Xbox Game Pass members getting hard-hitting open-world remake for free

Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One and Windows PC owners are getting a handful of delicious treats this month as part of an Xbox Game Pass subscription.

Starting with the day one release of Creatures of Ava, which was made available on 7 August, the lineup also includes the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy and one of our own personal favourites, Mafia: Definitive Edition.

The latter is a from-the-ground-up remake of the 2002 open-world crime adventure that was much-loved at the time, especially by PC gamers. The remake completely overhauled the graphics, audio assets, and even tweaked the script of the original, to offer something more befitting modern games machines.

Set in the fictional city of Lost Haven in the 1930s, it features GTA-style driving and gun-play, albeit with period cars and weaponry.

The gameplay is taken from Mafia III, so has a great cover mechanic, plus rewarding stealth sections. And while the game scored around the three- to four-stars on review, we feel it stands up well today too – especially when offered at no extra cost.

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As does Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy, which is another collection of impressive remakes. It includes the first three games in the 3D platform series – Crash Bandicoot, Cortex Strikes Back and Warped – so has plenty of gameplay in the one package.

The remasters are fairly extensive, although Naughty Dog's original gameplay remains and is as equally as tough as we remember. The trilogy provides and excellent challenge therefore, so very much worth any platformer fan's time.

The Crash collection is now also available, having been added today, 8 August. Mafia: Definitive Edition will follow next week, on 13 August. Both will play on Windows, Xbox Series X/S and Xbox One, plus Xbox Cloud Gaming.

Creatures of Ava only runs on a PC or Xbox Series X/S natively, although Xbox One owners with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate can play it via Xbox Cloud Gaming.

Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max and 4K owners, plus those with support Samsung Smart TVs can also play the three games through the Xbox app for their devices.