Whether you're into brooding narratives, huge hits that provide engaging gameplay loops or just want something to chill to, Xbox Game Pass has you covered.
Botany Manor
This was a recent addition to Game Pass that had me hooked for an entire day. It only takes a handful of hours to see it to its conclusion and is such a laid-back puzzler that you spend much of the time reveling in its setting. As a botany expert, you work out how to grow plants from clues scattered around a mansion, called Botany Manor, and its stately garden built up from sumptuous colors and cartoon aesthetics. It's not overly taxing and it's perfect for a chill Sunday when you don't have anywhere to go and want something wholly satisfying and absorbing.
Celeste
Celeste is easily one of my favorite games and is well-regarded throughout the gaming world. A precision platformer, this isn't always a walk in the park. Instead, it's a walk up a mountain covered in weird and wonderful places where your skills will be put to the test. When you aren't leaping and dashing around, you'll discover some delightful NPCs and some genuinely lovely dialogue that revolves around themes of anxiety and identity.
Dungeons of Hinterberg
A mixture of dungeon crawling and social interactions, Dungeons of Hinterberg is an engaging adventure that mixes Zelda-like dungeons based on special abilities with RPG skill progression. While the former has you trekking through the town of HInterberg battling enemies and solving puzzles, the latter sees our character of Luisa mingling in town to boost her stats via conversations or activities. There's a pretty decent story winding its way throughout which looks at capitalist greed and environmental issues.
Firewatch
Some would call this a walking simulator through the wonderful forests of America, while others would say Firewatch is a narrative adventure focusing on the idea of solitude. It's a bit of both, really. There's a stunning environment to explore as you take on the role of park ranger watching out for forest fires. The only connection to the outside world is a walkie-talkie where conversations often turn deep and pondering, forcing both the central character and you to question our place in the world.
Jusant
The aim of Jusant is to climb a really big mountain range. That makes two mountain climbing games on this list. Jusant, however, is a much more laidback experience where every handhold and footrest must be carefully thought out and stamina management is key. Along the journey, you'll find old journals, remnants of society, and some devious puzzles that require out-of-the-box thinking. At times very peaceful, I often found myself staring out into the distance while thinking about my movement across a sheer cliff.
Neon White
This fast-paced action platformer relies on cards that bestow skills on your assassin character. Sounds a bit bonkers, but it works brilliantly. While moving as fast as you can from point A to point B, you'll use action and attacking cards to perform skills within each level. Neon White requires not only precision skills for locomotion but some versatile thinking on how to use each card to its fullest. Every level is replayable for better times or results and you'll be dragged through by an entertaining story, too.
Planet of Lana
Taking inspiration from games such as Inside and Limbo, Planet of Lana is an adventure game with bags of heart and a little dash of darkness. Perhaps the loveliest aspect of the game is the use of a little critter that looks a bit like a cat, called Mui. You'll use Mui to help solve environmental puzzles and as a bit of company for our character who is lost in a big world out to capture and experiment on Mui, our newfound friend. It's not as sinister or brooding as horror games of this ilk, but it's rather charming over its short runtime.
Vampire Survivors
It's not a valid list of stellar indie games without Vampire Survivors. I've tried to foist this game onto everyone I meet because it's so simple and endlessly replayable. It might take a while to figure out the weapon combinations and how each level works, but the idea of wandering around while your weapons attack by themselves means there's rarely any stress. It's quite the spectacle, as hundreds of enemies are slain by thousands of bullets, all while reams of numbers fly about the screen. Nothing beats finding a great weapon combo and wiping out everyone while taking little to no damage.
