It’s that time again folks – the next batch of Xbox Game Pass titles has just been announced. The first Game Pass April lineup includes two day-one launches straight onto the service, plus addition of one of the best Tomb Raider games, Shadow of the Tomb Raider.
As well as reminding Xbox gamers that Superhot: Mind Control Delete bursts onto the scene today as one of April’s new Game Pass games, the latest Xbox Wire blog post also reveals seven other games that are hitting the library between now and April 16.
These include two completely new Xbox games: Botany Manor, a cozy gardening sim with puzzler elements that’s making its way over from the Nintendo Switch, and Harold Halibut, which could go down as one of this year’s best games when it comes to its art style alone. This gorgeous-looking project is made to look like a stop-motion film, with all of its characters and assets being hand-built from clay and other materials before being scanned and brought to life in the game. We’re really excited to dive into this one, and we think it’s got a shot of joining our best Xbox Game Pass games list.
However, as always, it isn’t just brand-new games that make their way to Game Pass. The service’s lineup of sports games is getting bolstered with EA Sports PGA Tour (just in time for the four-month run of majors in the real world of golf too), LEGO 2K Drive is yet another fun racing game for subscribers to enjoy, and the Definitive Edition of Shadow of the Tomb Raider also swings its way over.
The latter is probably the biggest game on this month’s lineup, and joins its 2015 predecessor Rise of the Tomb Raider on Game Pass. The Definitive Edition includes all of the game’s extra content, including its seven challenge tombs. Aside from the recent (and slightly problematic) remasters of Tomb Raider 1, 2, and 3, this is the newest Tomb Raider game out there for console players, and it caps off the 2010’s reboot trilogy in style.
Below you can find the full lineup and release schedule for the first batch of April titles.
- LEGO 2K Drive – April 3
- Lil Gator Game – April 4
- EA Sports PGA Tour – April 4
- Kona – April 9
- Botany Manor – April 9, day-one launch
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider Definitive Edition – April 11
- Harold Halibut – April 16, day-one launch
This won’t be it for April either – expect a second drop of new games later in the month. We’ve just had one of the best months on record for new Game Pass games thanks to the likes of Diablo 4, Control, and The Quarry all joining in March, but April looks set to give it a run for its money.
While the new additions are always exciting, there are always games that have to sadly leave the service too. On April 15, Amnesia Collection, Amnesia: Rebirth, Back 4 Blood, Phantom Abyss, Research and Destroy, and Soma will all be removed from Game Pass, so if any of those are of interest to you, you haven’t got long left to play them as part of your subscription.
In other Xbox news, this new Microsoft Rewards challenge makes it super easy to rack up over 1,000 points in a month, and we’ve been musing about the big upcoming Xbox exclusive that no one seems to be talking about.