Xbox Game Pass games for when you're short on time

If you're looking for something to play on Xbox Game Pass even if you've only got a few minutes to spare, we've put together a list of some great games here...

Xbox Game Pass games for when you're short on time
Heidi Nicholas

Heidi Nicholas

Published

Since the last time we updated this article, there's been a big shift in the Xbox Game Pass library, and many of the best quick Xbox Game Pass games (such as Tetris Effect: Connected, Tinykin, and Toem) have dropped out of the service. Nevertheless, life remains as busy as ever, so we thought it a good time to refresh this list with new additions and updates for a round-up of some great games to play when you only have a few minutes — especially if you love easy and fast Xbox Game Pass completions.

The best quick Game Pass games for when you're short on time

While there can be some time to wind down and relax as the end of the year approaches, there's also potential for pure December madness. If you find your holiday calendar getting busier than ever and have less time to dive into something as lengthy as the best Xbox RPGs, then take a look through this list for some of our own choices of great games to pick up and play if you're short on time.

All of these titles are in Xbox Game Pass, and several have co-op capabilities, if you're also looking for a game to play with your family.

Hopefully, this should save you some time looking, (which you can spend gaming instead). There's occasionally an appearance of one of the best Game Pass games) and overall these are just a few of our personal picks; if you've got any more suggestions, let us know down in the comments!

Overcooked! 2

  • It's easy to start hunting down the Overcooked! 2 achievements, but it can be hard to stop
  • Developer: Ghost Town Games, Team17 Software
  • Xbox Game Pass tier: Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass Standard, Game Pass Core, PC Game Pass
The succession of short levels in Overcooked! 2 make it perfect for if you’re just as short on time, and if you’re looking for a game to play with your kids or other family members. The increasing difficulty of each level makes it one of those easy to learn, difficult to master games, and the progression through new areas, learning new recipes and coming up against new obstacles, keep the game from becoming even a tiny bit stale.

It’s one of those dangerous games you promise you’re only picking up “just for two minutes” before you look up after cooking your fifteenth pizza and realize hours have passed. Even so, having less time to play this wouldn’t necessarily be a drawback: despite its cutesy appearance, Overcooked! 2 has probably caused more arguments than a lot of other games out there, and it’s probably best for your all-round family happiness to put this game down from time to time.

After all, it’s all fun and games until there are nine seconds left on the clock, no clean plates, the hot air balloon you are, for some reason, cooking on is now falling through the sky, and you and your partner are both trapped on the same side of the kitchen.

We Love Katamari REROLL+ Royal Reverie

Katamari Damacy Reroll is one of those games which the word “wacky” can genuinely apply to. Previous shenanigans of the King of All Cosmos involved destroying all the stars — by accident, apparently — and sending his son to help him fix the problem.

In this game, the goal is once again to roll everything in the world into a rapidly-growing ball, until soon you are an unstoppable, freewheeling force of chaos, from which no object can hide. Whereas other games might demand you remember a saga of epic proportions and a convoluted list of characters, We Love Katamari REROLL+ Royal Reverie just asks you to zoom around the world, rolling everything you find into a ball with the katamari, and occasionally playing as the King himself through scenes of his childhood.

It’s bizarre, irresistible fun, and due to the nature of the game, very easy to dive back into for a few minutes. No endless quest logs and skill trees in sight — just keep on rolling that katamari.

Donut County

  • The Donut County achievements are an enjoyable way to wind down in a busy holiday period
  • Developer: Ben Esposito
  • Xbox Game Pass tier: Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass Standard, PC Game Pass
On the other end of the scale, we have physics puzzle game Donut County, where you are destruction itself in an entirely different way. Instead of rolling things up, you’re hoovering up the homes and belongings of the Donut County residents, and, often, the residents themselves (who are not too happy about it).

This is all done at the whim of a laid-back raccoon, who doesn’t trouble himself about the morality of his actions until their consequences catch up with him. Just like We Love Katamari REROLL+ Royal Reverie, it’s easy to boot up Donut County and just zone out for a few minutes of enjoyable chaos. Roll the katamari or destroy Donut County — both are great options, even if you’re short on time and only have minutes to play.

Vampire Survivors

  • Going after the Vampire Survivors achievements is an all-absorbing way to spend a few spare minutes
  • Developer: poncle
  • Xbox Game Pass tier: Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass Standard, Game Pass Core, PC Game Pass
Vampire Survivors is excellent in its own right, and another one on this list that might be easy to pick up but infinitely harder to put down. One of the things which makes this one a good choice to play when you don't have much time is that you still feel like you're making progress and picking up rewards left, right, and centre.

Vampire Survivors showers the screen with sparkling treasure, for instance, when you find treasure chests, and while the difficulty increases the longer you stay alive, so too do your character's powers, and it's an irresistible combination.

That's the only drawback with this one. You'll sit down and think, 'I can play this for ten minutes before I need to go pick up my family at the airport,' and before you know it — what airport? What was I meant to do? ...Another round of Vampire Survivors, right?

