With EA Play adding even more games to the already stacked Xbox Game Pass line-up, it's hard to know what to play first. Here are some of our top picks from the EA Play library.
The EA Play library comes as part of an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription, offering players a chance to revisit old favourites or discover a bunch of new games they might not have necessarily played before. If you're new to the service, then you might be wondering where to start with so many great games on offer. Here are some of the best games currently available with EA Play.
Battlefield: Bad Company 2
Do you want to know a little secret? Sh. You can't tell anyone. Ignore the bomb blast outside and the fact we are chatting beneath the bow of an enemy tank and just focus on my lips when I say this: "It never got better than Battlefield: Bad Company 2." Now the tank is reversing back out of your crumbling messy spawn point, we can hear the jeers of: "It was Battlefield 1 that was best, actually." Another call: "Nay! 'Twas Battlefield 4 and leveloution, good sir." Staff writer Tom, you can actually see his bearded figure across this desolate ruin of a village, is shouting something to the tune of "Battlefield Hardline was the best!" No, you and I, we tread backwards. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 brings the vehicle combat, the large maps, and the class system we love elsewhere but does one thing to make it all work perfectly — useful, precision destruction. Look around us. We have seen planes ducking and diving through the air, only to shoot the pilot out from a tiny hole in the wall. We have fought from the first floor to the second floor across two houses with the enemy; only to C4 a rover, drive it over a hill and onto the roof of their building, detonate the car, and take the entire house and the enemies. Rush is so intense here in Bad Company. The guns feel so crisp, and the atmosphere is thriving at every turn. It doesn't get better than this — this continues to be true; with Battlefield 2042, the most recent title in the series, having metaphorically crashed and burned as soon as it was out the gate. If there was ever a time to turn the franchise around, now is the time, and the blueprint for the future is found within Bad Company 2, probably... probably. Hardline 2, anyone?
Battlefield Bad Company 2
Battlefield: Bad Company™ 2 brings the award-winning Battlefield gameplay to the forefront of Xbox 360 console with best-in-class vehicular combat and unexpected "Battlefield moments." New vehicles like the ATV and a transport helicopter allow for all-new multiplayer tactics on the Battlefield. With the Frostbite-enabled Destruction 2.0 system, you can take down entire buildings and create your own fire points by blasting holes through cover. You can also compete in four-player teams in two squ…
Burnout Paradise Remastered
As far as arcade racers go, Burnout Paradise Remastered is one of the best and most exhilarating. The remaster brings the Xbox 360 classic into the modern age with support for 4K resolution and 60fps. Set in an open world that's filled with chaos, you'll be racing through narrow city streets at extremely high speeds while trying to dodge oncoming traffic, taking out other racers, and performing death-defying stunts. The takedowns and the crashes in the racer are so beautifully brutal that they never get old — you'll be hard-pressed to find crashes and takedowns that are satisfying as the ones in Burnout Paradise Remastered. Plus, that soundtrack? Sublime.
Burnout™ Paradise Remastered
Welcome back to Paradise City! Make action your middle name as you rule the streets in Burnout™ Paradise Remastered! Tear it up in the ultimate driving playground, from hectic downtown avenues to the wild mountain roads. Relive the high-octane stunts and wanton destruction of one of the greatest arcade-driving games ever!
Dead Space
If you're in the mood for something truly terrifying, the Xbox 360 horror hit Dead Space has got you covered — and what's more, the Xbox Series X|S remake of the same name, Dead Space, is launching on January 27th. The third-person action horror sees engineer Isaac Clarke sent to repair a communications array on the vast mining ship, the USG Ishimura. Once aboard, Clarke finds crewmembers mutilated and infected by an alien plague and has to fight his way through the nightmare ship. Dead Space has a TA community rating of 4.44 and is widely regarded as one of the best horror games of the 360 era. Dead Space 2 and Dead Space 3 are also included in EA Play, and they're also pretty damn good, so if you fancy playing through the entire trilogy, you can! Just don't blame us when you can't sleep at night.
Dead Space (2008)
When an immense mining ship, the USG Ishimura, comes into contact with a mysterious alien artifact in a remote star system, its communications with Earth are mysteriously cut off. Engineer Isaac Clarke is sent to repair the Ishimura's communications array, but he arrives to find a living nightmare-the ship is a floating bloodbath, the crew unspeakably mutilated and infected by an ancient alien scourge. Clarke's repair mission becomes one of survival as he fights not just to save himself, but to
Dead Space™ 2
Engineer Isaac Clarke returns for another blood-curdling adventure in the sequel to the critically acclaimed Dead Space™. After waking from a coma on a massive space city known as “The Sprawl”, the lone survivor of a horrific alien infection finds himself confronting a catastrophic new nightmare. Battling dementia, hunted by the government, and haunted by visions of his dead girlfriend, Isaac will do whatever it takes to save himself and dominate the gruesome onslaught. With an arsenal of tools…
Dead Space™ 3
Dead Space 3 brings Isaac Clarke and merciless soldier John Carver on a journey across space to discover the source of the Necromorph plague and uncover the secrets that lay within Tau Volantis. Play alone as Isaac Clarke or with a friend as John Carver in seamless drop in, drop out co-op feature. Amplify the action with Kinect and add voice to your arsenal in single player or co-op.
