Microsoft has dropped the second official Game Pass lineup for September 2026, and it runs all the way through the first week of October. 15 games total, spread across Ultimate, PC, Premium, and Essential tiers, with some heavy hitters in the mix.
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The headliners you actually care about
Gears of War: E-Day is the biggest name here, landing on Series X|S, PC, and Cloud on October 6 for Ultimate and PC subscribers. It's been one of the most anticipated Xbox exclusives in years, so having it arrive day one on Game Pass is exactly what subscribers pay for.
Dune: Awakening hits on September 22 across all three tiers (Ultimate, PC, and Premium), which is worth noting since a fair number of the games in this batch are Premium-only additions. The open-world survival MMO set on Arrakis has been building a solid player base since launch, and console subscribers finally get their shot.
Ninja Gaiden 4 joins Premium on September 17, and Minecraft Dungeons 2 arrives for Ultimate and PC on September 29. Both are genuine draws.
The full schedule, tier by tier
Rematch deserves a callout here. It's the only title in this batch landing on Game Pass Essential, which is the entry-level tier. That's a meaningful addition for subscribers on the cheaper plan.
What's also happening this week
RuneScape: Dragonwilds kicked things off today (September 15) for Ultimate and PC subscribers. The co-op survival game set on Ashenfall, RuneScape's forgotten continent, is a notable experiment for the franchise, and it's available on day one through Game Pass.
Separately, an EA Sports FC 27 free trial goes live September 18 for Ultimate and PC subscribers through EA Play. It's not a permanent addition, but worth knowing if you want to test it before committing.
On the flip side, 8 games are leaving Game Pass in late September, including Atomfall, Little Nightmares 2, and Sifu. If any of those are sitting in your backlog, now's the time.
Survival game fans are eating well this month
Between RuneScape: Dragonwilds and Dune: Awakening, September is stacking up as a strong month for co-op survival. If Dune: Awakening's new features have you curious, check out our guide to every new feature confirmed for Subnautica 2's Early Access for a sense of what the genre's best are doing right now in terms of co-op and base building.
Gears of War: E-Day on October 6 gives Game Pass subscribers something to look forward to heading into the back half of fall. For more coverage across new releases and what's worth your time this season, the GAMES.GG gaming guides hub has you covered.
