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Our monthly update on new games being added to PlayStation Plus, Xbox Game Pass and other subscription services.
Editors’ Pick(s)
The following hand-picked games are either part of a subscription services at the time this articles gets published or were made available recently.
Jusant
(Included in Xbox and PC Game Pass since 31.10.2023, Author: Patrick)
Jusant was released by Don’t Nod (Life is Strange, Vampyr) on October 31st, 2023 on Xbox Game Pass, PC Game Pass, for Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 and on Steam. Your goal is to reach the top of the huge mountain, which is located in the middle of an eternal desert. This premise is not completely new, in A Short Hike, which we covered in August 2023 on the Sub Watch, you were tasked with a similar mission, albeit from an isometric view opposed to the 3rd person camera in Jusant.
In the puzzle-climbing game we explore the desiccated remains of a once-thriving civilization. Equipped only with a climbing hook, we set out to tackle the steep gradients and narrow gorges of the mountain range. We are accompanied by a cute little water creature with which we can uncover plants to help us climb or display the next destination. We are also supported by small stone creatures scurrying around, whose paths we have to scout out beforehand; after all, our endurance and our rope are limited. Even if we fail time and time again, there is hardly any frustration thanks to the fairly distributed checkpoints. As the game progresses, you also have to survive the mercilessly burning sun, which causes plants to quickly wither, or the roaring winds that throw us all over the place. The mixture of climbing, swinging and jumping works well, but our protagonist’s movements are sometimes a bit too imprecise, which is particularly disastrous for us on narrow platforms or when jumping on rock walls. Fortunately, we can set rescue hooks that will save us from having to start the current stage from the beginning. However, our endurance only recovers when we have level ground under our feet. Especially towards the end of our approximately five-hour climb, things became really challenging, though the ending makes up for that.
On plateaus we spare our nerves and we find diaries and letters as well as paintings that allow us to peek into the dramatic fate of the population and shed some light on the supernatural events. Since there is often a lot to read, it would have been nice if there had been the opportunity to have the texts read aloud. Since all of this is optional, not every player will notice this anyway. We can replay each chapter individually to pick up any collectibles we may have missed.
The game is presented in a stylish low-poly look and is based on the Unreal Engine 5 with Lumen, which creates some pretty postcard motifs on the plateaus. However, it is just as impressive to traverse inside the mountain, since the game features detailed lighting and shadows. However, this comes at the expense of performance and we noticed some stutters when exploring the caves on the Xbox Series X. When climbing, where the correct timing is crucial, the game runs extremely smoothly. A photo mode to capture the beautiful landscape from different angles is currently not included. The exploration of the abandoned villages carved into the rock massif and the increasingly demanding climbing are atmospherically accompanied by the music of Guillaume Ferran.
Jusant offers challenging climbing, features a dense atmosphere and offers an interesting story, but it is more than the sum of its parts. However, you have to be prepared to find the path intended by the game again and again. A little more freedom of choice would have been beneficial. If you like games like Arise: A Simple Story, ICO, Shadow of the Colossus or Journey, you should give Jusant a chance.
Thirsty Suitors
(Included in Xbox and PC Game Pass since 2.11.2023, Author: Patrick)
Thirsty Suitors first appeared on our radar in June 2022 as part of the Tribeca Spotlight. A demo has also been released in the meantime and the game has been available on Xbox Game Pass, PC Game Pass, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and on Steam since November 2nd. In the game we take on the role of Jala Jayaratne, daughter of a migrant family from India. The setting should look familiar to those familiar with Sub Watches, after all, it is similar to the background of the story in Venba, which we reported on in July 2023. After being kicked out by Jennifer, the mayor’s daughter, Jala returns to Timber Hills to live with her parents – an Indian Tamil woman and a Sinhalese man from Sri Lanka. There she wants to reconcile not only with her family, but also with her six ex-lovers. The reason for this is the upcoming wedding of older sister Aruni, who also holds Jala’s inner monologue in a double role. In addition, the traditional grandmother Paati, 8,000 kilometers away, incites the eponymous Thirsty Suitors, i.e. longing admirers, to chase the unmarried Jala. The story is characterized by a culture clash – whether within the family or in dealing with the neighborhood – and is successfully interwoven with the gameplay.
