Just Cause 4, Avalanche Studio’s latest action-adventure game, released just three months ago, to the mixed reception of critics and fans alike. While this less than stellar response may have caused some fans to steer clear of the title, a recent announcement from Microsoft looks to bring new players to the game.
As confirmed by Xbox Live’s Larry “Major Nelson” Hryb, Just Cause 4 is now available through Xbox Game Pass. A subscription service, Xbox Game Pass costs $9.99 a month, and it gives subscribers access to a revolving library of over 200 games.
While titles published directly by Microsoft Studios, such as Crackdown 3 and Sea of Thieves, have been released on Game Pass simultaneous to their official launches, it is uncommon for a title as new as Just Cause 4 to find its way to the service.
Typically, games brought to Game Pass have been available for more than three months.
This point is made clear by the other titles that are headed to the service in March. The first amongst these is Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes, a 2012 action-adventure game, which is also available as of today. This will be followed up on March 14 by F1 2018, a racing game released in August 2018 — new, but not as new as Just Cause 4.
Fallout 4 is also headed to Game Pass on March 14, and this is actually the second time the 2015 title has found itself on the service. Indeed, there has been no shortage of time and opportunity for players to jump into Bethesda’s most recent, single-player take on the Wasteland.
Upon the release of Just Cause 4, some players expressed concerns about the game’s visual elements, with specific attention being paid to the lack of detail in its vegetation and water effects. Since then, Avalanche has begun to address these concerns, promising to improve those elements through future updates.
It certainly seems that the developers believe that Just Cause 4 has something to offer, if only it were not overshadowed by some of its lingering technical concerns and, what some call, baffling design decisions. While these aspects have not been addressed for its release on Game Pass, giving subscribers access to the title may just be enough to breathe some life into the game.
