Xbox players have a stacked weekend ahead, with big new releases landing alongside a couple of games making their way back into the spotlight. From heart-pounding survival to sharp-edged humor, this week’s lineup caters to every type of gamer. Whether you want a cinematic stealth adventure, a chaotic co-op shooter, or an emotional indie journey, there’s no shortage of variety in the following line-up.
What makes this weekend’s picks especially exciting is the mix of tones and styles. Some of these games push you into high-stakes combat with barely a second to breathe, while others slow things down with exploration and atmosphere. Taken together, they represent the best of what Xbox Series X/S can offer: immersive worlds, technical polish, and stories that stick with you long after you’ve powered down.
Best Strategy Games On Xbox Game Pass
The Xbox Game Pass library offers great titles for fans of the strategy genre, and here is a look at the best ones available to subscribers.
Borderlands 4
If you're ready to leave Pandora behind for Kairos, you'll find that Borderlands 4 cranks the chaos to eleven. The series has always thrived on its mix of wild gunplay, irreverent humor, and larger-than-life characters, but this entry raises the stakes with a universe on the brink of collapse. Old rivalries ignite, Vault Hunters are called to an entirely new planet, and familiar faces return in unexpected ways. All this wrapped in the series’ signature cel-shaded style that makes every fight feel like it’s leaping off a comic book page.
Whether you’re chasing loot with friends or carving your own path through the madness, Borderlands 4 makes every shot and every punchline count. The galaxy is louder, meaner, and more unpredictable than ever, and stepping back into it makes for a jet-fueled ride through the heart of looter-shooter gameplay chaos.
Borderlands 4
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 82 /100 Critics Rec: 88%
- Released
- September 12, 2025
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
- Developer(s)
- Gearbox Software
- Publisher(s)
- 2K
WHERE TO PLAY
Dying Light: The Beast
Dying Light: The Beast brings something more primal for Xbox gamers seeking a new release this weekend. It’s not just about surviving zombies or parkour anymore: it leans into hunt, primal instincts, and the darker corners of Kyle Crane's revenge story. For Series X owners, the performance, visuals, and world design are strong enough that playing this title feels like a refreshingly new take on such an established title.
Dying Light's gameplay has been a survival gaming staple for a reason, but The Beast dials everything up to create the series' most cinematic presentation yet. Whether Dying Light: The Beast is your first dip into the franchise or you're just picking up where you left off, this entry offers enough novelty to be a crowdpleaser all around.
Dying Light: The Beast
WHERE TO PLAY
Stray
Ever wanted to see the world from a cat’s eyes, with all the freedom to climb, claw, and meow? Maybe I've been too obsessed with my own cats lately, but Stray gives you that opportunity. You get to play as a stray cat lost deep in the bowels of a far-future cyberpunk city, taking in the locale from its dark alleys and dizzying rooftops all the way into its dank and infested sewers as you attempt to escape back to the surface.
The 2022 Game of the Year-nominated title takes players through a beautifully realized city full of robots, neon-lit streets, and dangerous creatures to avoid. Aside from simply scampering roof to roof, the titular stray cat will need to use all its wits to solve engaging puzzles, avoid detection by hostile creatures, and befriend a robot companion of their own.
Stray
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 84 /100 Critics Rec: 85%
- Released
- July 19, 2022
- ESRB
- E10+ for Everyone 10+: Animated Blood, Fantasy Violence
- Developer(s)
- BlueTwelve Studio
- Publisher(s)
- Annapurna Interactive
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Adventure
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
This one kept you waiting. After just over twenty years, Konami has delivered a proper remake of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. This complete overhaul brings the iconic story into a new generation of consoles with fully modern graphics, updated controls, and a host of quality of life improvements gamers have come to expect. At the same time, the core of the classic game is still very much intact, and players can even choose to play with the original camera and controls.
Set in the USSR in the mid-1960’s, Snake Eater acts as a prequel to the events of the Metal Gear games that came before it, and a setup for everything to follow. Players follow Naked Snake as he sneaks and CQC’s his way through the jungle to accomplish his mission of disarming a Soviet nuclear weapon. However, as always with the Metal Gear series, more is at play here than first meets the eye.
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 85 /100 Critics Rec: 89%
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Shooter, Adventure, Stealth