Scrubchub

I bought one earlier this year as a secondary machine in the spare room for when I don't want to watch the TV - or when my partner is watching some god awful true crime 'documentary'. Only cost me £110 as it didn't have a controller but I've got plenty of those already so snapped it up.

It's a great machine. Runs everything well enough to be as enjoyable as they need to be. There is absolutely a noticeable dip in performance compared to the X (sometimes I move from one machine onto the other so can really see the difference). The most noticeable for me is just the resolution. But do I enjoy the games less? I don't think I really do to be honest. It plays everything just fine.

Good machine, and I'd be perfectly happy if it was my only Xbox.

PS - I quickly bought an external hard drive for it as that 512gb is simply inadequate in this day and age. But you could cope if you needed to.

Edit - even at £300 I think it's a good buy. You're getting all the current gen games. However, a second hand top of the range console would be my preference at that price.

Silksong (which is hard) and Stalker 2 (which is hard). A bit of Forza Motorsport with the wheel to just mellow things out a bit.

Having these on Gamepass is dangerous for me - I've been FM 'sober' since 2018 and it is difficult each year not to cave in and buy it. But when it's fluttering its eyelids at me from Gamepass...... can I resist? Hopefully, as if they sink their teeth in then they suck up time like nothing else I've ever experienced in my life.

Good game, just for me the gameplay loop wore a little thin - it's really just moving through some very good looking combat arenas and having conversations with the various members of your party. I started to find it boring after about 40 hours but intend to go back to it at some point.

Personally, I didn't see any particularly 'woke' elements to it. Always baffled me that so much of the criticism centred on that as it really isn't a significant part of the game unless you're hyper focused on it.

@brettvsgodzilla Avatar is a good game already but if you're interested then there is a 3rd person mode update coming in December - always felt like it should be 3rd person so may be worth holding off starting it!!

Feel like something new. Maybe time to try Stalker 2 (held off when it was released to wait until it's properly sorted). Or maybe I'll treat myself to AC Shadows in the sale.

Bounced off a few things recently so feeling like I need to get stuck into something new.

Played a couple of hours and so far it's excellent. Looks fantastic and the music is wonderfully atmospheric. Combat is, like the first game, simple but satisfying. This may sound strange for such a challenging game but there is something very comfortable and inviting about it, like the first one. Probably the art style and soundtrack and the mysterious vibe of the world, but I just find it quite relaxing to play.

Agree with the posters above though about the map; I really don't see what benefit it brings by not having the map from the start as it is a labyrinthine game by design. But after I found the map vendor, and worked out where to farm for currency, then it is much more enjoyable exploring.

Anyway, it's great. Very much in the, 'if you like the first one then you'll like this one' camp.

Well certainly no problems now - successfully downloaded on my Series X and my S in the other room (I want to make sure I can play this tonight without worrying about someone wanting the TV!). About to settle down to it for a couple of hours. Can't wait.

Looks a bit light at first glance but when one of the games is the new Hollow Knight then that alone should keep me busy for the month......

Frostpunk is an absolutely brilliant (as well as frustrating and really bloody depressing) game. Can't wait for the sequel.

@jumpin_jeeps exactly the same for me. Used to suffer from motion sickness dreadfully with games like Doom when I was a kid (the original!) but haven't for years. But with this one, it hit me like a ton of bricks! Made me feel sick as a dog so quickly gave it up.

I enjoyed the Veilguard for about 40 hours but to be honest it started to drag. The gameplay loop just isn't varied enough to sustain the epic runtime. But I am planning to go back to it after a break.

Definitely worth a try as it's good fun and (imo) looks great.

Apparently, there's a lot of woke stuff that players are force fed but there was nothing that I found to be worth getting irate about.

@Enigk same as me - PoP is one of the main franchises of my entire childhood (especially the 2D) so would love to like this but the roguelite aspect is off-putting.

Anyway, going to keep it simple. Bought Resi 4 Remake in the sale so just taking my time with that slice of gaming perfection, just like the remakes of 2 and 3 before it. Gaming doesn't get much better, in my humble opinion.

Just don't get there with these games. Used to have what was quite clearly a..... problematic relationship with this franchise. It was an undoubtedly unhealthy borderline obsession that definitely impacted on my wider life.

