Now, as the new month closes in, there’s a few titles that’d be great selections for games on the service. These aren’t prediction for what to expect, moreso a selection of games that would make sense and succeed on the Games with Gold service. Considering the nature of Xbox’s ambiguous selection process, it’s hard to gauge which games are next for Xbox’s Games with Gold. With that in mind, here’s a few games that would be perfect for Games with Gold this July.
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Prey
Those looking for something a bit more creepy would benefit from getting Prey with Games for Gold. While the original concept for a Prey sequel was scrapped long ago, the 2017 re-imagining stands on its own as a spiritual successor to System Shock. Players explore the abandoned “Talos I” space station that was used as a research center for the Typhon, a mysterious shape-shifting alien lifeform. Every moment is tense and full of paranoia, knowing any object could be a shapeshifted Typhon waiting to strike. Combatting aliens provides a deep enough challenge even after the jump scares start to lose their terror.
Outside of the horror aspects of the game, Prey contains several RPG and progression mechanics that give players access to new abilities and attributes. It’s a surprisingly deep game, full of intricate systems that change the way the player interacts with aliens in the station in unique ways. Prey would be a perfect choice for Games with Gold for anyone looking for a solid thriller experience with RPG-lite progression.
A Way Out
For any big fans of classic 80s action movies, Josef Fares basically made the game for two friends who want to live out a Point Break fantasy. A Way Out is a co-op adventure from Hazelight Studios that puts two convicts, Leo and Vincent, together as they try to escape from prison. Players have to work together in a 24-esque split screen cinematic style, working together to enact revenge on the criminals who wronged them. It’s very much a campy 80s action film distilled into an engaging co-op game. As long as players are fans of that genre, A Way Out is perfect for them.
Games like this emphasize that interest in couch co-op is making a comeback. Gameplay involves a lot of coordinated teamwork, ranging from mundane tasks like opening a door from one side, to assisting in the interrogation of someone who has information. A Way Out thrives in creating thrills, even if the story doesn’t have a whole lot of emotional depth or complexity. A straight forward action romp that doesn’t stick around for too long, A Way Out is perfect for two friends to enjoy together.
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Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Xbox 360)
A little while back, Activision released a remaster for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2’s campaign mode. But for now that only encapsulates the single-player version of the game, while multiplayer and the “Spec Ops” co-op modes don’t have a release date. Those looking to relive the original’s addicting multiplayer modes would benefit greatly from a Games with Gold release of the original Modern Warfare 2. To this day, Modern Warfare 2’s multiplayer experience is one of the best, near-perfectly balancing weapons and perks with natural progression that was satisfying.
For now, it seems there’s no plan to remaster Modern Warfare 2’s multiplayer or Spec Ops modes any time soon. Fans who may want to jump back into one of the best Call of Duty multiplayer modes in the franchise’s history, this would be fans’ best bet for now.
Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction (Original Xbox)
Back in the day, before Battlefield: Bad Company set the bar for extensive destruction in a shooter, the Mercenaries series highlighted destruction as one of its main draws as well. Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction was the first game in the series, where players take on the role of one of the titular soldiers-for-hire in a fictional conflict in North Korea. The world of Mercenaries was very much a predecessor to the open world games seen today, allowing player to take on various contracts and missions throughout the sandbox. Each mission affects one of the four factions in the world, which in turn changes the relationship between that faction and the player’s mercenary.
The justification for the player’s actions was a rare thing seen in games back in 2005, and the pre-open world nature of the game and its all-encompassing destruction mechanics were pretty unique at the time. Plus the mercenary caricatures are extra campy and silly, adding some humor to the already absurd world of Mercenaries.
The Xbox Games with Gold have yet to be announced for July 2020.
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