Summary
Xbox Game Pass Ultimatehas addedTales of Kenzera: Zauto its ever-expanding content catalog. This is the 13th new title to reach Microsoft’s subscription service in May 2025, as well as the 57thXbox Game Pass Ultimaterelease since the start of the year.
Tales of Kenzera: Zauis the debut video game from Surgent Studios, a British media company founded by actor Abubakar Salim, thevoice of Bayek fromAssassin’s Creed Origins. The metroidvania puts players in the shoes of Zau, a young shaman on a journey to reclaim his late father’s spirit. Salim has cited the grief of losing his own father as a central inspiration for the game’s narrative. A year following its April 2024 release,Tales of Kenzera: Zauholds a 76 average score on OpenCritic, as well as “Very Positive” player reviews on Steam and a 4.5-star user rating on the Xbox Store.
Surgent Studios' metroidvania has now made its way to Xbox Game Pass, reaching its content catalog on May 22. Although not a day-one release,Tales of Kenzera: Zauis skipping Xbox Game Pass Standard on account of being an EA-published title. As such, it’s only available via the EA Play add-on, an exclusive perk of the PC and Ultimate tiers of Microsoft’s service.Tales of Kenzera: Zautakes approximately eight hours to beatand is a largely story-driven experience, making it a compelling option for Game Pass members who prefer using their subscription to try as many titles as possible.
Available via PC GP and XGP Ultimate since Aug 2024.
Available via PC GP and XGP Ultimate since Nov 2024.
Console
Jun 26
Day-one (console) release. Available on PC Game Pass since Oct 2021.
Aug 26
Day-one release.
WhileTales of Kenzera: Zauis skipping Xbox Game Pass Standard, the more affordable tier of the service added two other titles on May 22. These include Inverge Studios’colorful open-world action adventureCreatures of Ava—previously exclusive to XGP Ultimate since its August 2024 release—andSTALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl, which joins the Standard library six months after its initial debut.
Moving forward, four more titles are set to reach Xbox Game Pass Ultimate before the end of the month, beginning withTom Clancy’s The Division 2on May 27. Two day-one releases in the form ofTo A TandSpray Paint Simulatorare then scheduled to debut on May 28 and 29, respectively.Spray Paint Simulatorwill arrive alongsideMetaphor: ReFantazio, the latest project from the JRPG powerhouse Atlus.
Xbox Game Pass is then set to lose a handful of titles on May 31. However, this month will still turn out to be an overall net positive for its content catalog, with 17 new additions as opposed to 10 removals. The former figure will also mark a new monthly release record for Xbox Game Pass in 2025.
