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After the recent price increase for Game Pass Ultimate, the earlier commotion has subsided. Although it may not be seen as the top offer in gaming now, the service has welcomed several high-profile launch day releases lately, such as Ninja Gaiden 4 and The Outer Worlds 2. These titles further enrich a vast library of numerous games ideal for weekend-long marathon sessions.

Our current recommendations feature a cathartic action game, an award-winning indie gem, and a essential HD-2D RPG.

Resistance: Sniper Elite

Every so often, we all require a bit of catharsis. For 20 years, the Sniper Elite series has provided precisely that. Rebellion Developments' enduring shooter line presents players ultraviolent carnage targeting enemy targets. This year, the studio released Sniper Elite: Resistance, a timely addition to the series. Although it doesn't revolutionize the formula, Resistance is a well-constructed serving of simulation World War II open environments filled with Nazi objectives. The sniping is as brutal and satisfying as always, featuring the series' trademark killcam displaying every bullet's impact in graphic, explicit clarity. It's a bloody excitement for any pacifist looking to let off steam in the security of a digital world.

Resist 1000x

1000xResist presents an award-winning narrative exploring life after a pandemic existence, generational trauma, and much more. It approaches these themes through a science fiction perspective; you assume the role of Watcher, one of several clones of Iris, the sole survivor of a global outbreak that wiped out human life. Watcher and her fellow clones explore Iris's recollections from the time Earth was ravaged by that terrible disease, as well as experiences of her school and family life, both of which were easy for a young person. Watcher discovers Iris is not what she appears, and the story unfolds from that point. If all that mystery isn't enough to grab your interest, the game indeed start with a murder. What could be a more compelling opening than that?

Octopath Traveler 2

Yes, completing a gazillion-hour RPG in only over a week is a tall order, but if any game worth attempting the grind for, it's Octopath Traveler 2. Square Enix's visually striking gem is leaving Game Pass at the end of November (as is the original game, which is also included). But, with a break in the midst, at least for players in the States, it's technically achievable. Octopath Traveler 2 follows 8 characters, every one representing a different story style. There's a procedural story about a cleric looking into the death of his church's archbishop. A trader aiming to solve poverty through the power of commerce stars in a frontier-inspired adventure. Additionally, there's a mystery about an apothecary with amnesia (because every good RPGs need a character with an unknown past, naturally). A few of these plots connect in unexpected, fascinating ways, as you play through a stunning 19th-century inspired setting. And the combat is superb — “number go up” distilled to its purest form.