Last week Microsoft won the last two titles in the 2019 Games with Gold Lineup, closing the year with another 46 given to Xbox Live Gold subscribers. Is any of this good? What would they cost? In short, what does this information say about the value of the Xbox Live Gold grant, which has been part of the service since 2013?
We'll try to answer that question for this year as we have for the last five years, as well as a few other questions. Such as: How old is the game? Has Microsoft published it? Which publisher made the most of Games With Gold? And has this previously appeared on PlayStation Plus?
These questions can shed some light on where these free gaming systems are heading, especially with the new console generation coming next year in the form of the Xbox Series X.
What about PlayStation Plus?
Getting started
In total, it was 48 games on the X9 Live Games With Gold for 2019, with an average Metacritic score of 75 and a combined retail price (at the time of presentation) of $ 1,196.53 Metacritic's average 1.9 points more than 2018.
The total dollar amount is over $ 300 better than last year, with two major exceptions: 1) Microsoft this year began installing a game MSRP at the time of the announcement of Games and Gold, so it's likely to find some pricey ones to love. . 2) Last year's analysis took the retail price of the Microsoft Game Store at press time.
All Xbox 360 games in games with Gold are compatible with the Xbox One. So we've also noticed those games that are only played on the Xbox One. Also, the availability period for most games coincided with two months. They are listed in the month of their first appearance.
January
- Celeste (Xbox One only)
- Far Cry 2
- Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light
- WRC 6 (Xbox One only)
Metacritic average rating: 83
Middle Ages 5 years, 6 months
Total price: $ 104.96
Skinny: In terms of quality, January is slightly edited by August. Celeste you are the strongest, most endearing lead in this full month of value. 85 metascore nonetheless, Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light just appeared on the PlayStation Instant Game Collection and Games and Gold, doing so in June 2012 and January 2014 respectively.
February
- Assassin & # 39; s Creed Rogue
- Blood: Curse of the Moon (Xbox One only)
- Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy
- Super Bomberman R (Xbox One only)
Metacritic average rating: 70.25
Middle Ages 5 years, 4 months
Total price: $ 89.96
Skinny: Although Metacritic branding is not like the brand-brand firepower here, there is still a lot of interest in the mass market, especially in LucasArts that churns out fan favorites Jedi Academy. The good two months are going strong in 2019.
March
- Party time: Pirates of Enchiridion (Xbox One only)
- Ral Metal Gear Rising: Revenge
- Plants vs Zombies: World War 2 (Xbox One only)
- star Wars Republic Commando
Metacritic average rating: 76.5
Middle Ages 6 years
Total price: $ 89.96
Skinny: Another throwback to LucasArts extends the middle ages, but there are three solid topics here that can be reproduced or should be re-examined. Revenge, a strong hack-n-slash from 2013, visible and has long been visible in one of these services.
April
- Release: Second Communication (Xbox One only)
- Star Wars: Battlefields 2 (2005)
- Technomancer (Xbox One only)
- Tom Clancy & # 39; s Ghost Recon: Improved Warfighter 2
Metacritic average rating: 76.
Middle Ages 7 years, 5 months
Total price: $ 109.96
Skinny: First Battlefield 2 makes it a hat trick for mid-aughts crowdpleasers from LucasArts, too GRAW2 timely in the light of Article 2Introduced last month.
May
- Comic Jumper
- Earth Defense Forces: Armage insect
- Marooners (Xbox One only)
- Golf Club 2019 (Xbox One only)
Metacritic average rating: 69.5
Middle Ages 4 years, 7 months
Total price: $ 94.96
Skinny: We are now in our first month. Golf Club 2019 the title of today's game is Metacritics 80, but if you're not on the golf course, it adds a little value to this subfield. Also, hopefully digging up the Earth Defense Force because you're about to see more of it.
June
- World Security Festival 2017
- NHL 19 (Xbox One only)
- Web site: He is still alive
- Aether rivals (Xbox One only)
Metacritic average rating: 78.
