August looks like it will be a somewhat quieter month for Xbox Game Pass after a July filled with heavy hitters like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III, Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess, The Case of the Golden Idol, Neon White, and Dungeons of Hinterberg. As such, this is a month where it’s worth looking toward what games are leaving the service rather than which ones are coming in. On August 15, a few great games will leave Xbox Game Pass after a year or more on Microsoft’s gaming subscription service. That should inform what you decide to play this weekend, as you’ll need to buy these three games outright if you want to play them after August 15.
Shadow Warrior 3: Definitive Edition
If you enjoy exhilarating first-person shooters, then you’ll want to check out Shadow Warrior 3. It’s the latest entry in a series that Flying Wild Hog and Devolver Digital created in the early 2010s, prior to the Doom series’ revitalization and the rise of indie boomer shooters. Still, it’s a throwback to those old-school shooters with a ridiculous story, over-the-top action and set pieces, and an irreverent tone. It’s very satisfying to flow between annihilating enemies with a variety of weapons and slashing through them with a powerful katana. This is a fairly short game, too, so it’s definitely possible to beat Shadow Warrior 3: Definitive Edition on PC, Xbox One, or Xbox Series X/S before it leaves Game Pass next Thursday. It’s also available on PlayStation 4 and PS5.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
After Dead by Daylight became popular, many iconic horror franchises have gotten asymmetrical multiplayer games of their own. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre from Sumo Digital and Gun Interactive is one of the better attempts. It’s a 3v4 multiplayer game where four victims slowly and stealthily try to escape while three members of the family fortify the exits and potential escape routes while also collecting blood from victims and blood bags to feed their grandpa. It’s one of the most stressful and tense multiplayer games I’ve ever played and very faithful to the horror classics it is based on. The PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S versions of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre leave Xbox Game Pass on August 15, but you can also play the game on PS4 and PS5.
Airborne Kingdom
Finally, we have Airborne Kingdom, which is the prime choice for fans of city-builder games. Airborne Kingdom’s unique twist on the formula is that players are building up a flying city that travels through the air while collecting resources and interacting with the kingdoms still operating on the surface of the planet. This game provides the rewarding sense of growth all city-builders offer, but stands out because of the novel way it presents it. Although Airborne Kingdom is available on console, I recommend trying it out on PC. It feels much better to play with a keyboard and mouse than a controller. Airborne Kingdom is available to play across PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S via Xbox Game Pass. It’s also on PS4, PS5, and Nintendo Switch.
