Game Pass September Wave 2: Gears of War: E-Day Goes Day One October 6, Minecraft Dungeons II Follows September 29, and Eight Games Leave September 30

The second September Game Pass wave went up on Xbox Wire yesterday, and it is the drop the Xbox side of 2026 has been building toward. Gears of War: E-Day lands day one on October 6 for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass, and Microsoft has stacked fourteen additions around it between September 15 and October 6. Minecraft Dungeons II goes day one on September 29, Dune: Awakening makes its console debut on September 22, Ninja Gaiden 4 opens to Premium on September 17, and Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 reaches Premium on September 25. Eight games leave on September 30.

Where the first September wave leaned on a 2020 Call of Duty campaign and a RuneScape console launch, this one has four genuine day one releases and a headliner that is Xbox's biggest exclusive of the year. It also carries a lot of "Now with Game Pass Premium" labels, which matter more than they sound, so we have split those out below.

Video: Xbox on YouTube

The lineup, day by day

RuneScape: Dragonwilds opened the wave on September 15 for Ultimate, Premium and PC Game Pass on cloud, Series X|S and PC. September 16 is a four-game day: Marvel Cosmic Invasion, the beat 'em up with fifteen Marvel heroes; Planet of Lana II, the sci-fi puzzle platformer; Routine, the first person horror on an abandoned lunar base; and Ultimate Sheep Raccoon, a co-op bike racing party game. All four are Premium unlocks on cloud, console and PC. September 17 brings Kernel Hearts day one for Ultimate and PC members, an action RPG with roguelike runs and optional co-op, alongside Ninja Gaiden 4 for Premium.

September 22 doubles up. Dune: Awakening arrives on Ultimate, Premium and PC Game Pass across cloud, Series X|S, handheld and PC, the open world survival game on Arrakis that has been PC only until now, and Well Dweller goes day one for Ultimate and PC members, a dark fairy tale metroidvania where you play a bird armed with a matchstick. Mad King Redemption, a pixel art beat 'em up with roguelite progression, follows on September 23 for all three tiers.

The back half is the heavy one. Black Ops 6 reaches Premium on September 25 with its campaign, multiplayer and round based Zombies. Minecraft Dungeons II goes day one on September 29 for Ultimate and PC Game Pass on cloud, console, handheld and PC, sending you into the Sift to explore uncharted lands. Keeper, the wordless story of a lighthouse and a seabird, unlocks for Premium on October 2. And Gears of War: E-Day closes it on October 6, day one for Ultimate and PC Game Pass, putting you in the boots of a young Marcus Fenix and Dom Santiago on the day the Locust Horde first erupted. We covered its twelve player Horde Siege mode when the multiplayer was revealed in July.

Read the tier labels before you get excited

Half this list is not new to Game Pass. Marvel Cosmic Invasion, Planet of Lana II, Routine, Ultimate Sheep Raccoon, Ninja Gaiden 4, Black Ops 6 and Keeper are all marked "Now with Game Pass Premium", which means they were already playable on Ultimate and PC Game Pass and are now unlocking for the cheaper console tier. If you are on Ultimate or PC, the genuinely new games here are Dragonwilds, Dune: Awakening, Mad King Redemption and the four day one titles. If you are on Premium, the wave is much bigger for you, but none of the day one games, E-Day included, are part of your tier. One more tier move: Rematch, the five versus five third person football game, joins Game Pass Essential on September 25.

Perks, and the eight games leaving

The extras are unusually good this time. Sea of Thieves Season 21 starts September 17 with a free play weekend from September 17 to 21 that needs no subscription at all. EA Play members get an early access trial of EA Sports FC 27 on console and PC from September 18. Brawlhalla hands every tier a benefits pack on September 17 with the Kill Thrill Hattori skin, the Hattori legend unlock and the Regal Sun sword skin, and if that pulls you back in we keep a list of active Brawlhalla codes for a few more freebies. Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault, which hit 1.0 on September 2, is now on Series X|S and cloud for Premium members too.

Eight games leave on September 30: Atomfall, Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, Little Nightmares II Enhanced Edition, Little Rocket Lab, Sifu, SOPA Tale of the Stolen Potato, Sworn and Terminull Brigade. Sifu is the one to finish first.

Our honest read: this is the strongest wave of the year, with an asterisk. E-Day and Minecraft Dungeons II day one would carry any month on their own, and Dune: Awakening finally reaching console is a real addition. But the Premium labels pad the headline count, and Premium getting none of the four day one launches is the clearest picture yet of where Microsoft wants the two tiers to sit. If you needed a reason to hold Ultimate through October, this is it.