Xbox Game Pass Game Finally Releasing After Long Delay
Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers are finally getting a game after it was delayed at the last second in December. A two-month delay is not long in terms of video game releases, but it's when it comes to Xbox Game Pass. Once games are announced for Xbox Game Pass, they are very rarely delayed unless their release is delayed entirely. That said, this game was already out and had been out for over a year, so that was not the problem. It remains unclear why it was ever delayed in the first place out of its December release, but it's finally coming on February 7.
More specifically, Xbox has announced that Hot Wheels Unleashed – Game of the Year Edition is finally coming to Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate on the aforementioned February date. How long it will be sticking around for, it doesn't say, but this means Game Pass subscribers will soon be able to purchase it outright with a 20 percent discount.
"Collect the best vehicles in the Hot Wheels universe, build spectacular tracks and dive into breathtaking races. The most iconic and sought-after Hot Wheels vehicles are waiting for you," reads an official blurb about the game. "Get ready to make them race at full speed! Prove your skills by competing in awesome races and get ready for pure fun! Drift, charge the booster, and launch yourself into spectacular loops. But be careful! If you're too slow gravity will do its job. The bigger the challenge, the greater the glory. Race side by side with your friends in split screen mode for 2 players or face up to 12 opponents in online challenges."
"Hot Wheels Unleashed at its best is breakneck entertainment with a nostalgic coat of paint," reads the opening of our review of the game. "At its worst, it's a budget racing game hidden by the aforementioned nostalgic coat of paint. Milestone's new racing game has a surplus of good ideas left unrealized by insufficient polish and ill-advised design choices. At times, Hot Wheels Unleashed is a competent racing game that offers high-speed thrills and everything your inner child dreams of from a Hot Wheels game, but other times it's reminiscent of the middle-of-the-road licensed games of yesteryear."
Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate are both available via Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, and PC for two different prices, $10 a month and $15 a month, respectively. The latter, the more expensive tier, comes with Xbox Live Gold, EA Play, and exclusive perks and offers.