You're probably sleeping on this 92 Metacritic masterpiece from 2025 (And It's Not Expedition 33)

Day one Xbox Game Pass game Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 swept The Game Awards, and while it's gotten player numbers up — deservedly so — subscribers should be sure they're not sleeping on another of the incredible day one games that hit the platform this year. The Xbox Game Pass price hike may have left many subscribers feeling sour about the service, but there's no denying that it still added some incredible games in 2025.

In fact, 15 Xbox Game Pass games were nominated at The Game Awards 2025, with day one game Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 broke records with the number of awards it managed to win, including the coveted Game of the Year. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is certainly one of the best video games released in 2025 and, depending on who you ask, one of the best video games of all time, but the other great day a Game Pass game deserves credit as well. In addition Expedition 33I'd argue that the best Game Pass game released in 2025 was the first-person roguelike puzzle game Blue Princebut the fact that it didn't win anything at The Game Awards might make it sleepy in comparison Expedition 33.

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One of the best Xbox Game Pass games of 2025 will never get a direct sequel

One of the highest-rated new Xbox Game Pass games released in 2025 will never get a direct sequel, according to its creator.

Blue Prince is one of the best games on Game Pass right now

Blue Prince was represented at The Game Awards through two different nominations: Best Independent Game and Best Debut Indie. Unfortunately for Blue Princeboth of these awards went to Expedition 33. However, that shouldn't count towards how good it is Blue Prince is. It was good enough to be nominated in multiple categories at The Game Awards, after all, and beyond that, actually bound with Expedition 33 on Metacritic. Really, both Blue Prince and Expedition 33 has a total score of 92 on the unified review platform. The fact that they are two of the highest rated games of the year also speaks volumes for the quality of games added to Game Pass 2025.

For those who don't know Blue Princethe gist of it is that players start in the lobby of a mansion and have three different doors to go through. When they go to open a door, they are given three options for what the room on the other side will be like. The ultimate goal is to reach the elusive Room 46, but dead ends and limited steps make that easier said than done. Fortunately, there are permanent upgrades and other useful tools to keep you going Blue Prince the manor a little easier, although players should remember that the layout of the manor resets every day.

Average batting Blue Prince takes around 10-15 hours, but those who really want to see everything it has to offer can expect to spend over 100 hours on the game. The game is full of mind-blowing mysteries and challenging new puzzles to discover, and figuring it all out is an incredibly rewarding experience. It's even more fun if you play with a friend, taking turns running and having someone in the notebook when it's not their turn to actively play.

Blue Prince won't be on Game Pass forever

Blue Prince is currently available to Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers, but it won't be on the platform forever. Generally speaking, day one Game Pass games are available for a year at a time, and then they kick off the service. There are exceptions to the rule, of course, so it's entirely possible Blue Prince will remain on Game Pass longer than expected. Blue Prince launched in April 2025, so there's a good chance it will be removed in April 2026 or May 2026. I highly recommend all Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers try it while they still can.