Xbox Game Pass drops Russian Roulette freebie you'll definitely play more than once

Xbox Game Pass is currently boasting a short and sweet game you can beat in less than half an hour, but one playthrough won’t be enough.

Some of the latest additions to Xbox Game Pass have been nothing short of exemplary as of late.

The library consists of hidden indie gems, friend-slop games you can play online and first-party exclusives you’ll want to play before the next big release. For instance, the entire Gears of War and Halo collection can be played prior to Gears of War: E-Day and Halo: Campaign Evolved respectively.

One of the newest games to land in Xbox’s subscription service is called Buckshot Roulette, which will appeal to the Balatro and Vampire Crawlers fans out there.

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Xbox Game Pass’ new addition, Buckshot Roulette, feels right at home on the service

Buckshot Roulette is an unsettling but fun game available with your Xbox Game Pass Premium membership or higher.

It’s a russian-roulette game basically, but instead of a revolver it’s a shotgun filled with a random assortment of live rounds and blanks. Across the table is a supernatural entity who’s playing the game with you, and should you win you’ll walk away with not only your life, but a cash prize.

Players take turns picking up the shotgun and choosing either themselves or the other player, and once one player has lost all of their lives the game ends.

There are three rounds in total and from the second round onwards they start taking a little longer, but only because you gain access to modifiers. You could get a magnifying glass that shows you what shell is currently loaded into the shotgun, or a pack of cigarettes which somehow restores one of your lives.

CRITICAL REFLEX

A successful run should only take you around 25 minutes though according to HowLongToBeat, making Buckshot Roulette one of those quick-and-easy games to download and play when you’ve got a spare half an hour.

Now, you could leave it behind once you roll the credits, but as the bizarre PS1-like visuals and cryptic words spewing from the entity's mouth imply, there’s more to this game than meets the eye.

HowLongToBeat reckons a full completionist run of the game will take you around nine hours, so there’s plenty more to enjoy should you feel obliged to solve the mystery that delves within.

Or, you could jump online and play the multiplayer mode instead. This one is a lot of fun to play with friends and you’ll get a kick out of sabotaging each other.

Buckshot Roulette was a success on PC when it launched on Steam in 2024 and it’s quickly became just as successful on Xbox thanks to Xbox Game Pass.

Video games nowadays can often feel like a second-job with how long they take to finish. Sprawling open-world RPGs are often good value for money, but they can eat away at your time like no other game can.

With that in mind a game like Buckshot Roulette feels like a breath of fresh air in comparison for how short it is, and no, we’re talking about the fresh air pouring through the back of your head when you lose.

It’s available now for Xbox Game Pass Premium and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers, and worth regardless of your intention. Whether you just want a simple game of chance to play when you’ve got a rare spot of free time or feel compelled to uncover the deep lore, you’ll have fun either way.