Dragon Age series
With your EA Play or Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription, you get access to BioWare's stellar trio of fantasy RPGs: Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age II, and Dragon Age: Inquisition. Set on the continent of Thedas, the Dragon Age series revolves around stories born out of an event known as a Blight, where hundreds of Darkspawn spring up from underground and invade the surface world. In Origins, you are tasked with defeating the Archdemon and stopping the Blight, while in Dragon Age 2, the story focuses on Hawke, a refugee who flees the Blight seen in the first game. The third game, Dragon Age: Inquisition, sees a giant rift open in the sky that unleashes demons upon the sky, and it's your job as the Grand Inquisitor to close that rift and put an end to an otherworldly threat. If you're looking for a series of games to get stuck into that's lore-heavy, has some superbly written characters that you'll need to recruit, and has excellent gameplay, then Dragon Age has got you covered.
Dragon Age: Origins
From the makers of Mass Effect comes the dark fantasy epic: You are a Grey Warden, one of the last of a legendary order of guardians. With the return of mankind's ancient foe and the kingdom engulfed in civil war, you have been chosen by fate to unite the shattered lands and slay the archdemon once and for all. (1) Immerse yourself in a shattered world on the brink of annihilation; (2) Experience complex moral decisions that have game-changing consequences; (3) Sculpt your hero in your own imag…
Dragon Age™ 2
You are one of the few who escaped the destruction of your home. Now, forced to fight for survival in an ever-changing world, you must gather the deadliest of allies, amass fame and fortune, and seal your place in history. This is the story of how the world changed forever.
Dragon Age™: Inquisition
The epic role-playing series from BioWare takes a thrilling leap forward with Dragon Age™: Inquisition. Beautiful vistas and incredible new possibilities await you.
It Takes Two
For the co-op lovers out there, nothing comes close to It Takes Two, and luckily for you, it's included with EA Play! Hooray! It Takes Two takes you and a pal on a "genre-bending platform adventure" where you'll need to work with your co-op buddy to solve puzzles and help the game's two protagonists, Cody and May, who have also been turned into dolls by a magic spell, escape the chaotic and fantastical world where they're trapped. The game is inventive and has a wonderful, heartwarming, and funny story that you won't be able to stop playing.
It Takes Two - Digital Version
It Takes Two uses Smart Delivery technology - buy the game once and play it on Xbox One or Xbox Series X|S.
Embark on the craziest journey of your life in It Takes Two, a genre-bending co-op adventure. Invite a friend to join for free with Friend’s Pass* across an abundance of gleefully disruptive gameplay challenges with a heartfelt story.
Mass Effect Legendary Edition
Mass Effect Legendary Edition is the highest-rated game in EA Play according to our community ratings, and deservedly so. The Legendary Edition includes excellent remasters of Mass Effect, Mass Effect 2, and Mass Effect 3 as well as over 40 DLC packs from across the trilogy. Visually, BioWare has gone through all three games and updated all the textures, improved the various environments, enhanced character models, and improved the lighting in both gameplay and cutscenes, breathing new life into the ageing space opera series. You play as Commander Shepherd, who sets out on a space-hopping journey to bring an end to the Reapers —a race of highly-advanced synthetic/organic spaceships who are intent on wiping out the entire galaxy. If you haven't checked out the Mass Effect series, this Legendary Edition is the definitive way to play the game, and if you already have and your due a revisit, the Mass Effect Legendary Edition achievements, with a combined total of 2,915G, should be enough to tempt you back into the fray.
Mass Effect™ Legendary Edition
The Mass Effect™ Legendary Edition includes single-player base content and over 40 DLC from the highly acclaimed Mass Effect, Mass Effect 2, and Mass Effect 3 games, including promo weapons, armors, and packs – remastered and optimized for 4K Ultra HD.
