
Xbox Game Pass is home to numerous games spread across a wide range of genres. It lets players enjoy games on a PC or console (Xbox Series X/S or Xbox One) in exchange for a fixed monthly fee. One popular genre among players is action as these let them be part of a thrilling action. There are intense action scenes that take place in all sorts of locations, even mythical lands, featuring a wide variety of weapons and combat styles.
If you are looking for some of the best action games that you can play with Xbox Game Pass, we are here to help.
Best Action Games on Xbox Game Pass
A Plague Tale: Requiem
A Plague Tale: Requiem (2022) is a sequel to A Plague Tale: Innocence released in 2019. It continues to the story of siblings Amicia and Hugo. They have to find a cure for Hugo’s blood diseases while also fighting soldiers and rat hordes causing the black plague. You can choose to be stealthy or fight your way out of the trouble. It is one of those games whose story stays with you long after you have played with them.
ARK: Survival Ascended
ARK: Survival Ascended (2023) is an action-adventure survival video game and remastered version of ARK: Survival Evolved released in 2017. The game starts with your character waking up on a mysterious island featuring numerous primitive creatures including dinosaurs. There are over 100 dinosaur species that you can tame and breed. There are crafting and building opportunities and you can also form your tribe.
Assassin’s Creed Origins
Assassin’s Creed Origins (2017) is the first game in the franchise that focuses on open-world aspects. The game is set in Egypt during the Ptolemaic period (49 to 38 BC). The story goes into the origins of Assassin’s Brotherhood when they were known as the Hidden Ones. It has an Egyptian Medjay known as Bayek of Siwa and his wife Aya has main characters who are looking for the murderers of their son.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (2018) is the next title in the series that builds upon the open-world nature and role-playing elements. This time, the story takes place in Ancient Greece during the time of the Peloponnesian War (431 to 422 BC) between Athens and Sparta. It is the first game in the series that lets players choose between a male and female protagonist: Alexios and Kassandra.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (2022) is the next iteration and the biggest open-world game in the series. It has a vast map and tons of activities to do apart from the main quest. This is a game that promises over 100 hours of content if you plan to do everything. The main story takes about 60 hours to do. Players get to play as Eivor, a Viking raider who is on a quest to establish a new Viking clan in England.
Atlas Fallen
Atlas Fallen is an action role-playing video game released in 2023. It takes place in a fantasy world where mankind is under the oppression of a corrupt god. Your goal is to fight monsters and take down gods to help liberate humanity. The main character has sand-powered abilities and shape-shifting weapons that result in unique action and combat experience. It can be played solo or with one friend through the co-op mode.
Batman: Arkham Knight
Batman: Arkham Knight (2015) is the fourth and final main game in the popular Batman Arkham video game series. Scarecrow, a supervillain, has launched an attack on Gotham City. He is also gathering many other supervillains like The Penguin and Harley Quinn to kill Batman. It is the first game in the series in which you can drive Rocksteady’s Batmobile.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2023) is the 20th entry in the insanely famous Call of Duty series. It is also the third release in the rebooted Modern Warfare sub-series of the game. This first-person shooter game stars Captain Price and Task Force 141. They both join forces to take on ultranationalist war criminal Vladimir Makarov. When you are done with the single-player campaign, you can try out many of its multiplayer modes and maps.
Control Ultimate Edition
Control (2019) is an action-adventure game part of the Remedy Connected Universe that also features Alan Wake and Alan Wake 2. It introduces a new character Jesse Haden who joins the Federal Bureau of Control (FBC) as its new Director. However, on her first day, she discovers a mysterious power has corrupted a lot of people in the Bureau’s building.
Your objective is to solve the mystery and get rid of the corrupt power. Your character has a shape-shifting gun along with telekinetic and levitation powers. Control Ultimate Edition comes with two Expansions (DLCs) called The Foundation and AWE.
Dead Island 2
Dead Island 2 (2024) is a direct successor to Dead Island released in 2011. The game’s story takes place in a zombie-infected Los Angeles put under quarantine. It offers a first-person perspective which adds to the experience as you are fighting or running away from zombies. The combat system offers various ways to deal with zombies like slicing, smashing, burning, or ripping. There is a co-op mode where you can take on zombies with up to three of your friends.
