Summary
- Xbox Game Pass is adding five day-one launch titles in the first half of September, with Train Sim World 5 being the latest on September 17.
- Train Sim World 5 offers new features and customization tools, with future updates and improvements planned.
- Ultimate subscribers get day-one access to games, while the new Standard tier does not offer access to games on launch day.
Xbox Game Pass has several day-one launch titles planned for the month, and Train Sim World 5 will be the third to join the list on September 17. Star Trucker kicked things off on September 3, and the remastered graphics and gameplay of an RTS classic followed shortly after with Age of Mythology: Retold. And when they launch on September 20 and 24, respectively, Frostpunk 2 and Ara: History Untold will round out the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate day-one additions, at least for now.
The generous offering of five day-one launch titles throughout the first half of September may be a bitter pill for some gamers, though. In the eyes of many, Xbox Game Pass recently got worse, despite the tantalizing games being added to the catalog. Not only did another price hike go into effect for current subscribers on September 12, but the Standard subscription tier just replaced Xbox Game Pass for Console. Standard doesn’t offer day-one launch titles, and there are dozens of games that are now only available for Ultimate subscribers, including Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Diablo 4, and Forza Motorsport.
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For gamers who still have an Ultimate subscription, however, Train Sim World 5 will be available to download and play the moment it launches on September 17 at around 10 AM PT. The train simulation title is actually the eighth in the series developed by Dovetail Games since 2017. It will introduce three train lines through London, Frankfurt, and Los Angeles, along with the new Conductor Mode, which puts players in the role of a guard who checks tickets, operates doors, and generally makes sure the train passengers have a safe ride.
Xbox Game Pass Titles Confirmed for September 2024
|
Star Trucker |
Available now |
Console, PC |
|
Age of Mythology: Retold |
Available now |
Console, PC, Cloud |
|
Expeditions: A MudRunner Game |
Available now |
Console, PC |
|
Riders Republic |
Available now |
Console, PC |
|
Train Sim World 5 |
Available now |
Console, PC, Cloud |
|
Frostpunk 2 |
September 20 |
PC |
|
Ara: History Untold |
September 24 |
PC |
Another fun feature, Route Hopping, will let players fast travel between locations to see what’s happening on a track at any given time. Train Sim World 5 also provides fun customization tools like Photo Mode, Livery Designer, Scenario Planner, and Creators Club so that conductors can share their incredible creations with each other. And the game’s Live Map 2.0 will loop players in on a bird’s eye view of any route, so they can sit back to enjoy the show or do some detailed planning.
The developers at Dovetail Games have also shared a roadmap of things to come for Train Sim World 5, including the addition of more routes, gameplay packs, bug fixes, and a remaster of the Great Western Express route, one of the original in the series. The train simulation game released in early access on September 12 for those who purchased the Deluxe or Special Edition, and Train Sim World 5 is already sporting a “Mostly Positive” review rating on Steam. Now, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers can get it day one on September 17.
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is the highest tier of Microsoft's flagship game subscription service that offers over 100 game titles that you can play with a single purchase, making it one of the most outstanding value propositions of the Xbox ecosystem to date.
Checkbox: control the expandable behavior of the extra info