Xbox Live Games with Gold January 2016 free games: 2 titles per console for the month

Xbox Live

A new month means another surprise treat for Xbox 360 and Xbox One players as another round of the Games with Gold program starts for Xbox Live subscribers.

Paul Thurrott listed the four new games that will most likely be added to Xbox players' collections, since the monthly Games with Gold program lists free games for download. For January, four new titles, two for each console, are up for grabs.

For the Xbox One, players can get "Killer Instinct" for free for the whole month of January. The title is the "Season 1 Ultra Edition" version of the brawler and fighting game. Unlike the base "Killer Instinct" title where players get only one character unlocked at the start, the "Season 1 Ultra Edition" unlocks all eight characters from the first season of "Killer Instinct," as well as alternate costumes for each character.

In addition, the "Killer Instinct" copy for the Games with Gold program comes with at least 16 character accessory packs, as well as the original 1994 version of "Killer Instinct: Classic."

Meanwhile, available as a free game download from the second half of January until Feb. 15 is "Zheros," a sidescroller platform with team co-op modes.

For the older-gen Xbox 360, two games are available for download. "DiRT: Showdown" is free from Jan. 1 to 15, and players who are into rally games will find the title's single-story and multiplayer modes engaging. Aside from two general gameplay modes, there are also various dirt-strip missions for players to finish, from straight-up demolition rallies, to party events. Meanwhile, available for the latter half of the month is "Deux Ex: Human Revolution," showing a futuristic world where cybernetic implants, human and machines are the norm.

Although each console only gets two listed titles for free, Ecumenical News noted that Xbox One owners will most likely download all four, since the new system update for the console already unlocked the backwards compatibility feature for the Xbox One.