xbox game pass Added 5 more titles across 2 lower tiers. Three games have been added to the Essential library and two games have been added to the Premium catalog. More titles will become available to premium subscribers later in December, but today's update will likely mark the final addition to Xbox Game Pass' essential tier in 2025.
New premium titles include: Monster Train 2 and spray paint simulatorIt has been part of PC Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate since the second half of May 2025. Monster Train 2 Released on May 21st, spray paint simulator 8 days later. Both were added to the subscription service on day one.
Monster Train 2 and Spray Paint Simulator reach Xbox Game Pass Premium after six-month delay.
Xbox Game Pass Premium subscribers have been accepted! spray paint simulator and Monster Train 2 Around midnight on December 3 (local time). A six-month delay between Ultimate and Premium tier releases typically means a one-year license. This means that both titles could disappear from Xbox Game Pass in May or June 2026. It's still a small sample size (the Standard/Premium tiers without Day 1 games are only 15 months old), but it took this long for most Day 1 releases to move down a tier when they weren't intended to remain there after September 2024. We've been serving you for (much) over a year.
3 additional titles now available on Xbox Game Pass Essential
In the December 3rd catalog update, Xbox Game Pass Essential also received three new titles. Stellaris, World War Z: Aftermathand medieval dynasty. Unlike the premium tier extras, these games aren't likely to leave Microsoft's subscription service anytime soon. Since Xbox Game Pass Core replaced Xbox Live Gold in September 2023, the $9.99-a-month tier (renamed XGP Essential in October of this year) hasn't removed any games, only new ones. Microsoft has stated that the Essential library will not remain in perpetuity, but titles added to this entry-level tier are generally expected to remain in the service for a year or more.
With today's update, the list of 2025 additions to Xbox Game Pass Essential now totals 10 titles. Batman: Arkham Knight, monster sanctuaryand tunicI joined the tier at the end of March. No additional items are expected to be added to the Essentials tier catalog before Spring 2026.
All games will be added to Xbox Game Pass Core/Essential in 2025.
-
Batman: Arkham Knight (March 26)
-
Monster Sanctuary (March 26)
-
Tunic (March 26)
-
Cities: Skylines – Remastered (October 1)
-
Disney Dreamlight Valley (October 1)
-
Hades (October 1)
-
Warhammer 40,000: Dark Tides (October 1)
-
Medieval Dynasties (December 3)
-
Stellaris (December 3)
-
World War Z: Aftermath (December 3)
What’s next for Xbox Game Pass
It has been confirmed that eight more titles will be available in at least one tier of Microsoft's subscription service before the end of the month. The December 2025 lineup includes six Xbox Game Pass Ultimate titles: routine December 4 ~ Mortal Kombat 1 December 10th. The remaining two are premium tier additions. 33 Immortal and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle.
Xbox Game Pass release schedule (officially confirmed dates only)
|
date |
game |
Game Pass Tier |
platform |
memo |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
December 3 |
Monster Train 2 |
premium |
Cloud, PC, Series X/S |
Available for XGP Ultimate and PC GP starting May 2025. |
|
December 3 |
spray paint simulator |
premium |
Cloud, Console, PC |
Available for XGP Ultimate and PC GP starting May 2025. |
|
December 3 |
Stellaris |
essential |
Cloud, Console, PC |
Available for XGP Ultimate from August 2019, PC GP from October 2019, and XGP Standard (now Premium) from September 2024. |
|
December 3 |
World War Z: Aftermath |
essential |
Cloud, Console, PC |
Available in XGP Ultimate and PC GP from December 2023, and in XGP Standard (now Premium) from September 2024. |
|
December 3 |
medieval dynasty |
essential |
Cloud, Handheld, PC, Series X/S |
Available for PC GP from June 2021, XGP Ultimate from October 2022, and XGP Standard (now Premium) from September 2024. |
|
December 4th |
routine |
Ultimate, PC |
Cloud, console, handheld, PC |
Released on the first day. |
|
December 4th |
33 Immortal |
premium |
Cloud, Console, PC |
Available for XGP Ultimate and PC GP starting March 2025. |
|
December 4th |
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle |
premium |
Cloud, PC, Series X/S |
Available for XGP Ultimate and PC GP starting December 2025. |
|
December 9 |
dome keeper |
Ultimate, PC |
Cloud, PC, Series X/S |
First day (Series X/S) released. |
|
December 9 |
hole digging game |
Ultimate, PC |
Cloud, Handheld, PC, Series X/S |
First day (Series X/S) released. |
|
December 9 |
howl of death |
Ultimate, PC |
Portable, PC |
Released on the first day. |
|
December 10th |
Mortal Kombat 1 |
Ultimate, PC, Premium |
Cloud, PC, Series X/S |
|
|
December 11th |
Bratz: Rhythm and Style |
Ultimate, PC, Premium |
Cloud, Console, PC |
|
|
February 5th |
duress |
Ultimate, PC |
PC |
Game Preview; Released on the first day. |
|
February 13th |
High on Life 2 |
Ultimate, PC |
Cloud, PC, Series X/S |
Released on the first day. |
Microsoft's latest roster announcement indicates that Xbox Game Pass may not have a Wave 2 lineup in December 2025. A similar pattern occurred last year, with the official December 2024 lineup announcement extended until January, but not this time. As a result, predicting the next key date for the service is more difficult than usual. Wave 2 release is generally expected to be around December 16th, i.e. around the third Tuesday of each month. However, if no such updates are expected, the next Xbox Game Pass lineup announcement could arrive as early as January 2026 at the latest.
