Recently, Pure Xbox was invited to a secret ID@Xbox event to check out a bunch of new gameplay and other details on some of the biggest indie titles coming to Xbox Game Pass in 2023. Not all of that gameplay is publicly available just yet, but we did get some brand-new release dates and release windows, so we thought we'd throw together a roundup of every game we saw and what the general release schedule is looking like.
Everspace 2 is one of the games we now have a date for, with a Summer 2023 release window for Xbox Series X|S. It's already available on PC Game Pass, but it's coming out of early access on the platform as of April 6th, 2023.
The Last Case of Benedict Fox made a lengthy appearance at the secret Xbox event last week, but we didn't get a new release date at the time. However, a "Developer Gameplay" video that was posted to YouTube recently appeared to indicate that the release date is now April 27th, 2023 (update: this has now been confirmed).
Finally, Sword and Fairy 7 was announced over the weekend at the Taipei Game Show as coming to Xbox Game Pass this summer on July 6th, 2023.
The other two games that Pure Xbox was able to get an extended glimpse of were Lightyear Frontier and Planet of Lana, but both are still only scheduled for an Xbox Game Pass release in "Spring 2023" as of right now.
For a complete overview, here are some trailers and the latest release dates for all of these titles:
Everspace 2 (PC - April 6, 2023 / Series X|S - Summer 2023)
"Everspace 2 is a fast-paced single-player spaceship shooter with deep exploration in space and on planets, tons of loot, RPG elements, mining, and crafting. Experience a thoughtful story, set in a vivid, handcrafted open world full of secrets, puzzles, and perils."
The Last Case of Benedict Fox (Console, PC - April 27, 2023)
"Take on the last case of Benedict Fox, and dive into a twisted world of secret organizations, forbidden rituals, and cold-blooded murders. Explore the memories of deceased victims as you search for clues, and fight demons in this fantastical Lovecraftian Metroidvania."
Sword And Fairy 7 (Console, PC - July 6, 2023)
"Enter a realm that blends ancient mythology with traditional oriental aesthetics in Sword and Fairy: Together Forever. Weaving its tale between the three clans of Human, Deity and Demon, Sword and Fairy: Together Forever puts you in command of a memorable party of characters, each with unique personalities, motives, skills, strengths and weaknesses."
Lightyear Frontier (Console, PC - Spring 2023)
"Lightyear Frontier is an upcoming open-world farming exploration game featuring crafting, resource management and base building, wrapped in a mystery-driven narrative."
Planet of Lana (Console, PC - Spring 2023)
"Planet of Lana is a stunning cinematic puzzle adventure centered on the relationship between Lana and her mysterious animal companion Mui."
Which of these upcoming Xbox Game Pass indies are you looking forward to most? Let us know down below!
Comments 9
Omg I can't wait to play Last Case of Benedict Fox that game looks so good. Very happy with the release date. XBOX definitely on the ball this year.
Really looking forward to Benedict Fox and Planet of Lana, two of my highlights from that conference (also Ereban: Shadow Legacy)
Sword and Fairy 7 'looks' pretty good but i'm not convinced the gameplay loop or story are going to be any good. We'll have to wait and see.
Planet of lana looks good, I guess I'll play that.
The Last Case of Benedict Fox coming to Game Pass almost on my birthday is a treat!
@themightyant I finished Sword and Fairy 7 last week. Got it in a sale somewhere in january. As you say it looks absolutely amazing. If Chinese Mythology interests you, I would suggest playing the game. If it doesnt, the story might not interest you enough. The action combat is pretty fun. There are max 4 party where you can freely switch between which all have a different fighting style. Not really spectacular, but not bad either.
The game length isn't super long for a RPG either. I think i finished it in like 30ish hours doing a lot of side quests as well.
It has some localisation issues. As a non native English speaker they are not always that obvious, but one example is: "that dressing she is wearing" where a dress is meant of course.
Overall i liked the game despite some of it flaws. But the game is not for everyone. If Chinese mythology interests you and you like action RPG you should give it a chance, otherwise it probably is not for you.
Last Case of Benedict Fox looks solid, but Planet of Lana looks like it could be “that retro game” this year, if you know what I mean. Looks like it could be a Shovel Knight, Celeste, etc in terms of quality. I’m looking forward to it. 2023 is already looking better than 2022 for Gamepass.
@Lavalera Thanks for the heads up and added details I wasn't aware it was already out, I thought that July date was a release not Game Pass.
I am interested in Chinese mythology, especially in gaming where it isn't as focussed on as others. But I can't really be dealing with bad gameplay in long games hence I was holding out for reviews on that, thanks for the thumbs up that you liked it.
I cant moan at any of these! I want to play them all. My problem will be finding the time for everything this year.
I am psyched over Everspace 2. Wasn’t sure it was going to make it on consoles. I’m so glad it is. The first one was incredible. I actually bought the new new Turtle Beach Velocity One flight stick for the Xbox, quite frankly, because I hate playing flight combat games without a stick. I highly recommend it. Definitely the best stick for the system. only thing I don’t like about it is that it doesn’t have rumble built in. Which I truly don’t understand why these developers don’t add it.
If people don’t like it, they can turn it off. But if they do, they’re kind of screwed if it’s not there. I like it. It adds to the immersion.
In any case, it’s really the only stick that works 100% with pretty much every game. I haven’t found one yet that it doesn’t.
I’ll take all of the flight combat games I can get. Since we barely get any during any generation. So I hope that Everspace 2 is supported with single player, DLC to keep it going for at least the rest of the generation.
I love game pass. You just can’t beat the deal. For $15 a month, you get a lot of games/entertainment. Not to mention, all of the stuff that EA puts up and they say that the Ubisoft store is coming soon. So, let’s cross our fingers. The more the merrier. I can’t even remember the last time I bought a game. Given time, a lot of third-party stuff comes through the system. If not, that’s what game fly is for.
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