A Little to the Left

  • Organising household messes and solving puzzles with the A Little to the Left achievements is a wonderful way to unwind in a spare hour
  • Developer: Max Inferno
  • Xbox Game Pass tier: Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass Standard, PC Game Pass
On the complete opposite end of the chaos scale we have A Little to the Left, where the only thing that'll disturb your organizing and puzzle-solving is the occasional swipe of a cat's paw as it causes a new mess for you.

A Little to the Left is all about sorting through everyday household objects, solving puzzles, and arranging everything nicely as you go. You might be dealing with books, a messy draw, kitchen containers, or anything in between. It's a very calming experience as puzzle games go, and you've got the option to skip levels if you don't want to tackle them at the time, meaning you can breeze through to the levels you fancy.

Since the puzzles are intuitive and there's not an overarching story, you can easily pick this up to go through a level or two without worrying about anything.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge

If you fancy something a bit different from roll-em-up and chores, Shredder’s Revenge brings more classic beat ‘em up gameplay as the turtles and their allies face off against the likes of the Foot Clan, Krang, and Shredder.

In the story mode, you can start up a level and begin playing in minutes, going straight into fast-paced combat. Even if you’re going after something that takes more time than you could manage in one sitting, such as the “No need for Mutagen!” achievement which asks you to bring all the characters to max Power Level in the story mode, you can work towards this in small increments by replaying story levels whenever you’ve got a spare few minutes.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge has received high praise all round, so it definitely makes for a good contender for this list!

Lil Gator Game

  • Cuteness and coziness combine in the excellent Lil Gator Game achievements
  • Developer: MegaWobble
  • Xbox Game Pass tier: Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass Standard, PC Game Pass
How this game manages to pack so much charm into such a short experience I don’t know, but what I do know is that Lil Gator Game is entirely excellent and definitely needs to be on this list. It’s a shorter game anyway, but it’s also very easy to play in short bursts because of the fact that you’re free to do whatever you fancy.

Lil Gator Game sends you zooming all over its open world: gliding, swimming, ziplining, tobogganing down hills, with a freedom of movement and a joy of exploration similar to that in A Short Hike. The Lil Gator in question is trying to convince their big sister to play with them like they used to, and in the meantime is kept busy bashing cardboard enemies, helping out new friends across the island, and bringing everyone together to make the biggest childhood adventure ever.

McPixel 3

  • No one knows what's going on, but the McPixel 3 achievements are still a fun time
  • Developer: Sos Sosowski
  • Xbox Game Pass tier: Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass Standard, PC Game Pass
This is an odd one. What is McPixel 3? What is going on? Why are things sometimes on fire or exploding? Who knows, but McPixel 3 is nevertheless a great fit for a list like this, since all of its bizarre and unpredictable levels are very short. You'll have just enough time to stare at the screen in bafflement and try a few solutions to whatever ridiculous issue is confronting you before it's time to move on.

McPixel 3 is great silly fun and sees you moving through McBurg to find new adventures to confront on the quest for coins, to use for more adventures, to use for more coins. Sometimes there's a guy called Steve who shows up too. I've gotten turned around writing this, but the point still stands: if you haven't got much time, and want something completely unexpected to try out in the few minutes you do have, give McPixel 3 a shot!

Bonus: Arcade Paradise

  • There are countless distractions to keep you hunting after those Arcade Paradise achievements
  • Developer: NoseBleed Interactive
  • Xbox Game Pass tier: Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass Standard, PC Game Pass
Arcade Paradise might seem a bit of an odd choice for this list as it's a longer game if you're going for the completion (around 40 to 50 hours) and it gets more in-depth the longer you play. However, the fact that it's sort of broken up into "chores" as you work towards transforming your family's laundromat into a successful arcade means it's surprisingly easy and enjoyable to pick it up for a few minutes.

I realize "chores" isn't exactly selling it; but basically, we play as Ashley, who's trying to turn the business into something more enjoyable for herself while also proving her irritatingly-smug father wrong about her potential. Ashley sees everything like a game, so even emptying a washing machine or fixing a loo in Arcade Paradise is accompanied with something attention-grabbing; damage dealt to the toilet, for instance, or a score on how well you've done the laundry.

It is weirdly enjoyable to do mundane chores in this game, so you could easily spend a few minutes catching up on that, but that's before you even get to the arcade games themselves. There's a veritable treasure trove of arcade games to play, and it's easy to get lost in this game within a game, until Ashley's watch reminds her the shop is closed and she better go home. That's why Arcade Paradise is on this list: if you have a few extra minutes, you can load it up and dive into an arcade game or else wander about doing chores, having a great time as you do so.

That's just a few suggestions of some great games to pick up if you're short on time, especially if you're finding yourself busier than ever and without much time for your hobbies. There are so many more options to choose from, and don't forget there is always our hefty list of Game Pass easy achievements if you're looking for something along those lines! If you've got your own suggestions, let us know in the comments!
Written by Heidi Nicholas
Heidi tends to lean towards indie games, RPGs, and open-world games on Xbox, and when not playing Disney Dreamlight Valley, happily installs every new wholesome game that appears on Xbox Game Pass, before diving back into favorites like The Witcher 3. She's looking forward to Age of Mythology Retold, Everwild, Fable, and Avowed on the Xbox horizon. Heidi graduated with an MA in English Literature before joining the TrueAchievements team.
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