The Redmond-based company is also taking a break at the end of the year: don’t expect significant changes after Christmas but before 2022 hits, which is why the final 2021 Game Pass update is thicker than a regular update.

From today, Among Us is playable from the cloud (ID@Xbox, meaning it’s an indie title). December 16 will bring a significant update, as it will bring Ben 10: Power Trip (PC, console [Xbox Series, Xbox One], cloud), Broken Age (PC, console, cloud), Firewatch (PC, console, cloud, ID@Xbox), The Gunk (PC, console, cloud, ID@Xbox), Lake (PC, console, cloud, ID@Xbox), Mortal Kombat 11 (PC, console, cloud), PAW Patrol: Mighty Pups Save Adventure Bay (PC, console, cloud), Race With Ryan (PC, console, cloud), Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth (PC, console, cloud, ID@Xbox), and Transformers: Battlegrounds  (PC, console, cloud).

Xbox Game Pass on PC got a new name (PC Game Pass), and Microsoft announced that four upcoming games would launch on day one on the service. These are Pigeon Simulator (PC, console, cloud), Sniper Elite 5 (PC, console, cloud), Trek to Yomi (PC, console, cloud), and the unannounced title by Hugecalf Studios (PC, console, cloud). As a reminder, Serious Sam 4 (PC, Xbox Series [as it’s not on Xbox One], cloud, ID@Xbox), and Townscaper (PC, console, cloud, ID@Xbox) are available.

DLCs include the free Ark: Survival Evolved Lost Island map, Minecraft Dungeons: Cloudy Climb (seasonal adventures, season one), and The Elder Scrolls Online: New Life Festival event (available until January 4). The Xbox Game Pass Ultimate perks include Halo Infinite multiplayer’s Pass Tense MA40 AR bundle (coating, four 2XP boosts, four challenge swaps), Rogue Company’s season four perk pack, Gears of War: Borealis winter bundle, and from December 16, Vigor’s Make It Rain bundle and Super Animal Royal Xbox exclusive perk bundle will also arrive.

Ten more games received touch controls. Nine of them are available, with The Gunk coming later. They are Astria Ascending, Bug Fables: The Everlasting Sapling, Dicey Dungeons, Fae Tactics, I AM Fish, One Step From Eden, Ring of Pain, and Sable. And on December 31, these games will leave Game Pass: Pro Evolution Soccer 2021 (console, cloud), The Little Acre (console, cloud), Yakuza 0 (PC, console, cloud), Yakuza: Kiwami (PC, console, cloud), and Yakuza: Kiwami 2.

Mat Piscatella, NPD’s analyst, explained on Twitter how the Game Pass (as well as other subscription services) can change a game’s sales: “Data still suggest that subscription services like Game Pass are helping grow the overall market. Consumer response to games on these services appear to be amplified, which can help boost traditional purchasing of participating games across all the platforms they appear on. [The] potential downside is if a game is poorly received on the service. That sentiment also appears to be amplified, which can weigh sales down. Overall, these services appear to be a net positive and can be a valuable part of a successful go to market strategy. Traditional purchasing isn’t going anywhere. And it’s totally fine as an individual consumer to not want to subscribe to a service. You do you.”

So if a game is good, it will get better sales thanks to Game Pass, but if something is terrible, its sales will fall even further.

Source: Gematsu, WCCFTech