High On Life was the biggest Xbox Game Pass launch of 2022, as well as the biggest third-party game launch on Game Pass and the biggest game launch in the service’s history, Microsoft said in Xbox Wire news. This conclusion is based on the number of hours spent in the game by users in the first five days after release.
“This was our first launch of a game on Game Pass,” said Mike Fridley, studio director and COO of Squanch Games, “and we were overwhelmed by the response from players who made us the most popular game on Game Pass. Pass right now. When Squanch Games was created, it was about making games that we ourselves wanted to play, and Game Pass helps us find players who want to play those games too.”
The game tells the story of an ordinary teenager who finds himself embroiled in a galactic conflict after an alien cartel discovers that humans can be used as a drug. The only way out is to become a bounty hunter and destroy the entire cartel while saving humanity. High on Life is a classic shooter with light role-playing mechanics and edgy humor that is a huge hit with fans around the world.
“High On Life is an extremely unique game that we’ve been interested in for a long time,” said Matt Percy, general manager of content planning at Xbox. “It’s fantastic that so many Game Pass members are jumping on board at launch to experience Squanch’s story in person before the holidays.”
In a podcast with Larry Hrib, one of the creators of the game, Justin Roiland (who is also a co-creator of the famous cartoon series “Rick and Morty”), explained how much fun the game has hidden and urged players to “get off the golden path” [прохождение сюжета] in search of many deeply hidden details and secrets. Inspired by Roiland’s preferences, including games like Fallout 3, the team did their best to create interesting additional characters and world details that reflect the players’ decisions.
High On Life is out now for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and Windows PC, and is available as part of Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass.
Midjourney AI helped develop High On Life, a comedy shooter from Rick and Morty co-creator Justin Roiland