Mirror's Edge
DICE's parkour-driven action game Mirror's Edge puts you in the shoes of Faith, a Runner that specialises in carrying sensitive information in a city under constant surveillance. Faith soon becomes embroiled in a murderous plot and becomes hunted. When it launched on Xbox 360 in 2010, it was quickly praised for its fantastic visuals and fast-paced gameplay, thanks to its use of Unreal Engine 3. Its sequel game, Mirror's Edge Catalyst is just as good as its predecessor, so don't forget to check that out as well. Between this and Bad Company 2, it feels like this list is a throwback to DICE's greatest hits — let's just hope we see more games like this coming from the studio in the future.
Mirror's Edge™
In a city where information is heavily monitored, where crime is just a memory, where most people have sacrificed freedom for a comfortable life, Some choose to live differently. Some. like you, are Runners, phenomenally agile messengers who deliver sensitive information for a price. You are a Runner called Faith. Murder has come to this city. And now you are being hunted.
Peggle
Half luck and half skill, both Peggle and Peggle 2 task you with firing bouncy balls at brightly coloured pegs in the hope that you can rack up score multipliers when it ricochets around the screen. Both games come amped with upbeat soundtracks that will hopefully help you stay reasonably calm during the moments when your luck is running a little dry and bolstered even further with brightly coloured scenes filled with mystical creatures and fantastic environments. The single-player mode is a great was of relaxing after a long or day, but it's the multiplayer mode that really makes both games a must-play, as the competition can become pretty fierce. Honestly, the simplicity of Peggle is a breath of fresh air compared to the majority of games listed here, and that simplicity makes it a perfect game to play with kids!
Peggle
Experience the ball-bouncing, peg-busting phenomenon! Do you have what it takes to become a Peggle™ Master? Take your best shot! Conquer 55 levels with 10 mystical Magic Powers and rack up bonus points. Face off against friends in 4-player Xbox LIVE® multiplayer play, and test your skills in 75 Grand Master Challenges.
Peggle 2
Peggle 2 is a magical game full of bouncing balls, magical pegs and bricks made of pure compressed joy! Discover 5 magical Peggle Masters and use their preposterous powers over 120 levels and trials to shatter expectations and acquire high scores beyond the realm of plausibility ! And then, once you've honed your talents, deploy them against others in 4-player Peg party mode, or against a single opponent in Duel mode.
Skate 3
We've recently seen a resurgence of skateboarding games with the likes of the superb Tony Hawks Pro Skater 1+2 Remastered, Session, and Skater XL. Although each one of these games is great, fans have been begging EA for a new entry into the Skate franchise for years now. Instead, they've had to make do with Skate 3 — an Xbox 360 title released back in 2010 that still holds up remarkably well today. In fact, since Skate 3 came to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate via EA Play, we've seen the game feature numerous times in our weekly Xbox Gameplay Chart. Skate 3 is a bit of a slow burn, to begin with, but it still holds up today and offers some engaging gameplay (once you've got to grips with controls), and is great either solo or with some pals online.
Skate 3
The SKATE™ franchise is back and rolling into new territory as SKATE™ 3 heads to the brand new city of Port Carverton. Delivering a unique co-op skateboarding experience, build your own customized skate team and change the face of the city by taking on unique team challenges, competing against rival crews online, and shredding the streets of an all-new skaters’ paradise. SKATE™ 3 - Team Up. Throw Down.
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is superb, and it's one that everyone with either an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate or EA Play subscription should at least check out. The action-adventure game that leans heavily into the Metroidvania sub-genre has been received well by the TA community (currently sitting with a 4.40 rating) and critics alike. You play as Cal Kestis, a Jedi Padawan that manages to survive Order 66 and sets out on a journey to rebuild the Jedi Order. Aside from the fluid lightsaber combat that only gets better over time with the more abilities you unlock, the story, which feels like a true Star Wars story, will also have you gripped to the very end. Plus, it's a pretty straightforward completion as far as the achievement list is concerned. With the game's sequel, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, set to launch on March 17th for Xbox Series X|S, we'll be interested to see if it can join this phenomenal galactic adventure on our list here.
Titanfall 2
Titanfall 2 is a first-person shooter where players pilot ten-metre tall mechs. When it launched back in 2016, the game saw largely favourable reviews, and that's reflected in the TA community's rating, who have given Respawn's action-packed FPS a 4.34/5 rating. Although the campaign is excellent, it's a little short for some gamer's tastes. However, the multiplayer is where Titanfall 2 really shines. Multiplayer matches are often tense, close affairs, filled with various wall-running/parkour opportunities to snag kills thanks to some super map design.
Titanfall® 2
From Respawn Entertainment comes Titanfall® 2.
Featuring the debut of a singleplayer campaign and a deeper multiplayer experience, Titanfall® 2 delivers more of the innovative, fast, fluid gameplay fans expect from the series.
What are your favourite games from the EA Play library? Let us know your top picks in the comments below!