The Maligned Avengers Get Second Chance on Xbox Game Pass

Can Microsoft’s Game Pass breathe new life into Square Enix’s superhero game?

A screenshot of an angry, roaring Hulk from Marvel's Avengers.
Go big green!
Screenshot: Square Enix

In a world where blockbuster comic book video games flounder due to repetitive endgame content, one subscription game service takes Earth’s mightiest heroes under its wing. It’s Xbox Game Pass to Marvel’s Avengers’ rescue as the multiplayer superhero game joins Microsoft’s service this Thursday.

It’s been a little over a year since Square Enix released Marvel’s Avengers, and we players have fallen into a pattern of alternating excitement and boredom based on the game’s sporadic downloadable content releases. We get excited when a new character is added like Hawkeye, Hawkeye, or the recently-released Black Panther. Then we play through the new content in a couple of hours and are bored again by the end of the week. The game’s ongoing story continues to shine, but only in small bursts that dissipate quickly.

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Perhaps the game’s addition to Xbox Game Pass is the shot in the arm Marvel’s Avengers needs. Starting September 30, subscribers to Xbox Game Pass for Xbox, PC, and even those streaming via the cloud will be able to hop into Square Enix’s Avengers adventure completely free of charge. That includes all of the wonderful story content from the game’s launch right up through the War for Wakanda expansion.

Read More: Black Panther: War For Wakanda Is The Best Marvel’s Avengers DLC

New players will also gain access to Avengers’ post-story content, including extensive multiplayer missions, raids, and other content designed to be played over and over again in order to make your superheroes’ stats go up. It’s not the most exciting endgame, but maybe a massive influx of new players can make it a little more interesting for us old-timers. New people to play with is always a good thing, no matter what you’re playing.

What Xbox Game Pass players won’t get, of course, is the PlayStation exclusive Spider-Man DLC, whenever that comes along. They also won’t automatically get the special MCU-inspired costumes originally included in the digital-only Endgame Edition, but those eight cosmetic items can be purchased in a bundle for $20 if you have absolutely no self-respect.