Alternatively, do go there. Because they're awesome.

Never more than about 15-20 games, and that includes the little ones like Roblox, Minecraft, Among Us and PvZ that my son likes. I don't like to completely fill the hard drive personally so I only ever have a 3 or 4 'big' games on at once. I tend to play one game at a time anyway to be honest so I cope comfortably with the relatively small hard drive.

I'll certainly get it at some point. Great series so far.

@Ricky-Spanish Bioshock Infinite is just amazing - the last couple of hours where all the narrative threads start coming together and the whole picture starts to form is just unreal. Amazing, amazing game.

Loving playing through the Gamepass CoDs at the moment, with WW2 currently being my favourite and BO6 being my least (not keen on the weird, trippy levels). At the moment on MW2 which I was surprised to see had a fairly lukewarm reception seeing as I'm finding it excellent. Though it does seem to be a recurring theme that every CoD has to have at least one or two teeth gnawingly frustrating, poorly thought out sections.

Just MW3 to go after that so just going to smash through them. Then I have the Quarry, Robocop and Resi 4 from the sale.

@Kaloudz I haven't played it since the GameCube to be honest (I remember it blowing my mind at the time) and recently played the 2nd run of Resi 2 Remake which I honestly believe is one of the greatest games ever made. So I reckon this one is about as safe a bet as it gets!

Need to wait for pay day but want a few things - the Quarry, Resi 4, Phantom Liberty just off the top of my head. There's also the Switch Online sale that has a few things.

That is actually a great addition and may tempt me to go back and try the harder difficulties. Whether or not I can take the ending again is another matter - the story's conclusion messed me up.

Really wanted to work through the CoD campaigns but to be honest I spent a few minutes looking at them, didn't understand what to download, saw the ludicrous, 350gb download size and didn't bother.

CoD WW2 was just nice and simple, so played that and thought it was fantastic. Will get around to it one day but that last time I had that much space on the hard drive was probably the day the console first got taken out of the box.

Love playing PvZ with my 9 year old son so will definitely be getting the remaster.

Fantastic. The first one is simply brilliant. Stressful and a bit depressing, but brilliant nonetheless. If you haven't played it yet then really do give it a go, but don't expect a relatively sanguine Cities Skylines type experience. It's less of a city builder, and more of a micro management puzzle game.

Anyway, the sequel will be a day one download for me.

@Coletrain yes I agree completely. If those same people dropping the comments about Gamepass were being really honest with themselves then they know they would be subscribers too if it was available on their system. Many of them, at least. I know there are some that do genuinely value physical media.

@awp69 😂 just yesterday there was someone getting out the "people who actually buy games" comment on another article.

Not sure what it is about Gamepass that seems to bring out people's innate passive aggressiveness that other subscription services seem to get away with.

@InterceptorAlpha they'll "finally have funds"? Because Microsoft owned Bethesda are so famously down on their luck and struggling for money?🙄

@Kaloudz I really enjoyed it personally but it's just so flipping big. Overwhelmingly loaded with content. Put in 50 hours and drifted away but have never deleted it (in fact it is still on my Series X and my Series S) so I certainly plan to go back to it!

Definitely a game where you want to ignore the relentless naysaying and try it yourself.

Never heard of Wheel World but I looks pretty cool. Trying to play some different types of games at the moment so will put that one on the list.

@mac_da_man I actually think CoD WW2 may actually be my favourite CoD campaign! Loved it.

May start RoboCop but fancied something different so going back to Frostpunk which I haven't played for years. Absolutely brilliant game, though a bit a downer (to say the least).

Never played an Age of Empires and I used to love RTS games when I was younger so have AoE4 downloaded and going to start that as well.

For me, it's the classic 8/10 game. Really enjoyable, great fun, but probably not going to stick in my mind like the games I'd give 9s or 10s to.

@Isca FFXVI has a pretty generous demo you can download! Definitely worth a go - I think I'm going to pick it up in the same based off of how much I enjoyed the demo.

@DaveTheRave agree with you about watching TV. I love the cinema still but when I'm at home, if I'm in front of a screen it'll be gaming. It's just better than watching TV.

