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Following Microsoft's recent news of Xbox Game Pass membership updates, featuring a price increase for the top tier to $30 monthly, many members are seeking fresh methods to maximize their subscription. For those holding onto their subscription or considering joining, we present this week's picks.

Our selected titles feature a acclaimed JRPG, a delightful indie adventure, and a superb puzzle game set to depart from the service shortly.

Persona 4 Golden

Among the top methods to get your money's worth from your subscription is by immersing yourself in a extensive, captivating RPG — and Persona 4: The Golden Edition matches that description perfectly. You step into the role of a teenager who has just moved to the sleepy rural town of Inaba. By day, your objectives include making friendships, working part-time jobs, and keeping up with schoolwork. By night, you investigate a disturbing serial murder case by exploring strange dungeons based on your companions' inner fears.

With a memorable group of heroes, strategic turn-based combat, impeccable visuals, and a plot packed with surprises, Persona 4 Golden is regarded as a masterpiece for many reasons. It also boasts a incredibly addictive gameplay loop that will have you playing past bedtime, repeatedly.

Sopa - Tale of the Stolen Potato

While big releases like Ninja Gaiden IV are a primary attraction for the service, the platform also highlights smaller games. A perfect example of this is Sopa: Tale of the Stolen Potato. Drawing from Spirited Away, this enchanting independent game is a magical realist tale rooted in Latin American culture. You follow Miho, who, after helping his grandmother make soup, is transported to a colorful world filled with potato-nabbing frogs and various quirky animals.

Sopa: Tale of the Stolen Potato unfolds like an educational PC game from the 1990s, as Miho tackles challenges and helps the realm's residents by gathering an assortment of objects. Even if it's a little rough around the edges, Sopa: Tale of the Stolen Potato is a heartwarming small experience that proudly celebrates its love for the region's culture.

Cocoon: A Puzzle Adventure

Cocoon: A Puzzle Adventure is set to leave Game Pass on Oct. 15, giving you only a short time to play it via subscription — and you absolutely should. Developer the creators crafted one of the best puzzlers of this generation in the 2023 release Cocoon. Its central puzzle mechanic focuses on moving between realms inside other worlds, and often you'll carry those worlds, in the shape of colorful spheres, alongside you.

Although it lacks explicit instructions, everything about Cocoon's challenges is built in a highly intuitive manner, though they will test you as well. 2023 was a massive period for video games, so it's no surprise if Cocoon: A Puzzle Adventure was somewhat overlooked by many players. We should correct that while we can.