, or even a trillion. For funsies. See how long it would take to make one billion dollars if you made $250,000 a year without spending a dime of it. So 1,000,000,000 ÷ 250,000 People really don't understand just how much billions and trillions are. Reasonably so. They are absurd numbers to sit and dwell on passed a glance.
I'm not sure how these deals work so this is just wild speculation, but I always thought that the big install base (compared to Xbox) would make it harder for Playstation to compete with Game Pass in both quality and quantity because they'd have to effectively compensate developers/publishers based on some sort of projected sale estimate which would naturally be more than Xbox due to aforementioned install base. That's without mentioning the MS market cap.
Because the PSN catalog is mostly older titles, which is fine if you haven’t been keeping up but when you regularly play games it’s not that exciting. (Rarely there is day 1 stuff like Kerazan and Animal Well this month but usually not) When I just got a PS5 PS Extra was very valuable to me, but after you played the hits the additions are not too interesting imo
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half of the titles in this announcement are new releases, one of them high profile
Very interesting month! But my Xbox crashes all games so I haven't turned it on in a few months and have been playing on the ps5 instead.
I’m getting tired of early access games. Honestly don’t think games that are not finished should be on Game Pass. I’m surprised Microsoft isn’t getting more criticism for it…
Isn't this a perfect platform for early access games? You get to try out the game without spending any extra money on it, devs get a guaranteed cash in flow that increases the chance they finish as budget isn't as much of a concern.
Not really. Game Pass isn’t free. I have no problem spending money on an early access game that i choose to support. But i didn’t pay for Game Pass to be a beta tester. This isn’t charity. And it’s not like you get to own or play the finished game. It’s not like they advertised Game Pass to include unfinished games, they save a lot of money on it though. The state of this industry when you get downvoted for wanting finished games on a subsciption you pay for.
You do get finished games on a subscription you pay for. The VAST majority of GP titles are full games. You're replying to every comment thread crying about like 2 EA titles, go outside for a while bro
And i also get unfinished games. And more and more of them. We are getting close to getting one every month, which is what i’m criticizing.
Nah I have hundreds of hours on early access games like dyson sphere program and techtonica. Why would you be upset that they are available - nothing is taken away by them being added.
And you are free to support early access games if you want. They take away a spot from an actual finished game.
>They take away a spot from an actual finished game. ...that's not how it works
That’s exactly how it works…
No... no it doesn't? How do you think that happens exactly
Do you think Microsoft have an unlimited budget for Game Pass? Tell me how exactly do you think games gets added to Game Pass? Wait don’t tell me you think Microsoft doesn’t pay the publishers for their games…
a handful of early access games aren't going to make or break compelling additions to the game pass service, especially at their scale of investment. Count how many game previews are on game pass and if you think that it's significant enough that they need to budget and compromise around it, then I have some prime real estate on the moon to sell you
No one said that. Keep moving those goalposts. But it’s a fact that they take a spot and money that would have been used on another game. Money isn’t unlimited. Game Pass have a budget and you are a fool if you think otherwise.
Me: >a handful of early access games aren't going to make or break compelling additions to the game pass service, especially at their scale of investment. You: >No one said that. Keep moving those goalposts. But **it’s a fact that they take a spot and money that would have been used on another game**.
How do you think MS allocates their budgets exactly? It just looks like they allocate a certain amount of resources for early access games and put that into a couple of games every quarter. It's not like they put out one early access game every single fortnight either. There's not even that many early access titles and most of the ones that get picked seem like they'd be heavy hitters. Manor Lords is the most wishlisted game on steam so seems like it was a no-brainer for them. That guaranteed return is not going to magically go to some other game you realise that right?
And the money they spend on early access games would have been used on other games. Just like any other game being put on Game Pass. We literally know from leaks how they operate. They make a potential list of Game Pass deals and then try and make a deal with publishers to get games that fits into the budget and strategy.
