Windows Central’s Jez Corden noted this on The Xbox Two Podcast when responding to a user who said the company may prioritize “more niche and PC focused” ventures for the next generation. “Maybe. I mean, it’ll be interesting to see if they take Call of Duty out of Game Pass this year, which is a possibility from what I’ve heard.”

While Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (alongside Indiana Jones and the Great Circle) earned $465 million for Xbox in December 2024, the latter also reportedly gave up over $300 million in sales. We don’t know the impact of Game Pass on Call of Duty sales in 2025, or whether price increases managed to mitigate any potential losses.

However, the latest entry likely did enough damage on its own, thanks to the awful campaign and generally stale quality. Such was the debacle it caused Activision to commit to no longer releasing Modern Warfare and Black Ops sequels back-to-back.

Of course, most likely due to the free-to-play Warzone, Call of Duty was one of the most top-played titles in 2025. Time will tell if that fact has an impact on the next mainline title remaining on Game Pass or not.

The latter are already available through Ultimate and PC Game Pass but are now playable in the Premium tier. Planet Coaster 2 arrives on April 9th, followed by Tiny Bookshop on April 10th. Both games will be playable for all three subscription tiers. Meanwhile, Football Manager 26 and its Console release join Premium on April 13th.

April 14th is big for new releases with the addition of Hades 2, which also launches day-and-date on Xbox Series X/S and PS5, and Replaced, the long-awaited 2.5D side-scrolling cyberpunk platformer. If neither is to your liking, there’s also The Thaumaturge, an underrated narrative-focused RPG. Meanwhile, April 16th sees the arrival of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered for Premium and EA Sports NHL 26 on Ultimate and PC Game Pass.

Oddly enough, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, the 2019 reboot, will also be available for all three tiers, followed by Little Rocket Lab, Sopa: Tale of the Stolen Potato, and Vampire Crawlers (based on the uber-popular Vampire Survivors) on April 21st. Double Fine’s Kiln wraps up the first wave on April 23rd, launching for Ultimate and PC Game Pass. Its open beta is set for April 9th to 11th on Steam, so there’s plenty of time to try it out for free.

Check out all the games that will be leaving on April 15th:

• Ashen (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Grand Theft Auto 5 (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• My Little Pony: A Zephyr Heights Mystery (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Terra Invicta (Game Preview) (PC)

It features a mission where the player (and their twin) return to Pinkwater 4 station, where they meet Zafar (who later joins as a mechanic). The latter is a teammate who can provide support even when not actively in your squad. As with Owlcat’s previous games, choices will have consequences. Xbox Wire promises that the beta is “no exception,” but suffice to say that it will have an impact on others.

A wide variety of weapons are also available to try out, including pistols, SMGs, snipers and whatnot, but you can also utilize different gadgets like a zero gravity grenade or even deploying small drones to assail enemies. Cover is also important, although, as showcased in the trailer, it can crumble after taking too much damage.

Alongside Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC, The Expanse: Osiris Reborn will be available on Game Pass Ultimate day one and even supports Xbox Play Anywhere.

On March 24th, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth will finally be added to the service for Ultimate, Premium and PC subscribers. Guard Crush Games’ Absolum follows on March 25th, which also marks the acclaimed rogue-lite beat ’em up’s debut on Xbox Series X/S.

Nova Roma, a city-building title from Lion Shield, will premiere in Game Preview for Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers, coinciding with its early access release. Survival crafting fans can look forward to The Long Dark becoming available on March 30th for Premium, PC, and Ultimate. Finally, Resident Evil 7: biohazard will be playable on March 31st, joining the Resident Evil Village.

But wait, there’s more. Barbie Horse Trails kicks off next month alongside Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, the latter finally available to Premium subscribers. If that wasn’t enough, Square Enix’s march to include every single mainline Final Fantasy title on Game Pass seemingly continues with Final Fantasy 4 on April 7th.

Surprisingly, only two games will be leaving the service on March 31st. Check them out below:

• Peppa Pig World Adventures (Cloud, Console, PC)
• Mad Streets (Cloud, Console, PC)

Other notable releases for the first wave of Game Pass in March include Final Fantasy 3 and Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, both out today on Ultimate, Premium and PC Game Pass. to a T, a new adventure from Katamari Damacy’s creator is next on March 4th, though it’s currently playable for Premium subscribers.

EA Sports F1 25 arrives on the same day for Ultimate and PC Game Pass, followed by Planet of Lana 2: Children of the Leaf on March 5th (which also marks the day of its launch on all platforms). And if you’re not keen on exploring Night City and becoming a legend as V, there’s also Construction Simulator, which drops for all three tiers on the same day.

For those who didn’t venture into Pharloom last September, Hollow Knight: Silksong will be available for Premium subscribers on March 12th. It’s followed by DreamWorks Gabby’s Dollhouse: Ready to Party on March 17th for all three tiers.

Of course, several titles will also be leaving the service on March 15th. Check them out below and finish them while they’re still available.

• Bratz Rhythm & Style (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Enter the Gungeon (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• F1 23 (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• He is Coming (PC)
• Lightyear Frontier (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island (Cloud, Console, and PC)

What about the here and now? Well, today sees the arrival of Aerial_Knight’s DropShot and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora for Ultimate and PC Game Pass. Premium subscribers can also finally go hands-on with Avowed, which is getting a meaty new Anniversary Update today alongside its PS5 port.

