SnowRunner. Best games on Xbox Game Pass in 2024 (December)

• What to choose?
• Forza Motorsport
• Halo: The Master Chief Collection
• Microsoft Flight Simulator
• Resident Evil 2 and 3
• Gears 5
• SnowRunner
• Wartales
• Doom Eternal
• Ori and the Will of the Wisps
• Age of Mythology: Retold
• Hellblade
• Yakuza 0
• No Man's Sky
• Against the Storm
• Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
• Hi-Fi Rush
• Psychonauts 2
• Diablo 4
• Stalker 2

SnowRunner

It's the complete opposite of Forza Motorsport. Instead of shiny, fast coupes and sedans, we get tractors, trucks and trailers. It's not about going fast, it's about going cautiously. And that usually means going slower than molasses uphill in January. There are almost no paved roads in SnowRunner, so any cargo delivery missions consist mainly of strenuous trudging through mud, swamps and rocky trails.

The game takes more than operating thrrottle and breaks – we control gearboxes, differentials, reduction drives, winches, and all that off-road jazz. The graphics are really solid, there's a ton of parts to unlock and buy. With the advanced physics, the ground deforms under the weight of vehicles and cargo, and it's really easy to get stuck. All of this makes moving forward quite a challenge.

What makes it worth playing?

SnowRunner offers a very different type of gameplay than most games. Demanding, testing the patience, sometimes giving a taste of defeat, but at the same time being extremely relaxing on its own terms. There is no plot or characters to focus on – just the machine and the next few feet of the road. On top of that, the game brings a nice sense of progress, and allows you to play with friends in co-op. Varied maps and hidden secrets encourage players to drive even more. Besides, the developers are constantly expanding the game and adding a new challenges to it, should someone have already completed all the previous ones.

1. SnowRunner in our encyclopedia