Anyway, The Quarry for less than a tenner is a good buy (I started playing it on Gamepass without realising it was leaving the service in a couple of days!). And I recently did the 2nd run of RE2 Remake which is genuinely one of the greatest games ever made. So I'll probably get RE4 Remake as I haven't got around to it yet. I'll think about Baldurs Gate 3 as well but it's still almost £50 so not sure I need a 100 hour RPG at the moment.

@Coletrain completely agree. There's so much doom and gloom around the hobby at the moment and while there are obviously issues in the industry that shouldn't be ignored, we should also be thankful that there is an absolute truckload of great games to play. Backlogs have never been longer!

Mafia might be my favourite game that I played from last year. Been meaning to continue with the trilogy ever since.

@OldGamer999 I actually did enjoy Starfield but it's hard to argue with what you say there. It is, undoubtedly, archaic to play compared to some more modern RPGs and it does feel as though Bethesda REALLY need to get back to the drawing board and start from scratch for the next game.

Well I liked it. Put in about 80 hours which was enough for me. Had plenty of fun with it but it hasn't stuck in my mind like, say, Fallout 3 has over the years.

@Balaam_ good grief, you really take this internet world in which you exist far too seriously. You're making out as if a poll on a videogame news site is discriminatory. It's just a poll.

As others have said, Gamepass would be long gone if it wasn't making money. I don't know how much, but Microsoft is the most hard nosed of hard nosed companies. They make money, and lots of it. And if something doesn't make money, it's history.

Regarding the other conversations about the PS and Push Square, then I'd agree with the criticism of the users of Push Square. It's an absolute toilet, but any internet forum becomes the same when it gets bigger. This site goes under the radar as it is a nice size. Some of the users on Push are staggeringly, childishly biased. Personally, I love PlayStation. Had every single one except the 5 and that's due solely to Gamepass. If it was on the PS5 then that would be my console. A lot of the criticism comes from people that would LOVE to have the service on their console. I believe it's what the internet kidz label these days as 'cope' or something. Also worth pointing out the Push Square posts EVERY story that could have an anti MS stance and the comments are stacked. Yet this one is strangely absent from their site.

Anyway, I hope Gamepass continues as well as Xbox. If it doesn't, I'll continue to play on the other platforms. Life is too short to be so passionately partisan about everything. None of these huge companies are grateful for your loyalty, they're all bloody horrible. They just want your money. I've got not interest in being some billionaire's lap dog, when they don't even know I exist.

@Soup-Rules was going to buy it in the last sale but didn't get around to it so going to get it tonight before I forget again!

@Soup-Rules well put. I'll probably get criticised for this but a lot of the criticism of Microsoft comes across as virtue signalling. I have empathy for anyone who loses their job but we aren't talking about children in sweat shops here, they are skilled, educated professionals who work in a volatile industry. And everyone here orders from Amazon and the way that they treat their 'lower level' employees is despicable. Don't have much time for selective outrage.

Anyway, Robocop looks a great bargain.

The Ascent is great. Not sure I'll do another play through but definitely recommended.

@Kaloudz yeah, it's a great game but why is it so hard?! Seems such a strange decision to make a mainstream mascot platformer Dark Souls difficult. I'd like to think I'll return to it but for the moment it's defeated me.

@Coletrain I know what you mean. It's a good game in a lot ways but it is lacking something and I drifted away.

I love a proper circuit racer so if you have any recommendations to replace it with I'd love to know!

Mafia was my surprise title of last year - absolutely loved it when I gave it a go on Gamepass. Went straight to the other titles and it became a favourite series of mine. Really recommend it and you'll finish it easily in about 12 hours max.

Oooh now that's a nice surprise. Definitely sliding this to the front of my backlog of games.

Though I hope it's easy to download - I went to download the last one they released on GP (Modern Warfare of some kind) and it seemed to be 400+ GBs or a ton of different smaller downloads. Had no clue what to download so didn't bother.

Definitely. Great escapism in that game. Proper pirate fantasy.

@Isolte have you played South of Midnight on Gamepass? It reminded me a lot of Alice. Very similar gameplay loop and great visual design.

Got Against the Storm downloaded but going to finish of my 2nd run of Resi 2 Remake as I have a feeling it may come off Gamepass soon. A bit of Forza Motorsport to fill in the blanks.