Game Pass RPGs to Play While Waiting for Final Fantasy VII Rebirth

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth landed in March 2024 as one of the year's most celebrated games. There's one problem for millions of players: it exists only on PlayStation 5. Xbox owners found themselves in familiar territory—locked out of a major release while watching others dive in. The original Final Fantasy VII has already rotated off Xbox Game Pass, so there's no obvious path back to Midgar for those on Microsoft's platform.

But Game Pass itself has quietly accumulated a respectable roster of RPGs that can occupy the space Rebirth would have filled. They won't replicate the experience exactly. Nothing could. But they're substantial games in their own right, each offering a different flavor of what makes role-playing games compelling.

Tales of Arise arrived on Game Pass recently and sits closest to what Rebirth offers. It's a 3D RPG built around real-time combat with a full party, the same structural DNA that defines Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. The Tales franchise has been around nearly as long as Final Fantasy itself—only eight years younger—and Arise represents the series at a high point. The cel-shaded art style, influenced by anime and manga, gives it visual personality that stands apart. Digital Trends gave it five stars. Spend enough hours there and the absence of Rebirth becomes easier to ignore.

Yakuza: Like a Dragon took a long-running action franchise and rebuilt it as a turn-based RPG. The protagonist, Ichiban Kasuga, ranks among the best RPG leads in recent memory—some would argue since Cloud Strife himself. The cast skews older than typical party rosters, which gives the whole enterprise a different texture. It's a game that works on multiple levels: the combat satisfies, the story holds weight, and the character work feels genuine.

For those chasing nostalgia, Sea of Stars offers something different entirely. It's a Western-made game that looks backward to 16-bit Square Enix titles like Final Fantasy VI and Chrono Trigger, imagining what those games might have become if the industry hadn't pivoted to 3D. The pixel art is gorgeous. The combat system rewards learning. It surprised people in 2023 and remains worth the time.

Persona 3 Reload arrived on Game Pass in February as a day-one title, making it Xbox's closest answer to a new major RPG release. It follows high school students navigating supernatural threats in a modern setting—a completely different register from Final Fantasy's world-ending stakes and globe-trotting adventure. Persona as a franchise can stand toe-to-toe with Final Fantasy in terms of cultural weight and critical regard. Reload is the latest and most polished version of the game.

Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch Remastered and its sequel both sit on Game Pass. Studio Ghibli collaborated on animated cutscenes for the first game, lending it a visual sophistication that few RPGs achieve. They haven't reached the popularity of Final Fantasy or Persona, but they're well-crafted adventures that deserve attention.

Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising serves as a prequel to Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes, which arrives on Game Pass in April. It's a side-scrolling action RPG that can be finished in under fifteen hours, making it a lighter commitment than the others. It's designed to introduce the world and characters players will need to know for the larger game coming soon.

For those who absolutely need a Final Fantasy experience, the free trial of Final Fantasy XIV Online is available on Xbox, though it requires a Game Pass Core subscription and a new Square Enix account. It's not Rebirth, but it's a way to stay within the franchise while waiting for the full Xbox release that may eventually arrive.