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Following Microsoft's recent announcement of Xbox Game Pass subscription changes, featuring a cost hike for the Ultimate Tier to $30 per month, numerous members are seeking new methods to maximize their membership. For those keeping their subscription or considering signing up, we present this week's recommendations.

This weekend's games include a beloved Japanese role-playing game, a charming independent adventure, and a superb puzzler scheduled to depart from the service shortly.

Persona 4 Golden

Among the top ways to maximize value from Game Pass is by diving into a extensive, engaging RPG — and Persona 4: The Golden Edition fits that bill exactly. Players step into the part of a teenager who has relocated to the quiet rural town of Inaba. By day, your objectives involve making friendships, working employment, and managing studies. By night, you work to solve a chilling serial murder case by exploring strange dungeons based on your friends' inner fears.

With a unforgettable group of heroes, strategic battle system, impeccable art design, and a storyline packed with surprises, Persona 4 Golden is regarded as a classic for many reasons. It also features a incredibly engrossing cycle that will keep you up late into the night, night after night.

Sopa - Tale of the Stolen Potato

While major releases like Ninja Gaiden 4 are a key selling point for the service, the subscription also highlights lesser-known games. A perfect instance of this is Sopa: Tale of the Stolen Potato. Drawing from Spirited Away, this enchanting indie game is a fantasy journey steeped in South American traditions. Players join Miho, who, after assisting his grandmother make soup, is transported to a colorful world populated by potato-stealing frogs and various eccentric creatures.

Sopa plays out similar to an learning-focused computer title from the 90s, as Miho solves puzzles and aids the realm's residents by collecting an assortment of objects. Even if it's a bit rough around the edges, Sopa is a sweet little game that openly showcases its love for South America.

Cocoon: A Puzzle Adventure

Cocoon is scheduled to exit the service on Oct. 15, giving you only a few days to play it via your membership — and you absolutely must. Developer the creators designed one of the finest puzzlers of recent years in the 2023 release Cocoon. Its central puzzle mechanic revolves around transitioning among worlds inside additional dimensions, and often you'll carry those worlds, in the shape of colorful orbs, alongside you.

While it lacks explicit instructions, everything about Cocoon's puzzles is designed in a very natural way, though they will test you as well. 2023 was a big year for video games, so it's no surprise if Cocoon was a bit overlooked by the masses. Let's rectify that while we can.