We can move freely in the small American town and either pursue the next story mission or do favors for our (ex-)lovers that are supposed to increase their affection and lead to different endings. Between missions, Jala is on her skateboard, can do tricks and grinds, collect items, money and music cassettes for the jukebox in the diner and chat with other characters like Aunty Chandra, where we can customize our deck. In the skate park we can put our skills on the board to the test in optional challenges. Skating is easy and we quickly put combos on the asphalt, but you shouldn’t expect a sophisticated competitor to games like Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater or Jet Set Radio that focus on these mechanics. Fans of the genre are bothered by the relatively sluggish driving behavior and the limited selection of trick options. The heart of Thirsty Suitors are the duels against former lovers. In turn-based battles, the aim is to bring the opponent’s life points (LP) to zero. We can use standard attacks that drain LP from opponents and give us willpower (WK). With WK we can taunt the opponent and thus expose the weak point. With special attacks tailored to the respective status effect such as hot or angry, we can deal even more damage, heal ourselves or attack in a tag team with our family. Later in the game, we also collect items that we can use to directly reveal individual weak points in order to save valuable WK when figuring out the weaknesses. Quick-Time Events (QTEs) play an important role in Thirsty Suitors. Taunting, using special attacks, and defending against enemy attacks require quickly pressing the correct action button or moving the left analog stick in the specified direction. If you don’t like QTEs at all, you won’t have much fun with the game.
Once we have deducted enough LP from the ex-lover, we have to continue attacking him or her in verbal battles and can either flirt or insult him. The dialogues are written with a lot of charm and wit and Outerloop Games has managed to give each character their own character. In addition, all dialogues are set to a high quality in English, even in the side missions. In addition, the dialogues affect our character values through the three personas, sorry Thirstsona’s heartbreaker, star and bohemian. If we were particularly successful, we can award a bonus point after the fight. For example, we improve our attack, our defense, our skating skills and our ability to cook. Every fight against the exes feels like a real boss fight. We trigger the duels with the admirers by collecting gifts that are distributed around the city. These fights seem significantly less spectacular than the clashes that are part of the main story, but are still fun due to the balanced combat system. We didn’t feel any gameplay disadvantage by omitting these fights, even though we ended up with a significantly lower level than the bosses.
Another thing Thirsty Suitors and Venba have in common is that we prepare traditional South Asian dishes at home with our parents, such as the lentil and bean dish dal makhani, the dessert jalabi or paratha, a fluffy, buttery layered flatbread. We have to master more and more cooking steps in the form of QTEs, use the heat gained in more difficult QTEs or pay our mother a compliment, which allows us to spin the wheel of fortune, and thus achieve as much recognition as possible. At the beginning the cooking scenes are relatively relaxed, but as the game progresses the level of difficulty increases and towards the end the developers successfully play with the expectations of the players. The ending of Thirsty Suitors combines all of these gameplay mechanics and culminates the story in a furiously satisfying finale.
Thirsty Suitors is a good action-adventure game with a unique, colorful cel-shaded look, atmospheric music by Ramsey Kharroubi, a sophisticated turn-based combat system and a story that explores the tricky theme of developing your own personality in an environment characterized by different cultures tact, the necessary seriousness and also cheeky humor. But there are also a few points to criticize: skating sometimes feels more like a means to an end, the playing time of just under 7 hours is a bit short and the great presentation is marred by the emotionless faces. If you can overlook these shortcomings, an entertaining adventure awaits you in Thirsty Suitors.
Monthly update
It’s easy to lose track of new games being added to the countless subscription services. Catch the latest titles below. All information is subject to change. We try to update this post as soon as new titles get announced.
PlayStation Plus Essential
€8.99/£6.99/$9.99 per month. Included in PlayStation Plus Extra/Premium. Playable on PlayStation 5/PlayStation 4. Available from 7.11.-4.12.2023.
- Aliens Fireteam Elite (PS5, PS4)
- Dragon Ball: The Breakers (PS4)
- Mafia II: Definitive Edition (PS4)
PlayStation Plus Extra
€13.99/£10.99/$14.99 US-Dollar per month. Included in PlayStation Plus Premium. Playable on PlayStation 5/PlayStation 4. Available since 21.11.2023.
- Alternate Jake Hunter: Daedalus The Awakening of Golden Jazz (PS4)
- Dead Island: Riptide Definitive Edition (PS4)
- Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen (PS4)
- Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising (PS4, PS5)
- Mobile Suit Gundam: Extreme vs. Maxi Boost On (PS4)
- Nobunaga’s Ambition: Taishi (PS4)
- River City Melee Mach!! (PS4)
- Superliminal (PS4, PS5)
Leaving PlayStation Plus Extra on 21.11.2023:
- Ace of Seafood (PS4)
- ConnecTank (PS4)
- Dandara: Trials of Fear Edition (PS4)
- Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams – Director’s Cut (PS4)
- Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight (PS4)
- My Time at Portia (PS4)
- Wild Guns Reloaded (PS4)
PlayStation Plus Premium
€16.99/£13.49/$17.99 per month. Playable on PlayStation 5/PlayStation 4. Available since 21.11.2023.
