20. Control Ultimate Edition (2019)
Action/Adventure/Open Zone | Metacritic Score: 87
Control has you exploring The Oldest House, a top-secret government structure. It’s riddled with a dubious past and an even more enigmatic blueprint. As Jesse Faden, recently and grudgingly appointed Director of the Federal Bureau of Control, you are in charge of uncovering the mysteries across this structure. Control exposes you to bizarre supernatural abilities, and a narrative that’s not short of eccentric angles.
Performance Mode and Graphics Mode are the two ways you can play Control on Xbox Series S/X. While the latter displays things at 30 frames per second in 1440p upscaled to 4K with ray tracing, the former offers gamers 60 frames per second in 1440p upscaled to 4K.
19. Hitman 3 (2021)
Action/Adventure/Open Zone | Metacritic Score: 87
Hitman 3 is possibly the best addition to the franchise. It’s full of rich, exotic locations to explore and outlandish targets to assassinate. The new Hitman games focus on replayability rather than campaign length.
Your objective as you sneak through each level is to find information that will enable you to approach and kill your targets. Simple methods of carrying out those killings include shooting or strangling them, while more difficult techniques include poisoning, breaking an AI (we won’t spoil this for you), and even dropping an antler chandelier on your target.
18. Hogwarts Legacy (2023)
Action/Adventure/RPG/Open World | Metacritic Score: 87
Hogwarts Legacy finally opened the long-awaited doors into the enchanting world of Hogwarts. It’s the Harry Potter role-playing game we’ve always wanted to play. With its endearing new characters, demanding and complex combat, and a superbly realized Hogwarts student fantasy, this open-world adventure captures all the excitement and magic of the Wizarding World.
With the Xbox Series X, the visuals are breathtaking. Take a stance at the tower on a nearby property, and notice the detailed landscape’s expansive and rich design. While Series S runs the game at 1080p, 60 frames per second, Series X runs it at 1440p.
17. Hi-Fi Rush (2023)
Action/Platformer/Adventure | Metacritic Score: 87
Hi-Fi Rush arrived as a surprise, especially to Game Pass owners. The cartoonish and arcade-like gameplay makes Hi-Fi Rush one of the best rhythm-based games to come out in recent times. Best-in-class animation, lovable protagonists to cheer for, and villains you want to despise are all wrapped up in lighthearted humor in this charming game. But on top of that timeless allure, it makes the dynamic rock soundtrack its most powerful weapon by synchronizing the beat to every facet of the world.
16. Mass Effect Legendary Edition (2021)
Action/Adventure/RPG | Metacritic Score: 87
The Mass Effect series stands strong as one of the best games set in outer space. The epic space opera takes different genres like non-linear narratives, RPGs, and action to a more significant level of gameplay.
Mass Effect Legendary Edition manages to appeal to both devoted fans of the franchise and those who have never spent a single minute playing it. Mass Effect 1 has been updated to be playable in the current gaming landscape, and all three games have received eye-pleasing graphic improvements and blazing-fast load times to reduce waiting times.
15. Psychonauts 2 (2021)
Action/Platformer | Metacritic Score: 87
Psychonauts 2 is a successor to the most captivating psychic platformer on Xbox. As a protagonist who harnesses psychic powers, you’ll be platforming and fighting within the psychological worlds of many of the most problematic people you encounter.
The strange and superbly crafted plot of Psychonauts 2 is full of fascinating and complex characters. Even while its alluring new gameplay mechanics may occasionally be too scanty, most of its original innovations significantly advance the Psychonauts formula into the twenty-first century.
14. Diablo IV (2023)
Action/Hack and Slash/RPG | Metacritic Score: 88
Diablo IV has been a pleasant welcome to fans and newcomers alike. The adjustments, upgrades, and borrowed concepts that this installment introduces have made this most recent version of the game the greatest Diablo we’ve ever had. Diablo IV only offers a little to revolutionize ARPGs or push the boundaries of a genre its franchise helped pioneer.
While Diablo IV’s narrative doesn’t pace out too well, other elements may cover these flaws. The unique combat system, loot pool, and stunning visuals and sounds of this world keep the Diablo charm alive. Instead of offering the franchise a more significant update, Diablo IV adopts the tactic of improving what the series previously did so well.
13. Dead Space (2023)
Action/Adventure | Metacritic Score: 89
Dead Space is a classic journey of surviving in space. You play as Isaac Clarke, an engineer working aboard the USG Kellion, a repair ship. They have been sent to the mining ship, the USG Ishimura. It’s stationed on the planet Aegis VII, a spacecraft that has stopped communicating for unknown reasons. The Kellion crew’s task is to board the Ishimura, determine what went wrong, and make repairs.
Every bit thrilling, exciting, and horrifying, the remake keeps the original game’s essence alive while improving its experience. It’s doubtful that it could have been done in any other manner, and it gives this franchise fresh vitality. Hopefully, the new dynamism will blossom as this franchise is restored to its former glory with newer elements.
12. Deathloop (2021)
Stealth/Puzzle/Action/RPG | Metacritic Score: 89
Deathloop is technically a challenging game to recommend to new players. Most of its style and gameplay seem attractive, but you understand how things work only a few hours into the game. You play as Colt, a guy seeking to get off the island of Blackreef and the time loop he is trapped in by killing eight “Visionaries” in one day. Deathloop’s entire gameplay system is wrapped around this idea.
You’ll shuffle between cycles of the day, customizing your inventory as you discover new weapons and abilities. However, there’s a slight Soulslike element in the mix – you lose your rewards every time you die, and it’s up to you how you pick things up again. Or not! Even with its complex mechanics, Deathloop is a brilliant game that mixes stealth, supernatural abilities, and cleverly-designed levels. Of course, this is a game by Arkane Studios, after all.
11. It Takes Two (2021)
Multiplayer/Adventure/Puzzle | Metacritic Score: 89
It Takes Two is a metaphorical journey of salvaging important connections. It’s an amazing co-op adventure that employs a trail of fantastic gameplay ideas with an important message. It is gorgeous, lightning-fast, and brimming with imagination. Every time you mess about or try something new, you are rewarded.
It Takes Two is a wonderfully pleasant journey you absolutely need to take together if you have any type of co-op partner in your life. It can be your spouse, friend, sibling, or another relative (even a youngster, though some topics might be too advanced for them).
