by Once in a while, we're completely surprised by the quality of an Xbox Game Pass day one release, and back in July, the "Tony Hawk but you're a train" game Denshattack! was exactly that.
Denshattack! is a vibrant blend of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, SSX, and even a little bit of Jet Set Radio Future, all smushed together to create this sensational train-flipping title. The game launched to stellar review scores and is currently sitting in Metacritic's top 15 games of 2026 with a score of 88.
It was a day onner for Xbox Game Pass, but speaking to AUTOMATON in a new interview, Undercoders Game Director David Jaumandreu has stated that launching onto the service was "a very positive experience" and lowered development risks.
The game was released on Game Pass as well. How has that been for you and what was the process like?
Jaumandreu: It’s been good. From the very beginning, we presented the game to Microsoft, and they liked it. We continued discussions for a long time until we were invited to be part of Game Pass. Of course, for a small team like ours, that’s a very good opportunity because it puts the game in front of a lot of people. A lot of people get to play it, and if they like it, they can recommend it to others. So for us, it’s been a very positive experience. A lot of people have played the game thanks to Game Pass, so we’re glad we did it.
When asked if whether a Game Pass deal adds or removes pressure to break even, Jaumandreu mentioned that, despite the guarantees that come alongside signing a deal with Microsoft, it doesn't necessarily take away all the pressure to perform. In fact, working with Xbox can bring its own stresses.
Jaumandreu: Yeah, it gives you a little bit of air, so to speak, because there’s some amount that’s guaranteed even before you hit the market. It lowers the risk you’re taking compared with not having a deal, so of course that’s always a good thing. But I wouldn’t say it takes away the pressure. You still need to deliver a very good game, and I don’t think Microsoft would release something that doesn’t meet its standards, even if you’ve already signed a deal, so you still have that pressure. You also still need to sell a certain number of copies to recoup the development costs, etc. But it does take away some of the financial stress because when you launch, you know you’re getting at least a certain amount of money.
Xbox Game Pass is going through a bit of an experimental period as of late, reducing its monthly fee and limiting Cloud Gaming access, to name a couple of recent changes. But it still sounds like a decent path for indie developers to get their game into the hands of millions of players.
Jaumandreu concluded the interview on the sentiment that Undercoders want to remain an independent studio, and are hoping that more people will learn of Denshattack! during Tokyo Game Show later this month.