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Over the last few weeks, we've been running weekly recommendations for what we're playing on the Game Pass service. It's an opportunity for us to spotlight hidden gems or simply to talk about our preferred titles. This time around, though, we need to begin by tackling the obvious issue: the latest anti-consumer updates to the Game Pass subscription.

On Oct. 1, Microsoft announced a series of adjustments to its subscription service, the most significant coming to the service's Ultimate tier — which offers the largest game library plus day-one access to latest releases from Microsoft's game studios. The new price is $30 monthly, up from $20. As expected, users expressed dissatisfaction, and numerous voices on online platforms and in discussion forums about how they were going to cancel their plans.

It's the end of an era for Game Pass as the once celebrated gaming bargain is no more. Instead, players must consider if $360 a year for the premium plan is worth it to them, particularly when daily expenses continues to rise.

Should you maintain your membership, or looking for reasons to keep it active, check out our current picks. They include a top-tier exploration-platformers of recent years, a 2025 Game of the Year contender, and a charming role-playing game follow-up. Alternatively, if you're inclined to cancel Game Pass, see our guide on modifying or ending your membership.

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

Should you decide to keep your Ultimate membership, you’re probably going to need additional reasons to use it. A strong argument for paying the extra cash is that it includes to a suite of Ubisoft+ Classics. This provides plenty of Assassin’s Creed and Far Cry titles for your monthly payment, but the standout benefit is Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown.

This side-scrolling adventure makes fantastic use of the series, taking it back to its platforming roots in a dangerous maze that’s a exciting to explore. Combine this with some of the deepest, most varied combat the category includes, and it creates a top-shelf Metroidvania. Add in both Hollow Knight: Silksong and The Rogue Prince of Persia and the value becomes clear on three months of your subscription cost.

Blue Prince

The first-person puzzle game Blue Prince launched with strong sales and a committed player base on Steam, but its console player base was buoyed at launch by subscription services (it was also available on PlayStation Plus). Player recommendations combined with its simple availability led to the game reach 2 million players.

Trying a title for several sessions to discover if it's your jam or not is one of the core appeals of Game Pass, and those seeking immersion in a puzzle should check out Blue Prince. You play as the heir to an estate and large inheritance, but only if you can locate the hidden chamber. The challenge? The building's design is constantly changing, making Blue Prince a procedural game with fresh clues to uncover regularly. After several sessions with it and have been gradually uncovering mysteries and puzzle clues surrounding the mystery at the core of the story, and I'm eager to discover how it develops as I progress further.

The Prince's Edition: Ni no Kuni 2

Is this suggestion Ni No Kuni 2: Revenant Kingdom just because the edition available on Game Pass is the Prince's Edition version and that creates thematic harmony with our previous selections? I'll never tell. What I will tell, though, is that Ni No Kuni 2 is excellent sequel to one of the best JRPGs of all time. Despite the whimsical Ghibli aesthetic and emphasis on youthful protagonists, Ni No Kuni 2 doesn't shy away from heavy topics, beginning with an seeming act of violence on a modern-day city before quickly transporting the main character (the literal president) into an other world where they find themselves involved in a historical power struggle. Unlike its predecessor, the battles are real-time — think more like a Tales game than a turn-based title — and includes a genuinely deep and complex management in which you must oversee a kingdom. It might be the Prince's Edition, but it feels more like royal treatment to me.