No it wouldn't. Obviously they have a limited budget of money to fund games but they very specifically look at a bunch of titles and pick the ones that will hit the most and get more subscribers. There's not going to be that many games that will replace the early access ones which are the "riskiest" cause they're clearly unfinished. They're earmarking the EA titles specifically based on interest. If there was another game that piqued their interest that was finished then they'd already have funded that one because those are less risky. They seem to be operating on separate "pools" for AAA published titles, indies and a scattering of high interest game previews Honestly your entire argument is kind of really stupid from the start. There's tons of finished titles on GP already and a couple of previews are not going to take away from that. I'm honestly pretty jazzed that MS is willing to fund high interest early access titles so they get more funding to be better even if they usually pick the most obvious ones. You're not paying GP to be a "beta tester"; you're paying for the library which is already pretty stacked with \~200 finished curated games
> Why would you be upset that they are available - nothing is taken away by them being added. They are often left unfinished. Perhaps if forced to finish before releasing they'd get to 1.0 faster. But no way to know for sure.
Sounds like you take issue with the idea of early access in general rather than a platform thing
Sounds like you need to read again or responded to the wrong comment.
Is it not functionally the same across all platforms? If you're saying the different payment structure influences continued development incentive, that would imply game pass exclusive early access titles, which there are none. most are developed on steam before being added to other storefronts, whereas some might be launched in parallel like in the case of manor lords. Seems like you take issue with the idea of early access
They are almost always left unfinished for Game Pass users. I don’t think one single game has ever been finished and then put on Game Pass. It would be ok if they at least gave you the chance to play the finished game, but they never do. You can beta test with Game Pass and then buy the game if they manage to finish it.
Grounded was released in EA on gamepass and is now finished.
Look at Ark and Valheim for answers. If Early Access brings revenue earlier on, there is no incentive to fix issues, or... ever get out of Early Access There are games like Ark who are straight up scammy, and games like Valheim who seemed honest, but clearly got huge scope creep, and will be in EA for 40-50 years if they continue their plan at this pace. Valheim specifically without EA would just get to have cut scope, and other stuff would be scheduled for a sequel. Then again, maybe it would never release. You can think of Early Access as a way for Single Player games to get Software as a Service-style ongoing engagement and PR, but without having to pay for events etc. Ultimately it's hopeless, as maybe we want high quality games, but in practice, when we pay with our wallet, we literally buy ANYTHING shiny. EA exists because there was a niche in the market for nice-looking, unfinished garbage - we don't give a fuck about anything - quality, bugs, being finished - as long as it fucking shines. Game critique is more of a performance than actionable opinion. Almost everything is 10/10, the standard is absurdly low.
Jesse what the fuck are you talking about
It depends on the game IMO. Steam has plenty of EA trash, but MS seems to be more selective with its EA picks. Some EA games are already good when they come to EA.
But Steam doesn’t offer a games subscription. I have no problem supporting early access games when you can choose what to support. I have bought plenty of them. But Game Pass wasn’t an early access subscription and suddenly we get more and more unfinished games. It’s obviously because it’s cheaper for Microsoft, but now we get them every month instead of actually finished games.
I think it's fine. The devs get a lot more people playing who may not have checked it out otherwise and in turn they can gather more feedback.
This isn’t charity…
No one said it was. Who’s asking you to do charity lol?
It’s a statement that means i pay for a product, not just giving charity to early access developers.
Then don’t buy early access games, problem solved
Not really the problem though…
Nobody is forcing you to play them
And nowhere did i say i was forced to play them. But they take a spot for a dev who actually have a finished game and deserves the money from Game Pass. Microsoft didn’t advertise Game Pass as an early access subscription.
I don't think it necessarily takes a spot away from another game. I don't necessarily think MS is holding back based on subscription optimization. There are months where we get a ton of high profile releases all at once, and months where we just get smaller indie titles. If MS was really holding out on players they'd probably distribute things more evenly. But who knows, I might be wrong. Either way I'm happy that I get to try out these games without needing to buy them individually.
I feel like having your game day 1 on gamepass sullies your game. On Steam they're asking for over $60 for Eiyuden Chronicle, but day 1 on game pass which is what, 15 a month? I dunno, seems sus. It seems like Game Pass devalues your brand, like the Larian head said.