GTA 6 leads November on Xbox, but four smaller games deserve a look
Grand Theft Auto 6 lands on Xbox Series X|S on November 19. Before that, Gravhounds, Escape Academy 2, Warhammer Survivors and Shrek 2 Remastered arrive.
Grand Theft Auto 6 arrives on November 19, and it will dominate November on Xbox. It is not the only release worth your time, though. Polygon picked five Xbox games for the month, and four of them land before Rockstar's open-world return to Vice City.
The five picks
Gravhounds (November 2). The month's most promising Xbox Game Pass addition is a co-op shooter where you and your friends fight aliens and build a base together. The hook: everyone plays as humanoid dogs. It stood out at Gamescom this year on visuals alone, so the big question is whether the shooting holds up.
Escape Academy 2: Back 2 School (November 5). The sequel to the 2023 split-screen escape room game adds more puzzle rooms, more worldbuilding and an explorable campus packed with secrets. If you want a couch co-op game for two this month, start here.
Warhammer Survivors (November 10). The team behind Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun takes the tabletop universe into Vampire Survivors territory. Expect a "bullet heaven" auto-shooter built around waves of carnage. It is a familiar formula, but the studio's Boltgun pedigree makes it one to watch.
Shrek 2 Remastered (November 10). It looks like a joke entry, but the 2004 original has real Xbox history. Shrek 2 was the second game shown at Xbox's E3 2004 presentation, right after a trailer for Unreal Championship 2: The Liandri Conflict. The remaster brings back its co-op adventure.
Grand Theft Auto 6 (November 19). Rockstar's crime epic is set in a Florida-inspired Vice City and built around a Bonnie and Clyde-style love story. Plenty has leaked over the years, yet the core story is still largely a mystery.
Why it matters
Game Pass has no major first-party tentpole this month, so November on Xbox is a split between one giant release and a run of smaller co-op games. That suits squads who want something to play together in the weeks before GTA 6. If you are catching up on the series first, Grand Theft Auto V is the obvious warm-up.
Release dates above are the dates Polygon listed. Check your local store for regional timing in Southeast Asia, as launch hours vary by market.
Source: Polygon.
