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After the latest price increase for Game Pass Ultimate, the initial uproar has subsided. While it might not be considered the top offer in gaming now, the service has welcomed a number of high-profile launch day games lately, such as Ninja Gaiden 4 and The Outer Worlds 2. Those titles only enhance a vast collection of hundreds games perfect for weekend gaming binges.

Our current recommendations feature a therapeutic action game, an prize-winning independent masterpiece, and a must-play HD-2D RPG.

Resistance: Sniper Elite

From time to time, we all require a bit of catharsis. For 20 years, the Sniper Elite franchise has provided exactly that. Rebellion Developments' long-running shooter series presents players intensely graphic mayhem against enemy forces. This year, Rebellion released Sniper Elite: Resistance, a timely addition to the series. While it doesn't reinvent the gameplay, Resistance remains a polished serving of immersive sim World War II sandboxes packed with enemy targets. The long-range combat is as brutal and gratifying as ever, featuring the series' signature killcam displaying each shot's impact in graphic, testicle-crunching detail. It's a violent excitement for every pacifist looking to let off steam in the security of a digital space.

1000xResist

1000xResist tells an award-winning story touching on life after a pandemic existence, family pain, and much more. It approaches these subjects through a science fiction lens; you assume the role of Watcher, a member of multiple clones of Iris, the sole survivor of a global outbreak that wiped out human life. Watcher and her fellow clones explore Iris's memories from the time Earth was beset by that horrific disease, as well as memories of her education and family life, both of which were easy for a teenager. Watcher learns Iris isn't all that she seems, and the story develops from that point. Should all that intrigue isn't enough to hook you, the game does start with a killing. Is there a more gripping opening than that?

Octopath Traveler 2

Admittedly, completing a gazillion-hour RPG in only nine days is a challenging task, but if there's any game deserving trying the grind for, it's Octopath Traveler 2. Square Enix's HD-2D masterpiece is leaving Game Pass at the end of November (along with the original game, also available). However, due to a break in the midst, at least for players in the States, it's theoretically doable. Octopath Traveler 2 follows eight characters, each representing a different genre. You'll find a investigative story about a cleric investigating the death of his cathedral's archbishop. A trader aiming to solve poverty through the force of commerce headlines a frontier-inspired adventure. There's even a enigma about an herbalist with amnesia (since all great RPGs need a character with an mysterious background, of course). Some of these plots connect in surprising, intriguing ways, as you play through a gorgeous 19th-century themed setting. And the battle system is excellent — stat-focused gameplay boiled to its essence.