Xbox Games With Gold is dropping free Xbox 360 games soon. Since 2013, the service has provided at least two 360 titles each month. Fortunately, any games that have been redeemed will remain playable after Microsoft pulls the plug.
Microsoft discontinuing Xbox 360 Games With Gold
September 2022 will be the last month in which Xbox Live Gold subscribers will receive a free Xbox 360 title. October’s offerings will consist solely of Xbox One games.
It seems as though the issue that caused Microsoft to drop 360 titles from Games With Gold finally is that there are just not many left to give away. The email announcing the news states:
“Beginning October 1, 2022, the monthly games provided to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and Xbox Live Gold members via Games with Gold will no longer include Xbox 360 titles.
We have reached the limit of our ability to bring Xbox 360 games to the catalog; however, Games with Gold will continue to include exciting Xbox One titles and exclusive savings each month.
This will not impact any Xbox 360 games that you downloaded before October 2022. Any Xbox 360 titles that you redeem via Games with Gold before that time are yours to keep on your Xbox account, regardless of whether you continue your subscription.
Thank you for being a loyal member.
Team Xbox”
Surprisingly, Xbox Games With Gold hasn’t been around an entire decade yet. It launched at the tail end of the Xbox 360’s lifespan in July 2013, and for its first year, it only featured games from that console. The inaugural pairing was Defense Grid: The Awakening and Assassin’s Creed 2. Since then, at least two Xbox 360 titles have been released every month for 223 free games.
It’s unfortunate that the program is being discontinued. I constantly forget to redeem games, so I’d love it if Microsoft just looped back around and gave everyone a chance to get the games they missed. Hopefully, we’ll see Xbox Series X|S optimized games replace the outgoing Xbox 360 titles, but the announcement was conspicuously missing any mention of that.
In other news, Yakuza is returning to Xbox Game Pass in July, and Skull & Bones and Riders Republic will have in-game events highlighting environmental issues.