Death Howl, a Souls-like deck builder, follows on February 19th for all three tiers, along with EA Sports College Football 26 for Ultimate subscribers. However, the standout addition is undoubtedly The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Complete Edition for Ultimate and Premium. Right on time for that rumored new DLC.

TCG Card Shop Simulator arrives on February 24th, though it’s still in early access, with Dice A Million joining on February 25th for Ultimate and PC Game Pass. Towerborne’s 1.0 release is also out on February 26th and will be available for all three tiers. And for those who don’t care that Henry has come to visit us on March 3rd, they can experience Final Fantasy 3 instead.

Check out all the titles that will be leaving on February 28th (available to purchase at a 20 percent discount for Game Pass members):

• Monster Train (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Expeditions: A MudRunner Game (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Injustice 2 (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Middle Earth: Shadow of War (Cloud, Console, and PC)

The Verge’s Tom Warren reported sources who said that Microsoft was allegedly in the “early stages of exploring ways” to “expand” Game Pass. It may involve merging Game Pass Premium and PC Game Pass (with Windows Central’s own sources corroborating the same). It’s also looking to add even more tertiary services from third-party publishers, not unlike what happened with Game Pass Ultimate.

Originally, the tier offered Ubisoft+ Classics and EA Play alongside access to hundreds of games on day one. Following the revamp, it also added Fortnite Crew to the mix. “In-game benefits” for publishers like Riot Games’ titles still exist for all tiers, so perhaps further additions are incoming. Otherwise, bundling PC Game Pass with Premium (which only receives Xbox-published titles within a year of their launch) could result in the tier increasing in price.

Considering the backlash that the previous price increases caused, it will be interesting to see if Microsoft goes ahead with this. Then again, with arguably its most packed year of first-party releases yet, it may want to net as much profit from Game Pass subscribers as possible to compensate for the loss in full-game sales.

Next is Relooted on February 10th, followed by BlazBlue Entropy Effect X on February 12th, both for Ultimate and PC tiers. The latter marks the rogue-lite action side-scroller’s debut on consoles, bringing a new character, biome, and story mode.

But wait, there’s more. On the same day, both subscriber tiers can check out Roadside Research, where up to four players control aliens running a gas station, Starsand Island, an early access farming game with an anime aesthetic. February 13th sees Henry coming to visit, specifically Henry of Skalitz, as Kingdom Come: Deliverance becomes available for Ultimate, Premium and PC tiers.

If that’s not enough open-world goodness, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora also joins the service on February 17th. Obsidian’s action RPG Avowed will become available for Premium subscribers on the same day. Fortunately, there’s only one game leaving the service on February 15th – Madden NFL 24 – but considering Madden NFL 26’s arrival, it’s not the biggest loss.

RoadCraft and Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound are also coming to the same tiers tomorrow, making for an already packed week. However, January 27th sees the arrival of The Talos Principle 2 for PC and Xbox Series X/S, followed by Anno: Mutationem and Drop Duchy on January 28th. All three titles will be available for Ultimate, PC and Premium subscribers.

On January 29th, you can look forward to another heavy hitter – MySims: Cozy Bundle. Oh, and a little something called Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, one of the best third-person shooters available. Truly the Barbenheimer of our times.

February 2nd sees the addition of Indika for Ultimate and PC Game Pass, followed by Final Fantasy 2 on February 3rd. The latter follows the arrival of the first game in Squaresoft’s legendary series, so at this rate, we can probably experience Final Fantasy 16 by next year.

Unfortunately, as with every new Game Pass wave, some titles are being removed from the service’s library. From January 31st, you’ll no longer have access to the following:

• Shady Part of Me (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Cataclismo (PC)
• Starbound (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Lonely Mountains Snow Riders (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Paw Patrol World (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Citizen Sleeper 2 Starward Vector (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Orcs Must Die! Deathtrap (Cloud, PC, and Console)

The real meat is in the rest of the month, however. Star Wars Outlaws, which has undergone numerous revamps and improvements since launch, will be added to the service for Ultimate and PC subscribers on January 13th. If you need to catch up on Resident Evil before Requiem’s launch next month, then why not play Resident Evil Village? It’s coming to the Ultimate, Premium and PC tiers on January 20th.

Premium subscribers are also eating very well this month with Lost in Random: The Eternal Die, Rematch, and Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine – Master Crafted Edition arriving on January 7th. Final Fantasy – yes, the first one – makes its debut on January 8th for all three tiers, followed by My Little Pony: A Zephyr Heights Mystery on January 15th.

If you’re itching for a new Metroidvania, MIO: Memories in Orbit from the creator of Shady Part of Me will arrive on January 20th for Ultimate and PC subscribers.

Of course, to ring in the new, Microsoft is also doing away with the old. Starting January 15th, the following titles will exit Game Pass:

• Flintlock The Siege of Dawn (Cloud, Handheld, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
• Neon White (Cloud, Console, Handheld, and PC)
• Road 96 (Cloud, Console, Handheld, and PC)
• The Ascent (Cloud, Console, Handheld, and PC)
• The Grinch Christmas Adventures (Cloud, Console, Handheld, and PC)