Xbox Game Pass Adds Popular Medieval Game

Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers across all versions -- Cloud, Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, and PC -- have a new game to play that should please fans of action-RPGs or subscribers looking for medieval games to play. As you may know, medieval games aren't incredibly common, and many of those that do exist lean into fantasy more than realism. Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord, today's new Xbox Game Pass game, restrains from giving everybody Merlin powers in favor of pursuing the latter, which, in this case, is medieval combat. 

Released in 2022 by TaleWorlds Entertainment, Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord boasts Metacritic scores between a wide range of 73 to 83, depending on the platform. On console, the game's imprint doesn't compare to its imprint on PC. Over on Steam, the game has already amassed 170,000 user reviews, 87 percent of which are positive, giving the game a "Very Positive" User Review rating.

"The horns sound, the ravens gather," reads an official blurb for the game. " n empire is torn by civil war. Beyond its borders, new kingdoms rise. Gird on your sword, don your armour, summon your followers and ride forth to win glory on the battlefields of Calradia. Establish your hegemony and create a new world out of the ashes of the old. Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord is the eagerly awaited sequel to the critically acclaimed medieval combat simulator and role-playing game, Mount & Blade: Warband. Create and develop a character that matches your play style as you explore, raid and conquer your way across a vast medieval sandbox where no two playthroughs are the same. Raise armies, engage in politics, trade, craft weapons, recruit companions and manage your fiefdom as you attempt to establish your clan among the nobility of Calradia."

Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate are both available via Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, and PC for $10 and $15 a month, respectively. For more coverage on the subscription service -- and all things Xbox in general, including all of the latest news, rumors, leaks, and speculation -- click here. As for how long Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord is available, we don't know. Xbox does not disclose this information, but as long as it is available via the subscription service, it's available to subscribers to purchase outright for 20 percent off.