It might be time to file that missing person report as Xbox’s Games With Gold May line up has yet to be released. Is this cause for concern?

Things may feel like July with how slow quarantine has gone, but I promise you we’re still in April. What’s also been slow recently is the Games With Gold reveals.

This is not an irregular occurrence since even the previous month’s lineup wasn’t released until the very last day. These last-minute announcements are normal for teachers giving students surprise exams but not a big corporation like Microsoft.

Last month’s Xbox One Gold titles were Project Cars 2 and Knights of Pen and Paper Bundle. Meanwhile, the 360 list features Fable Anniversary and Toybox Turbos.

Project Cars and Toybox leave the service on May 1st, though Knights’ stays until the 15th. However, Fable has already dipped from Games With Gold like a WI-FI connection in a college dorm.

How Games With Gold titles are chosen can seem random when it comes to the selection. Some conspiracist says Microsoft chooses a game based if they bought if the week prior as a middle finger. “Oh, you bought Gears 5 on sale? Well, everyone gets Gears 5 for free next week” is how it’ll seem at times.

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They are typically relatively old games that promote a new entry/DLC. So, it’s usually a safe bet to look at the list of upcoming games, but even then it’s still puzzlingly how Marooners got on there. Well, not really. This is the equivalent of buying someone a Christmas gift and throwing in a Twix to hit your budget.

Sometimes these deals fall through or even had to be renegotiated because one party had a change of heart. Especially with this current economic climate, some publishers and devs are trying to make sure they secure the best deal possible.

Microsoft is also competing with Sony’s PS Plus for these deals as two titles have never been “free” simultaneously. They’ve come in the release, but not at the same time.

Regardless, if you are subscribed to both online services, think about downloading the games while they’re available. Games with Gold come in a staggered release, so there is less of a window to cop those titles.

The only difference is you can keep the 360 games you download, whether or not you have the service anymore. The only time PlayStation does this is when they give freebies like Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection, which was already on Plus.

While the company may be busy with the Xbox Series X, they’ll likely make an announcement about the lineup in the coming days. Or not, schedules are all messed up due to Corona, but we’ll keep you updated with the latest as word arrives.

Games With Gold

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