Game Pass adding brand new games is "one of the major benefits," says Spirittea dev

Sole developer Dan Beckerton's beautiful rural-life RPG Spirittea is on the way to Xbox Game Pass, so we reached out to find out more about his thoughts on joining the Game Pass service.

If you've spotted trailers for Spirittea before, you might have noted that it draws inspiration from Stardew Valley and "spirit-focused" anime and manga — either way, it promises to be a charming experience when it launches into Game Pass. We spoke to developer Dan Beckerton to find out more about the Game Pass experience.

"I think that game subscription services like Xbox Game Pass are great for many different types of gamers," Beckerton begins. "Not everyone who enjoys games is as entrenched in gaming news as myself or others in the industry. I, personally, hear about all sorts of games, read their reviews, observe how the community responds to different aspects the games, and can typically have a pretty good idea what a game is about before even giving it a try. However, Xbox Game Pass puts many of these games in the faces of hardcore and casual gamers alike, which gives the games that would have gone unnoticed another chance to really impress people. It's good for both gamers and developers," he continues. "Gamers get to discover new experiences without breaking their banks and developers get another chance to wow the people they're trying to reach. It's a pretty good situation all around."

Subscription services like Xbox Game Pass and PS Plus continue to incite discussion as they grow in popularity, and we wondered what Beckerton thought of the benefits — or potential risks — of Game Pass as opposed to services like PS Plus. "One of the major benefits of Xbox Game Pass compared to its competition would be the releasing of brand new games (like Spirittea) onto the service on day one," he explains. "It's pretty hard to beat that, especially when the competition typically only provides games that have been out for months or years. I suppose one of the downsides to subscription services (and the same could be said of things like Netflix) is that games will eventually make their way off of the service, putting a kind of pressure on gamers to play them before they're gone. With so many great games available, it can be hard to find the time to play everything you want to before it potentially disappears from the service."

We'll have our chance to play Spirittea when it launches into Game Pass this year. If you're interested in hearing more about the game, check out our Spirittea interview, and how joining Game Pass "was a contender for 'best news of the year'" for Beckerton!

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Written by Heidi Nicholas

Heidi tends to lean towards indie games, RPGs, and open-world games on Xbox, and when not playing Disney Dreamlight Valley, happily installs every new wholesome game that appears on Xbox Game Pass, before diving back into favorites like The Witcher 3. She's looking forward to Age of Mythology Retold, Everwild, Fable, and Avowed on the Xbox horizon. Heidi graduated with an MA in English Literature before joining the TrueAchievements team.