Two more games go free on Xbox

With the recent news that the long-standing Xbox Games with Gold service will no longer include retro Xbox 360 titles as of October 2022, you can be forgiven for thinking that the 360 offerings for July are to be ignored. Well, this may just not be the case, with Torchlight – originally released back in 2011 – going free today, with glowing critical acclaim. 

That’s right: with the middle of the month comes two more games for free for those of us making use of the Games with Gold service. As of today, both Torchlight and the 2020 release of Relicta go gold!

The original release of Torchlight over a decade ago set the stage of the sequel and threequel that came to our shores in recent years. From the developers of the legendary Diablo, Torchlight places you into the boots of a hero from one of three classes, and then tasks you with hacking and slashing through a number of dungeons that each contain a host of randomly generated monsters, loot pools and puzzles to tackle. It’s standard dungeon-crawling fare, and a perfect title to play through for a seasoned veteran of the genre, or even for a newbie looking to explore such titles. Torchlight is available to pick up for free until the 31st July.

If you don’t fancy throwing it back that far for your free games nowadays, then perhaps Relicta will suit? This one is one of the latest in a long line of first-person puzzlers first headed by Portal, and then built upon by the likes of The Witness and QUBE. Relicta tells the harrowing tale of a mother separated from her daughter on the isolating surface of the Moon, and it is up to the former to use her powerful gloves to perform a number of commands to manipulate her surroundings. You’ll be using the dual-mechanism of gravity and magnetism to make your way through a number of lunar settings, all in the aim of reuniting with your kin. Like Torchlight, Relicta is also free for Xbox fans until the 31st July.

As is the case with every month, with the arrival of two new titles onto Games with Gold, we must say farewell to another. Thrillville: Off the Rails is now no longer available to pick up for free – so if you forgot to pick up this 2007 theme park sim, you are out of luck. Furthermore, Beasts of Maravilla Island is still available for free on Games with Gold, with it being on the programme from the 1st-31st July.

Whilst it would be silly not to at least download any free title, will either Torchlight or Relicta be occupying you in the remainder of this month? Let us know in the comments below and on our usual social media channels.