However, each planet you visit is densely packed with mysteries to uncover, all culminating in a finale so utterly brilliant that it entirely justified the countless times I flew directly into the gaping maw of a giant space anglerfish. Outer Wilds plays out on a much, much smaller scale than a game like No Man’s Sky, with just a handful of planets to explore. That might sound tedious, but Outer Wilds incentivizes exploring different strands of mysteries on each run as they’re unlocked in your ship’s handy log. Specifically, each run only lasts roughly 22 minutes, at which point you’re returned to your origin point to blast off into space all over again. Oh, and one time I accidentally unwrote the laws of physics, causing the abrupt undoing of all existence. During my time with the game, I forgot to wear my space suit before leaving the ship, flew into the sun, got crushed by rising piles of sand and had my ship fall into a black hole countless times. The universe is a beautiful, yet terrifying place in Outer Wilds.

You’re a spacefaring alien creature known as a Hearthian, and are tasked with pootling around your solar system in a spaceship so rickety that it would give Wallace and Gromit cause for concern. While Outer Wilds has blasted off from Game Pass since it launched on the platform, the impression it left is unforgettable.

(Image credit: Microsoft) Outer Wilds (2019)

Best games on xbox game pass 2019