Two weeks before Christmas and Xbox players get a steady trickle of new titles — a mix of mid‑budget remakes, bite‑sized indies, and a handful of spooky survivors. Publishers are clearly clearing their decks ahead of the holiday lull: between December 8–12 and December 15–19 you’ll find everything from Metal Gear remakes to hide‑and‑seek party games and retro horror throwbacks.
Big names and surprise console swaps
If you’re after headline grabs, the first week brings the long‑rumored PC version of Metal Gear Solid Δ: Snake Eater, a full remake of the classic 2004 jungle stealth epic with modern visuals and 3D audio (December 9). On the same day 11 bit studios rolls out Death Howl on Game Pass: a spirit‑haunted deckbuilder that ties shamanic totems and melee spells into its progression loop.
Across the second week, former PS5 console exclusives land on Xbox: Fort Solis, a tense narrative mystery set in a storm‑lashed mining base (December 19), and Five Nights at Freddy’s: Secret of the Mimic (December 16), a fresh FNAF entry that leans into workshop‑scale dread and an adaptive animatronic called the Mimic. If you used to see these as PlayStation-only fare, their arrival on Xbox highlights how platform exclusivity can soften in the run‑up to larger holiday sales — and yes, it’s the kind of cross‑platform moment that makes hardware owners look at rival kits like the PS5 Pro with a wry smile.
Week 1 highlights (Dec 8–12)
- Metal Gear Solid Δ: Snake Eater (Dec 9) — remake of a genre classic.
- Death Howl (Dec 9) — PC Game Pass day one deckbuilder with a spiritual twist.
- A Game About Digging A Hole™ (Dec 9) — whimsical, pocket‑priced Game Pass title that’s already finding fans for its laid‑back loop.
- Terminator 2D: NO FATE (Dec 12) — a pixel action retelling of T2’s beats; note it shipped with delays and scheduling tweaks ahead of this window (see coverage of the title’s revised launch timeline for details) Terminator 2D: No Fate's delay.
- Cakey’s Twisted Bakery (Dec 11) — a confectionary horror with stealth and pie‑crafting mechanics.
- God bless, or Goddess (Dec 15) — a tongue‑in‑cheek wuxia romance/action title with unusual flirtatious stakes.
- Five Nights at Freddy’s: Secret of the Mimic (Dec 16) — workshop mystery meets animatronic horror.
- Explodera (Dec 18) — explosive mech action where the team’s motto seems to be “if it sparks, it explodes.”
- Fort Solis (Dec 19) — moody, survival‑leaning narrative thriller set in a mining outpost.
- Outbreak: Shades of Horror (Dec 19) — retro survival horror with resource scarcity and a punishing old‑school ethos.
- If you want a cinematic, high‑polish experience: Metal Gear Solid Δ is the obvious pick; Fort Solis is the slower, moody alternative.
- For quick sessions or couch co‑op: Balloball – Ribbit & Rescue and Where is Billy both serve short, approachable rounds.
- If you like old‑school survival horror and scarcity: Outbreak: Shades of Horror leans hard into that ’90s/00s vibe.
- Looking for something light on violence and heavy on charm: Hoomanz! (stealth adventure) and Hidden Cats in Istanbul are cozy, low‑stress choices.
The first week leans indie-heavy but with a few recognizable names — and a reminder that Game Pass continues to be a channel for surprise drops. For context on big day‑one Game Pass moves earlier this year, check how big releases like Call of Duty and others shaped the platform’s momentum Black Ops 7 and Game Pass day‑one.
Week 2 highlights (Dec 15–19)
Also arriving are cozy finds like Hidden Cats in Istanbul and family fare such as Scott Whiskers: The Search for the Golden Cat. The range here is broad: arcade platformers, puzzle games, party hide‑and‑seek, and even Zumba‑branded marble puzzling make an appearance.
For the indecisive: where to start
What this means for Game Pass and the holidays
A couple of titles land on Game Pass during these weeks — notably Death Howl and A Game About Digging A Hole — but overall the mid‑December window is quieter on new Game Pass additions. Several outlets anticipate no significant Game Pass rollouts until January 2026, as publishers hold back marquee drops for post‑holiday attention or to avoid being buried in seasonal sales chatter.
Final notes
If your backlog is already bloated, this fortnight’s releases are a good excuse to sample a little of everything without committing to massive single‑player epics. From remade stealth classics to tiny indie curios and late‑year horror experiments, December’s second and third weeks on Xbox offer variety more than a unified theme — which, depending on your mood, is exactly the point.
Which ones are you installing first? Whatever you choose, expect some of these to stick around in sales and recommendations well into the new year — Microsoft and third‑party publishers tend to give mid‑tier titles second life once the calendar flips.