Dead Space
Dead Space (2023) is a sci-fi survival horror game that is a remake of the 2008 game of the same name. The game is set on a mining spaceship taken over by deadly creatures called Necromorphs. You play Isaac Clarke, a space engineer, who visits the spaceship for repair purposes. This is when he discovers things have gone wrong and will have to fight Necromorphs.
Deathloop
Deathloop (2021) is a first-person shooter adventure where two rival assassins find themselves stuck in a time loop. You play as the assassin named Colt Vahn who is on a mission to kill eight targets known as Visionaries before midnight. The catch is if you cannot kill all targets or get caught, the time loop resets and you have to restart. You will find new weapons, new details, and ways to kill in each of your attempts.
Diablo 4
Diablo 4 (2023) is a massively popular action RPG from Blizzard. It story takes place 50 years after the events of Diablo 3 in the world of Sanctuary. The Cultists have managed to summon the game’s main antagonist Lilith, daughter of Mephisto. You play as a character called the Wanderer whose goal is to take down Lilith. While the game is designed to offer its best as a multiplayer and does not have a dedicated solo mode, it can be played as a single-player to some extent.
Doom
Doom (2016) was the first major game to be released in the series since Doom 3 in 2004. It serves as the reboot for the franchise. It has everything you would expect from a Doom game. These include demons, destructive guns, upgrades, and intense first-person shooting. The game has a single-player and multiple multiplayer modes to have fun with friends.
Fallout
Fallout is a popular franchise of action role-playing games that take place in a post-apocalyptic world. It is a world where a section of people live in underworld bunkers called Vaults. These people are referred to as Vault Dwellers. Other people live on the surface and have formed their factions to survive.
Each game in the series features a different Vault Dweller who has to complete an objective by going out into the surface world. Multiple Fallout games like Fallout 4, Fallout 76, and Fallout: New Vegas are available through Xbox Game Pass.
Far Cry 5
Far Cry 5 (2018) is one of the most popular games in the Far Cry franchise. The game is set in Hope County, a fictional region in Montana, United States. It is under the influence of a doomsday cult called Project at Eden’s Gate. You play as a junior deputy sheriff who visits the county to understand the cult leader Joseph Seed. As things turn out, your character gets trapped in the county and now has to liberate everyone suffering from the cult.
Gears 5
Gears 5 (2019) is the fifth main release in the Gear of War series. It continues to story of Kait Diaz who first appeared as a supporting character in Gears of War 4. Its main campaign revolves around Diaz’s journey to discover the origins of the Locust Horde, an antagonist faction of the game. The game is also known for its various multiplayer modes.
Halo: The Master Chief Collection
Halo: The Master Chief Collection is a collection of various Halo video games. These include Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, Halo 2: Anniversary, Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, Halo: Reach, and Halo 4. It boasts 67 campaign missions and over 120 multiplayer maps. Each game in the collection has been upgraded visually for a better experience.
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (2017) is an action-adventure game set in the Viking age. It is inspired by Norse mythology and tells the story of a Celtic warrior Senua. She wants to rescue the soul of her dead lover from Hela, the goddess of death. She will have to complete a challenging journey filled with monsters, puzzles, and challenges to reach Helheim. Senua suffers from psychosis which has been shown in an exceptionally immersive way during the gameplay.
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2
Senua’s Sage: Hellblade 2 (2024) is a sequel to the game mentioned above. The storyline continues to be inspired by Norse mythology but takes place in the 9th century Iceland. Senua gets willingly captured by Northmen slavers to save her other enslaved people. She ends up defeating the slave master and begins a journey to reach their settlement. The game improved in every aspect which made the first part a huge success among fans.
Lies of P
Lies of P (2023) is a soulslike video game inspired by the character Pinocchio. You play as a titular puppet who awakens in the fictional city of Krat. As you will travel through the city, you will face various villain puppets and factions among others. There will be instances where you will have to make key choices that will affect your future journey. You will also get opportunities where you can either choose to speak the truth or simply lie to move ahead.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon
Yakuza: Like a Dragon (2020) is the eighth main entry in the popular Yakuza video game franchise. It is the first game in the series to offer a turn-based combat system. It also introduces a new protagonist named Ichiban Kasuga who returns to society after completing his 18-year prison sentence.
He discovers that his clan does not exist anymore and he has been betrayed by his boss. This kicks off a journey as Kasuga tries to find out the reason for the betrayal while also helping his clan members.