An Xbox fan shares an image showing all the Xbox 360 games that have been given away through the Xbox free Games with Gold program.
An image shared online shows all the Xbox 360 and original Xbox games that Microsoft gave away to Xbox Live Gold subscribers since introducing the program in 2013. In 2013, perhaps as a response to the free PlayStation Plus games its competitor was giving out, Microsoft added a new benefit for Xbox Live Gold subscribers to take advantage of that would give them free games every month in exchange for their subscription fee. Xbox Live Gold subscribers have been treated to two Xbox 360 games nearly every month since the program launched, but that time is coming to an end.
The Xbox free Games with Gold games for September 2022 mark the last time that an Xbox 360 game will be given away as part of the program. Moving forward, Xbox Live Gold subscribers will only be able to count on getting two free Xbox One games with their subscription. The last free Xbox 360 game being given away through Games with Gold is Portal 2 (available from September 16 to September 30), and so now that we know every 360 game that’s been given away as part of the service, a Reddit user has posted an image showing them all.
The image was shared online by Reddit user theoneandonlybiscuit. It starts with Fable 3, which was technically given away prior to the program’s official starting month of July 2013. Things started strong with the July 2013 offerings being the well-received Assassin’s Creed 2 and Defense Grid. From there, the Xbox free Games with Gold had its ups and downs, but continued to give out fairly high profile games in first few years of existence.
It’s clear by the image that Xbox free Games with Gold games dramatically dipped in quality these last few years, especially after Microsoft introduced its Xbox Game Pass service. Most of the Xbox free Games with Gold games these last few years have been met with ridicule from the community, with many of the announcement videos flooded with “dislikes” on YouTube. Microsoft decided to focus its efforts on Xbox Game Pass over Games with Gold, but at least the service is ending with a beloved game like Portal 2.
There have been rumors that Microsoft is looking to phase out Xbox Live Gold completely, hoping to instead push everyone to Xbox Game Pass. Nothing official to that effect has been announced at the time of this writing, but one has to imagine that the removal of Xbox 360 games from the Games with Gold lineup is a big step in that direction.
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