Slime Rancher, the endearing first-person life simulation adventure game, will be removed from Xbox Game Pass later this month, according to creator Monomi Park. Slime Rancher was released as an early access title in January 2016, although it did not reach version 1.0 until August 2017. Following considerable acclaim, the game was later included in the Xbox Game Pass catalog in December 2020 and has since been one of the service’s prime selections for pleasant and cheerful titles.
Slime Rancher’s popularity spawned a sequel, Slime Rancher 2, which is set to enter early access on September 22. Slime Rancher 2 will transport players to Planet Far Far Range to complete their mission as the titular slime rancher, but this time with a lot more fun than ever. While waiting for the sequel, Xbox Game Pass customers may still be able to play the original Slime Rancher, which is reaching the end of the service’s inventory.
According to game director Nick Popovich, the original Slime Rancher will be removed from the Xbox Game Pass on September 30. This appears to be a correction to the incorrect information many players were receiving via the service’s notification, which stated that Slime Rancher is set to quit the site on September 15.
Slime Rancher is not the only game being removed from the Xbox Game Pass in preparation for the release of its sequel. A Plague Tale Innocence and Two Point Hospital were also removed from the Xbox Game Pass library as their successors are being added to the program. From a business perspective, it would make more sense for Microsoft to emphasize newer games over their predecessors, even though this would likely disappoint some players.
Still, the announcement that Slime Rancher is departing Xbox Game Pass may shock lovers of peaceful adventure games, especially after learning that the sequel would spend a considerable amount of time in early access without any milestones. Until the game is removed from the service, subscribers can continue playing Slime Rancher.