- Grandia (PS5, PS4; originally released for PS1)
- Jet Moto (PS5, PS4; originally released for PS1)
- Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series (PS5, PS4)
- PaRappa the Rapper 2 (PS4; originally released for PS2)
- Up (PS5, PS4; originally released for PSP)
Xbox Game Pass Core
€6.99/£6.99/$9.99 per month. Playable on Xbox Series/One.
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Xbox Game Pass Ultimate
Xbox Game Pass for Console / PC: €9.99/£7.99/$9.99 per month each, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate (Console + PC + Games with Gold): €12.99/£10.99/$14.99 per month. Playable on Xbox Series/One.
- Thirsty Suitors (Cloud, Console, PC) – 2.11.2023
- Football Manager 2024 (PC) – 6.11.2023
- Football Manager 2024 Console (Cloud, Console, PC) – 6.11.2023
- Dungeons 4 (Cloud, Console, PC) – 9.11.2023
- Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name (Cloud, Console, PC) – 9.11.2023
- Wild Hearts (Cloud, Console, PC) EA Play – 9.11.2023
- Spirittea (Cloud, Console, PC) – 13.11.2023
- Coral Island (Cloud, Xbox Series X|S) – 14.11.2023
- Persona 5 Tactica (Cloud, Konsole, PC) – 17.11.2023
- Dune: Spice Wars (Cloud, Konsole) – 28.11.2023
- Rollerdrome (Cloud, PC, Xbox Series X|S) – 28.11.2023
- Remnant: From the Ashes (Cloud, PC, Console) – 29.11.2023
- Remnant II (Cloud, PC, Xbox Series X|S) – 29.11.2023
Leaving Xbox Game Pass Ultimate this month:
- Coffee Talk (Cloud, Console, PC) – 15.11.2023
- Exapunks (PC) – 15.11.2023
- Ghost Song (Cloud, Console, PC) – 15.11.2023
- Gungrave G.O.R.E (Cloud, Console, PC) – 15.11.2023
- Football Manager 2023 (PC) – 15.11.2023
- Football Manager 2023 Console (Cloud, Console, PC) – 15.11.2023
- Lapin (Cloud, Console, PC) – 15.11.2023
- Townscaper (Cloud, Console, PC) – 15.11.2023
- Anvil (Cloud, Console, PC) – 30.11.2023
- Battlefield 1943 (Console) EA Play – 30.11.2023
- Battlefield: Bad Company (Console) EA Play – 30.11.2023
- Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (Console, PC) EA Play – 30.11.2023
- Disc Room (Cloud, Console, PC) – 30.11.2023
- Eastward (Cloud, Console, PC) – 30.11.2023
- Grid (Console) EA Play – 30.11.2023
Nintendo Switch Online
Nintendo Switch Online: €3.99/£3.49/$3.99 per month or €19.99/17.99/$19.99 per year. Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack: €39.99/£34.99/$49.99 per year.
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EA Play
EA Play: €3.99/£3.99/$4.99 per month. Included in Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. EA Play Pro: €14.99/£14.99/$14.99. Available on PC, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series, Xbox One.
- EA Play
- Wild Hearts – 9.11.2023
Leaving EA Play this month:
- Battlefield 1943 – 30.11.2023
- Battlefield: Bad Company – 30.11.2023
- Battlefield: Bad Company 2 – 30.11.2023
- Grid – 30.11.2023
Ubisoft+
€14.99/£12.99/$14.99 per month, available on PC. Ubisoft+ Multi Access: €17.99/£14.99/$17.99, available on PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and Amazon Luna.
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Humble Choice
€9.99/£8.99 Pfund/$11.99 per month. Available on PC from 7.11.-4.12.2023.
- Friends vs Friends
- Hardspace: Shipbreaker
- Prodeus
- SCP: Secret Files
- Souldiers
- The Legend of Tianding
- Unpacking
- WWE 2K23
Prime Gaming
€8.99/£8.99/$14.99 per month. Available on PC.
- Rage 2: Deluxe Edition [Epic Games Store] – 2.11.2023
- Centipede: Recharged [Epic Games Store] – 2.11.2023
- Evan’s Remains [Amazon Games App] – 10.11.2023
- Behind the Frame: The Finest Scenery [Amazon Games App] – 16.11.2023
- Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic [Amazon Games App] – 16.11.2023
- The Dungeon of Naheulbeuk: The Amulet of Chaos [Amazon Games App] – 22.11.2023
- Black Widow: Recharged [Epic Games Store] – 23.11.2023
- Orten Was the Case [Amazon Games App] – 30.11.2023
- Caverns of Mars: Recharged [Epic Games Store] – 30.11.2023
We captured the screenshots of Jusant with Xbox Series X. The publisher provided the screenshots of Thirsty Suitors. Xbox and PlayStation provided us with access to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PlayStation Plus Premium.