It’s a Sprint: Games Leaving Game Pass January 31st 2026 Edition *UPDATED*

Cataclismo by Digital Sun and Hooded Horse

UPDATE: It turns out we are losing more than one game at the end of this month. The list has been updated to reflect that. You should play Lonely Mountains: Snow Riders–it’s one of my favorites from last year. 

I’ve made good on my promise to begin the year by focusing on some of the lengthier RPGs that I’ve neglected (I restarted Clair Obscur so I could play it with a family member and I’ve entered the cleanup phase of my time with Final Fantasy VII Rebirth). Dumping all this time into just a couple games has got me thinking. Do you have a strategy when tackling the behemoths in your backlog? Do you play smaller games at the same time to break up the experience or dedicate yourself fully until you hit credits? My attention span is too messy at this point to commit to the latter. Maybe that’s another goal to work on this year. 

Game Pass is only currently scheduled to lose one game in the next two weeks. I’ll update this list if more are added later. 

Cataclismo

Metacritic Score: 82

Playtime estimate according to HowLongToBeat: 17-41 hours

Starbound

Metacritic Score: 81

Playtime estimate according to HowLongToBeat: 25-165 hours

Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector

Metacritic Score: 85

Playtime estimate according to HowLongToBeat: 9.5-18 hours

PAW Patrol World

Metacritic Score: 79

Playtime estimate according to HowLongToBeat: 3.5-8.5 hours

Shady Part of Me

Metacritic Score: 78

Playtime estimate according to HowLongToBeat: 5-6.5 hours

Orcs Must Die! Deathtrap

Metacritic Score: 69

Playtime estimate according to HowLongToBeat: 15-74.5 hours

Lonely Mountains: Snow Riders

Metacritic Score: 87

Playtime estimate according to HowLongToBeat: 3-10.5 hours

There hasn’t been much to report through the first couple weeks of 2026 on the video game front (a shame really, we could use the distraction with everything else going on). There’s an Xbox event this coming week that’s set to only cover three games (I’m interested in those titles but probably won’t write about it). However, I will throw out an honorable mention if you’re feeling desperate for content. Nintendo recently added one of the most sought after GameCube titles to their Classics Library. You can find more info about it in the features tab. 

Keep drinking water–and go eat some pasta or something. You’ve earned it.