New year, new Game Pass games! Microsoft has published a list of 8 titles coming to their service in the first half of the month (on Wednesday, for some reason), and it includes a nice variety to sink your teeth into. Let's get into it!

Quotes (in italic) taken from the article linked above. Pay attention to the platforms for each game (Cloud, Console, and PC), as some titles won't be available for all of them. Some of the games in the above article may have been covered in the previous wave.

Close to the Sun

Cloud, Console, and PC – Available now

Deep in international waters, Tesla’s Helios stands still. An unbound utopia for scientific research, Rose Archer steps aboard in search of her sister, quickly to discover not all is as it seems. Use your wits to guide Rose on her journey to find her sister Ada, overcome dangers unknown to understand the fate of the Helios and its inhabitants in this narrative driven steampunk adventure.

Hell Let Loose

Cloud, PC, Xbox Series X|S – January 4

Squad up and take to the battlefields of World War II in the ever-expanding, hardcore, first-person shooter experience that is Hell Let Loose. Join other players online in epic, 100 player battles, taking place across huge, to-scale maps, where working as a team is a matter of life and death, and the right – or wrong – decision can turn the tide of battle. We’ll see you on the front lines!

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla

Cloud, Console, and PC – January 9

Become Eivor, a legendary Viking warrior. Explore England’s Dark Ages as you raid your enemies, grow your settlement, and build your political power in the quest to earn a place among the gods in Valhalla in this critically acclaimed entry in the Assassin’s Creed series.

Figment

Cloud, Console, and PC – January 9

An action-adventure game that invites you to explore a unique, surreal universe filled with music, humor and a multi-layered narrative. Join Dusty and his ever-optimistic friend, Piper, on an adventure through the different sides of the mind, seeking to restore the courage that’s been lost.

Super Mega Baseball 4

Cloud, Console, and PC – January 11, Only available to Ultimate subscribers on console via EA Play

Super Mega Baseball 4 is coming soon to PC Game Pass and Ultimate via EA Play, so grab your glove and your bat. It’s time to go yard with the best to ever play the game. Hit, pitch, throw, and slide into home plate with the series’ signature combination of arcade-inspired style and immersive gameplay depth.

We Happy Few

Cloud, Console, and PC – January 11

Making a return to the Game Pass library! From Compulsion Games, set in a drug-fueled, retro futuristic city in an alternative 1960s England, We Happy Few is an action adventure game in which you hide, fight, and conform your way out of a delusional Joy-obsessed world.

Resident Evil 2

Cloud, Console, and PC – January 16

Revisit the critically acclaimed nightmare of Raccoon City in Resident Evil 2 with new visuals, modern gameplay mechanics, and an over-the-shoulder perspective. Join rookie cop Leon S. Kennedy and college student Claire Redfield as they fight to survive a mysterious viral outbreak in Raccoon City that has turned its citizens into terrifying, flesh-eating zombies.

Those Who Remain

Cloud, Console, and PC – January 16

As the lights go out, the embers of darkness are stoked in the sleepy town of Dormont. Confront uncomfortable horrors, keep your sanity in check, and survive the night in this story-driven first-person psychological-thriller.

DLC / Game Updates

  • Dead by Daylight - Chucky, Available Now
    • Game Pass members save 10% on their purchase! Meet your new best friend ‘til the end. Dead by Daylight: Chucky brings an iconic horror legend into The Fog with a new Killer: The Good Guy – Chucky. Purchasing this add-on unlocks an exclusive Charm: Good Guys Box. Wanna play?
  • Hello Neighbor 2 - Anniversary Update, Available Now
    • To celebrate the recent anniversary of Hello Neighbor 2 there is a new free update to check out. Visit the whole new area – the forest located on the outskirts of Raven Brooks. Explore the church and adjoining graveyard, once a renowned landmark and popular destination for townsfolk, now abandoned and eerily weird. Recent reports of a strange, cloaked figure seen lurking throughout the woods are probably completely unfounded. Are you brave enough to find it out?
  • Sea of Thieves - Season Ten, Available now
    • Sea of Thieves: Season Ten continues with the arrival of a new way to sail! Enjoy playing Safer Seas mode at your own pace, alone or with a crew of friends, immersing yourself in your adventures without interruption. Other crews and greater rewards await in the existing High Seas mode.

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Perks

  • Sea of Thieves - Nightshine Parrot Pack, Available Now
    • This pack contains the Nightshine Parrot Jacket, Nightshine Parrot Sails, Nightshine Parrot Figurehead, Nightshine Parrot Hat and Nightshine Parrot Cutlass, as well as 10,000 gold to spend in-game.

Leaving the Service

The following games will leave the service on January 15th, except GTA V, which leaves even earlier on the 5th. If you have any unfinished business in them or want to give them a shot, this is your last chance.

  • Grand Theft Auto V (Cloud and Console)
  • Garden Story (Cloud, Console, and PC)
  • MotoGP 22 (Cloud, Console, and PC)
  • Persona 4 Golden (Cloud, Console, and PC)
  • Persona 3 Portable (Cloud, Console, and PC)

What do you think of the titles coming to Game Pass? Any other games you'd like added to the service? Let us know in the comments below!