Middle Ages 6 years, 5 months
Total price: $ 104.96
Skinny: Microsoft went to E3 to receive the bundle of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and sent four best honors to help their sales. NHL 19 Today's game title includes 82, given as the Saleley Cup Finals draws attention. Web site: We're still alive may be more than ten years old, but that speaks for itself. Dan Fornace & # 39; s Aether rivals is an indie fighting game that doesn't get enough reviews to pull Metascore, even though those who have watched it love what they have seen. We have used user points in our analysis here.
July
- Grand Crown: Showdown (Xbox One only)
- Croatia: Symphony of the Night
- Inside (Xbox One only)
- Meet the Robinsons
Metacritic average rating: 77.5
Middle Ages 7 years, 1 month
Total price: $ 62.96
Skinny: July is usually a weak month, but here it is loaded with a high quality puzzle game Inside, again The castlegumi: Symphony of the Night (Shown here after seven years for PlayStation Plus subscribers). Meet the Robinsons it starts with the unfortunate tendency to turn a decade old with a shovel of Disney movies. There will be two more by the end of the year.
August
- California: Lords of Shadow
- Forza Motorsport 6 (Xbox One only)
- Gears of War 4 (Xbox One only)
- Torch
Metacritic average rating: 83.75
Middle Ages 6 years
Total price: $ 163.97
Skinny: Although this is a very good Metacritic month and dollar amount, there are some who are eligible. First, Microsoft is up for grabs Forza
September
- World Defense Force 2025
- Hitman: Perfect Start Time (Xbox One only)
- The Tekken Tag 2 Contest
- We were there (Xbox One only)
Metacritic average rating: 74.75
Middle Ages 4 years, 1 day
Total price: $ 114.96
Skinny: We were there it was the only game to launch at Games With Gold in 2019, something that happened a lot. Hitman: Perfect Start Time get good but if you also have PS4 and PSPS, you got it in February.
October
- Disney & # 39; s Bolt
- Friday 13: Game (Xbox One only)
- Ninja Gaiden 3Razor's Guide
- Tembo the Badass Elephant (Xbox One only)
Metacritic average rating: 62.5
Middle Ages 6 years
Total price: $ 74.96
Skinny: A tragic month begins the Games With a Golden Limp to the finish line. Not only that Friday the 13th a bad game (Metacritic 53), the law forced him to cancel all DLC plans and a free update for the summer of 2018. It was rebranded to PlayStation Plus in October 2018. Otherwise, Mr. Lincoln, how was the play?
November
- Joy Ride Turbo
- Sherlock Holmes: Daughter of the Devil (Xbox One only)
- Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter
- Storage Station (Xbox One only)
Metacritic average rating: 70.25
Middle Ages 7 years, 10 months
Total price: $ 89.96
Skinny: Joy Ride Turbo it's basically a laid back version of the kart Kinet (1.0) kart. LucasArts makes a curtain call for another OG Xbox Star Wars game.
December
- California: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate HD
- Internal robots (Xbox One only)
- Jurassic World Evolution (Xbox One only)
- Dog Story 3
Metacritic average rating: 78.
Middle Ages 4 years, 7 months
Total price: $ 94.96
Skinny: Jurassic World Evolution got the mid-sized Metascore, but the concept of zoo-tycoon-metets-dinos (in the hands of a studio that makes tycoon sims good) and licensed enough to give it a solid player base (on PC, anyway). Otherwise, Microsoft is back in Konami – hell, back to California: Lords of Shadow
To wrap you up
Despite a strong start, and even considering the reduced PlayStation Plus catalog, which was also loaded with first-team names, it's hard to say that Xbox Live Games With Gold had a better year than its rival. Games by Gold is capable of and makes a comeback when PlayStation Plus doesn't work, but that also means most library name recognition comes from the most affordable, if any, decade-old titles on the market.
