One of the best Tomb Raider games is coming to Xbox Game Pass

By Tomas Franzese April 30, 2024

Lara Croft runs from a crashing plane in Tomb Raider. — Crystal Dynamics

Microsoft unveiled the batch of games coming to Xbox Game Pass throughout the first half of May. It’s a smaller group of only four games, but all of them are neat additions to Microsoft’s subscription service. Here’s the full roster of games coming to Xbox Game Pass between May 2 and May 14.

Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition — May 2
Kona II: Brume — May 7
Little Kitty, Big City — May 9
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons — May 14

The most notable game in that batch is Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition. Released in 2014, this is the complete version of Crystal Dynamics’ reboot of this iconic action-adventure franchise. It brought the series into the modern gaming era with an intricately crafted and intimate single-player adventure. It, along with games like The Last of Us, helped set the cinematic single-player game standard that countless titles have followed in the decade since. It’s one of the best Tomb Raider games, too, so if you’ve never played it before, now is the time to give it a shot.

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As for the other games, Kona II: Brume is a sequel to an eerie and intense adventure game that flew under the radar when it was released last October. Hopefully, its addition to Xbox Game Pass gives it a second lease on life. Then there’s Litty Kitty, Big City, which is a day one Xbox Game Pass title following in the footsteps of Untitled Goose Game that has players explore a city as a cat and mess around with its inhabitants.

Finally, there’s Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, which is an experimental, yet memorable title from now-famous game developer Josef Fares. Oddly enough, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons got a remake in February, but that’s not the version coming to Xbox Game Pass.

You’ll have a good time with any of those four titles coming to Xbox Game Pass, but also keep in mind that several titles will be leaving the service on May 15. It might be worth checking one of these games out immediately so you don’t miss out.

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Gaming Staff Writer

As a Gaming Staff Writer at Digital Trends, Tomas Franzese reports on and reviews the latest releases and exciting…

Gaming

3 new Xbox Game Pass games to play this weekend (August 16-18)

Crash Bandicoot runs forward in the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy.

Xbox has only received five new games so far this August, but three of them share a theme. The connective tissue between all of these additions is that they're new versions of older classics. With collections for some bombastic first-person shooters and cartoony platformers, and a remake of a crime action game, Xbox Game Pass' classics catalog has just been fleshed out with some excellent titles that come easily recommended. If you're looking for something to play on Microsoft's subscription service this weekend, consider checking out one of these three games.
Mafia: Defintive Edition

Mafia: Definitive Edition is a full-on remake of the 2002 mafioso crime action game Mafia. It's a Grand Theft Auto alternative set in a fictional 1930s city based on Chicago that follows the Italian mob in control of the city at the time. While Mafia never reached the heights of GTA, all the games in that series are creative and interesting in distinct ways. When it comes to the first Mafia specifically, the city of Lost Haven is an intricately detailed setting and provides a solid backdrop for a mob story that fans of movies like The Godfather or Goodfellas will enjoy. A fourth Mafia game is in development too, so now is a good time to get a better idea of how the series started. Mafia: Definitive Edition is available to play across PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Cloud Gaming via Game Pass Ultimate. It's also available on PS4.
Doom + Doom II

Gaming

Another great Activision game comes to Xbox Game Pass this month

Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy

Microsoft has revealed the first wave of Xbox Game Pass titles coming to the subscription service this August. While we already knew about Creatures of Ava and Mafia: Definitive Edition's impending additions to Xbox Game Pass, we also learned that another Activision Blizzard game is coming: Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy.

Originally a PlayStation 4 exclusive, Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy revamped Naughty Dog's Crash Bandicoot games for what were then current-gen platforms. It toed the line between remaster and remake as the visuals got a complete overhaul, but it was extremely faithful when it came to gameplay and level design. Regardless, the first three Crash Bandicoot games are fantastic, so N. Sane Trilogy is as well.

Gaming

Is Xbox Game Pass really worth it anymore?

Games on Xbox Game Pass.

Xbox Game Pass is changing. On Tuesday night, Microsoft quietly announced that it was retooling its game subscription service. The change would bring new tiers, including one that doesn't feature "day one" releases, and a price hike to the Ultimate tier. Naturally, fans didn't take the news well. The decision has already been dissected by players who theorize that the end of Xbox's subscription service is nigh -- or at least that it's turning into a bum deal.

Are players overreacting over a couple of dollars or is there legitimacy to the doomsaying? It's likely a bit of both, but there's no doubt that Xbox Game Pass' value wanes with the new change. The question is whether or not it's still a good deal even if it's a pricier one. That's where things get complicated. What used to be a no-brainer for all Xbox players now feels like its geared toward a narrower audience. And I know for sure that I'm not the target anymore.
Is Xbox Game Pass worth it?
Let's recap what exactly is changing on Xbox's service. For starters, Xbox Game Pass for Console is going away for new subscribers. That will more or less be replaced by Xbox Game Pass Standard, a new tier that is missing one key perk: It will not feature "day one" games like Call of Duty: Black Ops 6. Each remaining tier is getting a price hike. Xbox Game Pass PC will go from $10 to $12 per month, while Xbox Game Pass Ultimate will jump from $17 to $20 per month. Those are the tiers players will need to subscribe to in order to get "day one" games.