Xbox Game Pass is loading up for the second half of July with some heavy hitting releases, kicked off by Halo: Campaign Evolved arriving as a day one launch on July 28 across Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass.
The new Halo title joins a roster of first-party Microsoft games that hit the subscription service immediately upon release, a strategy that has made the platform a draw for console and PC gamers. On the same service tier, players will find Shift at Midnight starting July 22, a cooperative detective horror game built around online play. Hell is Us arrives a day later on July 23.
The real wildcard drops early August. Game Freak, the studio behind the Pokemon franchise, is launching Beast of Reincarnation on August 4 as a day one Game Pass exclusive. The title marks a fresh original IP from the veteran developer and will be available on Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass, and cloud streaming.
Dark fantasy action RPG fans get Mistfall Hunter on July 30, which brings extraction gameplay into a grim fantasy setting. Corsair Cove lands on PC only on July 31, while classic shooters Heretic and Hexen return to the service on August 4, now joining Game Pass Premium alongside Ultimate and PC tiers.
The expansion comes as Microsoft culls some older titles from the library. Eight games are exiting Game Pass on July 31, including standouts like Celeste, Crusader Kings 3, Mount and Blade 2: Bannerlord, Rain World, and Sniper Elite Resistance. The company is offering discounts on departing titles for players who want to keep them after they leave the subscription service.
Author Emily Chen: "Game Freak's first original title outside Pokemon landing day one on Game Pass is a bold move that signals Microsoft is serious about expanding beyond franchises. But losing Crusader Kings 3 and Mount and Blade 2 in the same month stings."
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