Another month has come and gone in the blink of an eye, leaving me, as always, deliberating on the inherently tragic nature of time and mortality. Even more than last month. Anyway, here are some great games to sit back and enjoy for free if you’re an Xbox Live Gold member:
1. Saints Row 2: Available July 1 to 15 on Xbox One & Xbox 360
2. WRC 8 FIA World Rally Championship: Available July 1 to 31 on Xbox One
3. Juju: Available July 16 to 31 on Xbox One & Xbox 360
4. Dunk Lords: Available July 16 to August 15 on Xbox One
Wanna know more about them? Read on.
Saints Row 2
Developer: Volition | Publisher: Deep Silver
Saints Row 2 is definitely the highlight this month. Though an older game – it came out 12 years ago all the way back in 2008 – there are still a lot of die-hard fans that argue it’s the best of the series. If you’re unfamiliar with the title, it’s an open-world over-the-top sandbox game (though not as much as the subsequent sequels). Think GTA but… more sandbox than open-world, and with its own unique style, feel, and sense of humor.
Boasting character customization, over 40 action-packed missions, and numerous side quests, there’s no doubt that there’s a whole lot of fun to be had. And no, it isn’t necessary to play the previous installment. You’ll miss a few references to plot points of SR1, but all in all, you’re perfectly fine skipping it.
WRC 8 FIA World Rally Championship
Developer: KT Racing | Publisher: Nacon
Though this completely passed me by when it came out in September just last year, that’s no surprise seeing how I’m not a racing games fan (also because it hasn’t come to Steam yet). As the title indicates, it’s an off-road rally racing game and promises to be the most complete and authentic official WRC simulation yet.
With a new dynamic weather system including rain and snowfall directly affecting gameplay and 50 teams, 14 countries and over 100 tracks, plus weekly multiplayer challenges, this title definitely offers a whole lot of content, which you can now get for free!
Juju
Developer & Publisher: Flying Wild Hog
Juju is a vibrant, colorful 2014 platformer where you play as a shaman panda accompanied by his lizard sidekick, Peyo, and embark on a mystical journey to save Juju’s father and the world from an ancient evil. Featuring intense boss fights, secrets to discover and collectibles to well… collect, as well as two-player co-op, Juju seems to be a wholesome package of good family-friendly fun.
And it’s made by Flying Wild Hog of all people (the devs who made Shadow Warrior and its sequel). Yeah, I’m not sure what’s going on either, go figure.
Dunk Lords
Developer & Publisher: Story Fort LLC
The newest release on this list, Dunk Lords came out on Steam only a few months ago in March of this year. It’s a two-on-two basketball beat ‘em up game featuring over-the-top special moves, 15 hazard-filled courts, and 20 playable basketballers to try out, each with their own unique special attacks and abilities.
Allowing 1-4 player local co-op, this title promises to be a lot of chaotic couch co-op fun to play with your roomies or family. Or friends if you have those. Basically, it seems like an NBA 2KWhatever title, except, you know, fun. Come at me NBA fans, I’m pretty sure you’re all bots anyway, no one really plays those games.
And yes, I’m disappointed that it has nothing to do with the Youtuber Dunkey too.
So those are the games you have on offer this month. An open-world action game, a racing one, a platformer, and a fun co-op basketball game. Excited? Disappointed? Meh’d? Let us know in the comments below.