Xbox Game Pass Is Netflix for Video Games, So Don’t Even Try to Leave The Couch

Get ready to Xbox and Chill.

Xbox One owners are about to get their first taste of a Netflix-style subscription service for games. Called Xbox Game Pass, the service will cost $9.99 a month and will offer 112 games (at least at the time of this writing) for you to download and play. All the games are in their original resolution and play exactly as they would if you owned them on disc, including online gameplay and DLC add-on content.

Here are a few things to keep in mind if you take advantage of the 14-day free trial when Xbox Game Pass officially launches on June 1st.

Much of the Game Pass seems modeled on Netflix and the most important aspect, the library of available titles, is no different. Of the 112 games currently playable with the subscription, there are standouts like Halo 5, Devil May Cry or Mad Max.

There are classics like Mega Man, BioShock or Borderlands. There are oddball, underrated games like Sunset Overdrive, Saints Row IV or Bionic Commando: Rearmed. It’s a wide scope of Xbox One and backward compatible Xbox 360 games and hopefully Microsoft is wise enough to grow and refresh the library on a regular basis.

Refreshing, however, does mean that, like movies on Netflix, certain games will eventually leave the Game Pass service. Microsoft is discounting all the games available via Game Pass’ subscription in case you get attached and want to add them to the collection of games you permanently own.

Otherwise, we’re hopeful that every game gets a decent amount of time in the rotation before returning to the netherworld of the Xbox Store. 

Having that many games downloaded onto your Xbox One, especially if it’s only sporting a 500GB HDD, may end up getting a little crowded. It’s definitely a good idea to keep an eye on space being taken up by old betas that are still installed or games you have downloaded but don’t play.

Some spring cleaning is definitely warranted before embarking on the Game Pass journey. We couldn’t stop ourselves from going on a download frenzy during our trial of it.
After June 1st, we expect you won’t be binging on *just* Netflix on your Xbox anymore.