Xbox Game Pass is scheduled to lose five games later today, with the April 15 departures including Grand Theft Auto 5, one of the highest-rated titles on the service. In spite of these imminent library losses, the first half of April 2026 has still been a notable net positive for the size of the Xbox Game Pass catalog.
In the first quarter of the year, Microsoft’s subscription service lost a total of 28 games, with nearly half of them pulled in January. By contrast, the latest Xbox Game Pass removal wave was unusually small, as Mad Streets and Peppa Pig: World Adventures were the only two titles to leave at the end of March 2026.
Xbox Game Pass Adds Day-One Cyberpunk Game and 2 Other Titles
The so far largest Xbox Game Pass release wave of April 2026 introduces three new titles, including a much-anticipated day-one cyberpunk game.
GTA 5 Headlines First Wave of April 2026 Game Pass Removals
A much larger wave of removals is due to take place later today, with another five titles due to leave the service around midnight, April 16, local time. The April 15 Xbox Game Pass departures are headlined by Grand Theft Auto 5, currently one of the highest-rated titles available on the service, boasting an average OpenCritic score of 92. In addition to Rockstar’s evergreen open-world hit, the upcoming wave of catalog removals includes 2024 JRPG Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes, 2018 soulslike Ashen, 2024 family-friendly platformer My Little Pony: A Zephyr Heights Mystery, and 2022 grand strategy game Terra Invicta, which is fresh out of early access as of January 2026.
GTA 5 was last added to Xbox Game Pass in April 2025, having spent exactly one year on the service. That is by far its longest stint as part of Microsoft’s content catalog to date. Its first three runs on Xbox Game Pass have all lasted between four and six months. Besides being among the highest-rated titles on the service, GTA 5 is also its most commercially successful game, although that distinction extends across every platform on which it is available. That has been the case since April 2018, when GTA 5 officially became the highest-grossing entertainment product of all time, surpassing $6 billion in sales. The game generated another $2.6 billion in revenue over the following eight years, underscoring its enduring popularity.
All Xbox Game Pass Games Leaving April 15, 2026
|
Game |
First Added |
Stint Duration |
OpenCritic Avg. |
How Long To Beat |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Ashen |
Oct 2024 |
1 year, 5 months |
80 |
16–27 hours |
|
Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes |
Feb 2025 |
1 year, 2 months |
75 |
46–99 hours |
|
Grand Theft Auto 5 |
Apr 2025 |
1 year |
92 |
32–89 hours |
|
My Little Pony: A Zephyr Heights Mystery |
Jan 2026 |
3 months |
N/A |
4–11 hours |
|
Terra Invicta |
Mar 2024 |
2 years |
N/A |
68–150 hours |
The new Xbox Game Pass arrivals from the first half of April 2026 have already offset the entirety of today’s mid-month departure wave. Specifically, the service has already added eight new titles since the turn of the month, with five more already confirmed to be coming before its end. That’s without counting the Wave 2 lineup for April 2026, which has yet to be formally unveiled but is all but certain to include at least a few surprises.
Guess the games from the emojis.
Guess the games from the emojis.
Easy (120s)Medium (90s)Hard (60s)
Based on Microsoft’s recent announcement cadence, the next two-week content roadmap is most likely to be shared on April 21. If that happens, it would mark the 10th straight Xbox Game Pass lineup announcement to fall on a Tuesday. The last deviation from this pattern was the October 2025 Wave 2 lineup, which was announced on a Wednesday.
- Released
-
September 17, 2013
- ESRB
-
M For Mature 17+ due to Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Mature Humor, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Use of Drugs and Alcohol
- Developer(s)
-
Rockstar North
