Stardew Valley, Evil Genius 2, and more confirmed for Game Pass
Plus, Aragami 2! Pupperazzi! Other things!
As part of its decidedly leisurely ID@Xbox indie showcase this evening, Microsoft confirmed another batch of titles heading to Game Pass between now and some currently unspecified future point, including Stardew Valley and nefarious management sequel Evil Genius 2.
Stardew Valley developer Eric "ConcernedApe" Barone popped up midway through tonight's showcase for a bit of a natter, confirming toward the end of the segment that his much-loved village life sim would be heading to Game Pass for PC and Xbox some time this autumn.
Also still awaiting a Game Pass arrival date is the adorable Pupperazzi, a first-person photography game that - as you may have already surmised from its title - tasks players with taking cute snaps of (and petting!) canines as they go about their doggy lives in a colourful holiday paradise. As with most of the below, details on specific Game Pass platforms weren't shared during the show, but I'll update the story if any clarification is forthcoming.
Next up is Evil Genius 2, developer Rebellion's management sim sequel, which has just been announced for Xbox and PlayStation following its PC debut earlier this year. This one follows a similar formula to its cult-classic 2004 predecessor, blending base building and real-time defense as players oversee the running of their own evil lair to achieve global domination. Expect Evil Genius 2 on Game Pass in "Q4" this year.
For those that prefer firm dates to put in their diaries over the vagueries of release windows, we can start with Library of Ruina, a "library battle simulator" that sees players fighting library "guests" with a combination of dice and cards in order to gather books containing the stories of their lives. This one joins Game Pass today, 10th August.
Rounding off the newly announced Game Pass offerings is third-person stealth sequel Aragami 2, which comes to the subscription service as a day one addition on 17th September.
As a final note, Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous - a new cRPG from Owlcat Games, the studio behind Pathfinder: Kingmaker - was confirmed to be heading to Game Pass on 1st March next year during tonight's livestream. However, Microsoft has since retracted the announcement, and says Wrath of the Righteous isn't coming to Game Pass "at this time".