Xbox Game Pass August 2026: Gears of War E-Day Beta and 10 New Games

Xbox Game Pass subscribers are receiving a significant boost this month with the addition of several new games. A total of 10 titles are coming to the Premium tier, while Ultimate subscribers get an exclusive early access to the Gears of War: E-Day Open Beta, available only to Ultimate and PC Game Pass members starting Thursday, August 6, running through the weekend.

Gears of War: E-Day Open Beta

The highlight of this month's update is the Gears of War: E-Day early access Open Beta, which opens tomorrow (Thursday, August 6) and runs through the weekend. This beta is exclusively available to Ultimate and PC Game Pass members.

New Additions to Premium and Ultimate

Three games are coming to Ultimate this month, including a Game Preview for Sandustry, which is not available for Premium subscribers. Sandustry, a factory game where players explore and mine fully destructible worlds, launches day one on Thursday, August 13.

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The other two titles arriving on Game Pass Ultimate for the first time are Cricket 26, the latest installment in the top-selling cricket simulation series, and chaotic sandbox Date Everything!, a dating simulator featuring 100 fully voiced characters.

Elsewhere, roguelite Monsters Are Coming! and PowerWash Simulator 2 are both available on Premium tomorrow, while Grounded 2’s game preview arrives on Premium on August 11. Popular roguelite Ball x Pit also lands on Premium next week, along with Mio: Memories in Orbit, Egging On, and more.

Games Leaving Game Pass

While these new games are exciting additions, four titles are departing on August 15 to make room: Menace, Atlas Fallen, Aliens: Fireteam Elite, and Firewatch.