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After Microsoft's latest announcement of Xbox Game Pass membership changes, including a price increase for the top tier to $30 per month, many subscribers are looking for fresh methods to maximize their subscription. If you keeping their membership or considering joining, we present this week's recommendations.

This weekend's titles include a acclaimed Japanese role-playing game, a charming indie journey, and a superb puzzler set to leave the service shortly.

Persona 4 Golden

Among the top ways to maximize value from your subscription is by immersing yourself in a lengthy, captivating role-playing game — and Persona 4 Golden fits that description perfectly. You step into the role of a high school student who has relocated to the sleepy countryside of Inaba. During the day, your objectives include forming new friends, taking on part-time jobs, and keeping up with studies. At night, you investigate a chilling serial murder case by venturing into unique locations themed around your companions' deepest insecurities.

With a memorable group of heroes, strategic battle system, flawless art design, and a plot packed with surprises, Persona 4 Golden is considered a masterpiece for good reason. It also boasts a incredibly engrossing gameplay loop that will have you playing past bedtime, repeatedly.

Sopa - Tale of the Stolen Potato

Although big titles like Ninja Gaiden 4 are a key attraction for Game Pass, the platform also highlights lesser-known indie gems. A great example of this is Sopa: Tale of the Stolen Potato. Drawing from Spirited Away, this enchanting indie game is a fantasy journey steeped in Latin American traditions. Players follow Miho, who, after helping his grandma prepare soup, is pulled into a vibrant realm populated by potato-stealing frogs and various quirky animals.

Sopa plays out like an educational PC game from the 1990s, as Miho tackles challenges and aids the world's inhabitants by collecting an inventory of objects. Though it's a little rough around the edges, Sopa: Tale of the Stolen Potato is a heartwarming small game that openly showcases its love for South America.

Cocoon: A Puzzle Adventure

Cocoon is scheduled to exit Game Pass on Oct. 15, giving you only a short time to experience it via your membership — and you definitely must. Developer the creators designed one of the finest puzzlers of recent years in the 2023 release Cocoon: A Puzzle Adventure. Its core gameplay element revolves around moving between realms within additional dimensions, and often you'll carry those worlds, in the shape of colorful orbs, alongside you.

Although it doesn't have explicit instructions, everything about Cocoon's puzzles is designed in a highly natural manner, yet they can challenge you as well. 2023 was a massive period for games, so it's no surprise if Cocoon was a bit overlooked by many players. Let's correct that while we can.