Xbox Game Pass ULTIMATE JUST DROPPED 2 NEW GAMES – Is One a 2025 GAME OF THE YEAR?

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Summary

  • Blue Prince and NHL 25 have been added to the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate library on April 10.
  • Blue Prince is a genre-bending “strategy puzzle adventure” that’s currently one of the highest-rated games of 2025.
  • The next Xbox Game Pass catalog rotation is scheduled for April 15, when the service will add 2 games while removing 7 others.

In simple terms, the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate library now includes “Blue Prince” and “NHL 25”. These are the fifth and sixth fresh games that have been added to the premium level of Xbox Game Pass in the month of April 2025.

Starting from the beginning of this month, the Microsoft subscription service has successively added “Borderlands 3: Ultimate Edition”, “South of Midnight”, “Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls”, and “Commandos: Origins” to its collection, in that specific sequence. However, the release of “Descenders Next” for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, initially scheduled for April 9, has experienced a last-minute delay, which unfortunately is now indefinite.

Just when I was bummed about the delay of Descenders Next, Microsoft dropped some cool news! They added NHL 25 to the April 2025 Wave 1 Xbox Game Pass Ultimate lineup. That’s right, EA Sports’ ice hockey sim is now part of our subscription service as of April 10, joining Blue Prince.

So, if you’re an Ultimate-tier subscriber like me, you can stream and enjoy it right on your PC. Sweet, right?

New and Upcoming Xbox Game Pass Games

Game Game Pass Tier(s) Platform(s) Date Notes
Blue Prince Ultimate, PC, Standard Cloud, PC, Series X/S Apr 10 Day-one release.
NHL 25 Ultimate Cloud, Series X/S Apr 10
Hunt: Showdown 1896 Ultimate, PC PC Apr 15 Available to console subscribers since December 2024.
Grand Theft Auto 5 Ultimate, PC, Standard Cloud, Console, PC Apr 15 Last available in January 2024.
Tempopo Ultimate, PC Cloud, Console, PC Apr 17 Day-one release.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Ultimate, PC PC, Series X/S Apr 24 Day-one release.
Revenge of the Savage Planet Ultimate, PC Cloud, Console, PC May 8 Day-one release.
Doom: The Dark Ages Ultimate, PC PC, Series X/S May 15 Day-one release.
To A T Ultimate, PC PC, Series X/S May 28 Day-one release.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 Ultimate, PC Console, PC Jul 11 Day-one release.

Without needing any introduction, NHL 25 is well-known, but Blue Prince, a newcomer from Dogubomb Studio in California, remains relatively obscure, though this could change soon. Released on PC and consoles on April 10, Blue Prince received widespread acclaim immediately. On OpenCritic, it boasts a “Mighty” rating, which is based on an average score of 90 and a nearly flawless 95% recommendation rate from reviewers. Currently, Blue Prince stands among the top-rated games of 2025 due to its high praise. The game is marketed as a “strategy puzzle adventure,” where players must explore Mt. Holly, a peculiar manor with a constantly changing layout, to uncover the secrets hidden within Room 46.

When Will Blue Prince Reach Xbox Game Pass Standard?

On its launch day, “Blue Prince” can only be played on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass. Based on Microsoft’s history, this highly praised adventure game might become accessible to the standard tier of the service within 6 to 12 months. In contrast, since “NHL 25” is exclusive to the EA Play add-on, it will never be provided to regular subscribers of Xbox Game Pass Standard.

On April 15th, the following expansion for XGP is planned: this date marks the fourth return of Grand Theft Auto 5 to Microsoft’s subscription service in five years. Additionally, on that same day, Hunt: Showdown 1896 will be added to PC Game Pass, making its debut five months after it was introduced to the Ultimate and Standard tiers of the service on Xbox Series X/S. Unfortunately, April 15th also marks the departure of seven games from Xbox Game Pass; however, these titles are currently available at a 20% discount for subscribers.

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2025-04-10 20:37