The best Xbox Game Pass games of 2023

Hi-Fi Rush is a brilliant twist on rhythm games and that rare work with outstanding style and soul in equal measure. Music might drive Hi-Fi Rush, but Tango Gameworks’ underdog story about a lovable doofus and his misfit friends fighting back against corporate power is just as much a highlight of the experience. Excellent voice acting underscores that story at every turn, and a suite of accessibility options mean more people can enjoy it. Hi-Fi Rush deserves every piece of praise lavished on it. 

Cocoon is easily one of the best puzzle games of the last decade, a bold an inventive inversion of the usual formula that, despite its challenging nature, helps you understand its solutions in encouraging and fun ways. Cocoon wraps all this around a tale of a little bug trying to make their way in a beautiful, dangerous world, and it has a smart way of using that world as the foundation for its best puzzles. 

Tango Gameworks’ first non-Evil Within horror game is an ambitious one that aims to blend the slice-of-life elements you see in the best Yakuza substories with unique action combat and a splash of scares for good measure. Ghostwire Tokyo is unsettling, rather than actually frightening, and it goes out of its way to help bring its spirits to life with folklore tidbits and other explainers that remove cultural barriers. Its take on Tokyo life and the touching relationship between our hero and his ghostly companion are particular highlights.

We’re pretty big fans of Cassette Beasts here. Bytten Studio really understands what makes a good Pokemon game and some of the biggest problems people have with Game Freak’s iconic series. Cassette Beasts refreshes the overly familiar combat system with forced double battles that even throw trainers in the equation, innovative monster mixing, and a story that feels like a thoughtful part of Cassette Beasts’ world – not just an afterthought for the sake of it. 

If farming and fighting are your two favorite things, then Rune Factory 4 Special would like a word. Marvelous perfected the Rune Factory formula with this one, balancing the life-sim elements with some excellent dungeons and a combat system that’s much deeper than it looks. Combine that with a script that sparkles with personality, and you’ve got one of the best farm games around.

Capcom’s take on Overwatch-style hero shooters looks a bit weird at first glance, mostly because it is weird, but there’s a pretty special game once you get past the overly long tutorial missions. While Overwatch is blurring role styles and making everything play like a DPS class, Exoprimal steps in with exciting role-based combat that rewards you for understanding your class and how to get the most out of it. 

The campy tone is charming, the story ties in well with the evolution of Exoprimal’s mission structure, and those missions are surprisingly in-depth – after the tutorial.

Venba is a delight, an emotional exploration of family, the idea of home, and the role food plays in both of those. It’s the kind of game you need to experience to understand its charm, and the combination of being free on Game Pass and running under five hours makes it an ideal way to spend an evening or part of the weekend.

Sumo Digital’s adaptation of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre is one of the best asynchronous multiplayer games in the last few years and one of the only effective attempts at capturing the Dead by Daylight magic. It takes everything from the series, even down to the music and environmental details, and builds it into the fight for victory. However, the 4v3 setup is probably its best feature, one that draws out the emotional intensity of the concept and makes the struggle for survival – or the victory over your foes – feel palpable.

Capcom’s bundle of the three best, quirkiest deduction games landed on Game Pass near the end of 2023, and it’s worth checking out if only for the bizarre scenarios and excellent localization. Psychics, closed-room murders, clowns, and deranged cat lovers all converge in a series of connected cases that, despite their over-the-top nature, dig into some surprisingly tender emotions. If you played Ghost Trick – and you should play Ghost Trick – you’ll have a pretty good idea of Ace Attorney’s storytelling style.

Like A Dragon Ishin is a different kind of Yakuza game, one that takes place in the 19th century and puts familiar faces in fresh roles. Ishin explores the turbulent period of Japan’s so-called opening, when the United States forced Japan to open its borders for international trade, an act that prompted political upheaval and ushered in new social and government structures that set Japan on the path of industrial modernization. But it’s a Yakuza game, so there’s plenty of chickens, bizarre Yakuza substories, and even a farm you can run.