Day One Sci-Fi Adventure Game Is Coming to Xbox Game Pass April 28

Sci-fi adventure Aphelion is coming to Xbox Game Pass on April 28, Don’t Nod Entertainment has announced. This is the second day-one title confirmed to be joining the Xbox Game Pass catalog in April 2026.

Aphelion was originally announced during the June 2025 Xbox Games Showcase. Its reveal trailer promised a cinematic third-person action adventure set on an icy planet called Persephone. While fictional, the setting is rooted in science, being based on the solar system’s hypothetical “Planet Nine,” which some physicists speculate may be orbiting the Sun at the edge of the Kuiper Belt, following a much wider orbit than Neptune. Don’t Nod collaborated with the European Space Agency, which gave developers access to scientists who helped refine the game’s story and other elements, with the overall goal being to deliver a proper hard sci-fi setting.

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Aphelion Reveals Release Date in Latest Trailer

A new Aphelion trailer was introduced during the 2026 iteration of the Future Games Show Spring Showcase, held on March 12. The two-minute video presented a combination of gameplay footage and in-engine cutscenes, ultimately ending on a release date reveal: April 28. As previously announced, Aphelion will be a day-one Xbox Game Pass title, available to PC Game Pass and Ultimate-tier subscribers. Apart from the Xbox Series X/S and PC, Don’t Nod’s upcoming game will also be playable via Xbox Cloud Gaming.

Rearrange the covers into the correct US release order.

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Beyond the Xbox ecosystem, Aphelion will have a day-and-date release on both the PlayStation 5 and Steam. The console versions of the game went up for pre-orders on March 12, priced at $31.49. The figure includes a 10% early-bird discount available ahead of the sci-fi adventure’s launch. The Steam version of Aphelion is still not available for pre-purchase as of this writing. Don’t Nod is offering pre-order bonuses in the form of some colorful in-game cosmetics, three backpack keychains, a trio of digital stickers, and two space suits: Space Pioneer and Space Hero.

Aphelion follows astronauts Ariane Montclair and Thomas Cross after their ship crashes on the frozen planet Persephone. The disaster separates them and turns the mission into a fight to reunite, survive, and uncover what went wrong. Don’t Nod describes Aphelion as a story of “love, resilience, and hope.” Several trailers for the game, including this newly debuted one, have offered glimpses of an extraterrestrial creature that appears to stalk the two protagonists as the story unfolds. The French developer previously cited Alien: Isolation‘s brand of sci-fi horror as one of the main inspirations for Aphelion, alongside Christopher Nolan’s hit film Interstellar.

With Aphelion formally locking down a release date, Xbox Game Pass now has two confirmed titles for April 2026. The first is Replaced, Sad Cat Studios’ dystopian action platformer set in an alternate version of the 1980s United States. Announced in 2021, the stylish 2.5D game originally targeted a 2022 release but encountered multiple roadblocks during development. Replaced was most recently delayed from February 18 to April 14. Because the latest postponement is relatively small, there is renewed optimism among fans that the game will meet its latest release date.

Other Xbox Game Pass Games Possibly Releasing in April 2026

Beastro
Denshattack
Erosion
Freestyle Football 2
Kiln
Raji: Kaliyuga
Witchbrook

Beyond Replaced and Aphelion, Xbox Game Pass currently has seven other day-one titles that could possibly launch in April 2026. This group includes Beastro, Denshattack, and Erosion, as well as Freestyle Football 2, Kiln, Witchbrook, and Raji: Kaliyuga. All seven were previously announced for either early 2026 or spring 2026, making April a plausible release window. Looking at the more immediate future, Xbox Game Pass is adding its next title, DreamWorks Gabby’s Dollhouse: Ready to Party, on March 17. That’s also when the service is expected to reveal its Wave 2 lineup for March 2026.