This week love is in the air, but so are monstrous demons, brain-dead zombies, sword-swinging heroes, and plenty of gunfire. If you’re a Game Pass subscriber, you’ll be able to download 2020’s remake of Resident Evil 3 on February 13, and Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night on February 14.
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Both games ought to make for a pleasant evening at home this Valentine’s Day, hopefully with a partner to enjoy the carnage. And if you’re alone for the holiday, well, at least Nemesis in Resident Evil 3 really wants your attention. Gotta take it where you can get it, I suppose.
Let’s take a look at what’s landing on Game Pass this week and further into February.
Resident Evil 3 - February 13
Following the wildly successful remake of Resident Evil 2 in 2019, Resident Evil 3 got its own revision. A more action-focused title than RE2, Resident Evil 3 follows one of Resident Evil 1’s protagonists, Jill Valentine (the master of unlocking herself), as she attempts to escape the zombie-infested Raccoon City.
If the emphasis on action has you doubting whether or not Resident Evil 3 is a good time, fear not. In Kotaku’s review of the remake, we said:
This focus on action and danger, as compared to anxiety and dark exploration, means that Resident Evil 3 is more focused on set pieces than other games in the series. There are frantic ascents through burning construction sites and lengthy defense sequences against waves of zombies. This might feel antithetical to Resident Evil—after all, excess action in later installments ultimately alienated fans—but it works well here. Resident Evil 3 moves at a consistently exciting pace. As much as I appreciate peeking around corners in a cramped mansion, the action helps the game forge a unique identity and feel. Resident Evil was a haunted house attraction with rooms to explore and monsters in the closet. Resident Evil 2 functioned like a roller coaster with occasional drops into danger before rising into periods of stability. Resident Evil 3 is a falling elevator. Like it or hate it, the ride doesn’t slow down, and the pit in your stomach doesn’t let up until the end.
Resident Evil 2 is also on Game Pass
If you haven’t played 2019’s remake of one of the best survival horror games ever made, good news: Resident Evil 2 is readily available on Game Pass for Xbox and PC.
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night - February 14
Hitting Game Pass on Valentines Day, Castlevania-like action RPG Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night features classic side-scrolling action. Koji Igarashi, the game’s producer, worked on multiple Castlevania games including Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Aria of Sorrow, Rondo of Blood and many more.
Other games coming to Game Pass in February
February 15 sees A Little to the Left and PlateUp! also arrive on Game Pass. The former features puzzle-solving, often under the threat of a meddlesome feline, while the latter will challenge your restaurant maintenance skills. Return to Grace, a first-person, sci-fi narrative game featuring branching storylines, also arrives on Xbox’s subscription service on February 20.
Whether you’re looking for some gory action in Resident Evil 3 and Bloodstained, or are interested in something more chill and laid back, Game Pass has a versatile and compelling offering this month.