Monster Hunter Rise and Lego Star Wars are coming to Game Pass

When you vow to “get outside more” and “be more adventurous” in the new year, hey, Game Pass subscribers will be able to do all that indoors. Capcom have announced that Monster Hunter Rise will hit Game Pass in January 2023, a great entry in their brill beast-bashing series. Microsoft have also detailed some more of the games coming to Game Pass before then, including Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga next week. That one might be a fun way to distract the kiddywinkles over Christmas. Read on for more future Game Pass additions.

Coming soon to PC Game Pass:

• Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga (December 6th)
• Hello Neighbor 2 (December 6th, day one)
• Chained Echoes (December 8th, day one)
• High On Life (December 13th, day one)
• Potion Craft (December 13th)
• Hot Wheels Unleashed GotY Edition (December 15th)
• Rainbow Billy: The Curse Of The Leviathan (December 15th)
• Monster Hunter Rise (January 20th)

More games will surely be coming to Game Pass before Rise, mind. The announcements of December’s first wave and Monster Hunter’s arrival were separate but I’ve rolled it onto this list for convenience. I’d expect a second wave in December then another in early January.

Our Monster Hunter Rise PC review in January called it “a more than worthy successor to Monster Hunter: World”. As for the Lego, Ed’s Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga review said it was “undeniably fun, but wildly inconsistent and with far too much padding from collectibles.” A bit of Star Trek might entertain the kids over Christmas, mind, and god knows loads of padding could keep them out your hair. Alice Bee liked parts of Potion Craft too.

As for the new games, Our Katharine recently chatted with the maker of Chained Echoes about its retro JRPG inspirations. And while I was wildly put off by the gameplay trailer for High On Life, the FPS with talking weapons and Rick & Morty man Justin Roiland doing those Justin Roiland voices, Ed played a bit and quite liked it. He says the talking guns “aren’t as annoying as you might think”.

Alas, games coming means games going.

Leaving PC Game Pass on December 15th:

• Aliens: Fireteam Elite
• Breathedge
• Dragon Quest XI: Echoes Of An Elusive Age
• Firewatch
• Lake
• One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4
• Race With Ryan
• Record Of Lodoss War: Deedlit In Wonder Labyrinth
• Transformers: Battlegrounds

Firewatch has been praised loads, of course, and isn’t long so you can finish it in time. Aliens: Fireteam Elite is okay if you want to do those Colonial Marines things in co-op. I have been meaning to check out Lake so I should do that npw. And some of these JRPGs, mate, no way you can finish them before they go.