Games and Gold has been showing its age for a while, and it seems to be overlooked for the better value offered on the Xbox Game Pass subscription, which can now be included in the $ 5 Gold subscription more per month. Microsoft recently closed the door on its OG Xbox and Xbox 360 running back, and it's hard to imagine that Gold Games also survived any subscriptions that will support the Xbox Series X when it opens next year. Though all three previous generations will be supported by the Series X, all indications point to Microsoft's unlocking of that content firehose and Game Pass.
In 2013, after all, the last six years, which is the time of the global recession. This might be the year to do one of these things again. If so, he hopes the series can come together in 2020 with a massive hit that reminds us of the great joy we've had over the last two generations of the console.
The Numbers
Average rating: 75
Average price $ 24.93
Middle Ages 5 years, 11 months
Basic middle month: August (83.75) at California: Lords of Shadow (83), Forza Motorsport 6 (87), War Gears 4 (84) no Torch (81).
Highest price month: Also in August ($ 163.97) with California: Lords of Shadow ($ 9.99), Gears of War 4 ($ 29.99), Torch ($ 14.99) as well Forza Motorsport 6, Microsoft priced at $ 99.
Month for new games on average: September (4 years) with World Defense Force 2025 (February 2014), Hitman: The Perfect Start Time (March 2016), Tekken Tag 2 Contest (September 2012) no We were there, introduced the day it was discovered on Xbox Games With Gold.
Average average month: October (62.5) with Disney & # 39; s Bolt (57), Friday 13: Game (53), Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's line (70) no Tembo the Badass Elephant (70).
Lowest month month: July ($ 62.96) per Grand Crown: Showdown ($ 12.99), The castlegumi: Symphony of the Night ($ 9.99), Inside ($ 19.99) no Meet the Robinsons ($ 19.99).
Month for older games on average: November (7 years, 10 months) with Joy Ride Turbo (May 2012), Sherlock Holmes: Daughter of the Devil (October 2016), Storage Station (March 2016) and no Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter (May 2002).
Published by Microsoft: Four Topics (Comic Jumper, Forza Motorsport 6, Battlefield 4 and Joy Ride Turbo)
Publisher with multiple articles: Konami and the sixth (Spilled by Blood: Curse of the Moon, Castlegumi: Kings of the Shadow, Castlegumi: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate HD, Carlloven: Symphony of the Night, Metal Gear Climbing: Revenge and Super Bomberman R).
Appeared in gold games before: Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light (January 2014).
Appeared on PlayStation Plus before: Far Cry 2 (February 2012), Croatia: Symphony of the Night (May 2012), Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light (June 2012), World Defense Force 2025 (March 2017), Friday 13: Game (October 2018) no Hitman: The Perfect Start Time (February 2019).
Total price: $ 1,196.53
Speaker Ratings
Xbox 360: 76.6 Metacritic average, 9 years, 10 months old, $ 17.49 per article.
Xbox One: 73.4 average, 1 year, 11 months, $ 32.37 per article.
Highest Xbox 360 Game: Web site: We're still alive (90).
One Xbox One Higher Game: Celeste (94).
Highest price for Xbox 360: World Defense Force 2025 ($ 49.99).
Best price for Xbox One: Forza Motorsport 6 ($ 99).
Highly rated Xbox 360: Disney & # 39; s Bolt (57).
The Xbox one is the cheapest Friday 13: Game (53)
Lowest prices for Xbox 360 games: Cityylvania: Symphony of the Night, Star Wars: Battleback 2, Star Wars Republic Commando, Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter, Toy 3, Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy, Joy Ride Turbo and Disney & # 39; s Bolt ($ 9.99 each).
Lowest price for the Xbox One: Blood: Curse of the Moon and Marooners ($ 9.99 each).
Metacritic grades
90 and above: 3
80 to 89: 16
70 to 79: 13
60 to 69: 13
59 and under: 3
Prices:
$ 40 and over: 7
$ 30 to $ 39.99: 5
$ 25 to $ 29.99: 3
$ 20 to $ 24,99: 0
$ 15 to $ 19,99: 12
$ 10 to $ 14.99: 10
$ 5 to $ 9.99: 10
$ 4,99 and under: 1
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