In a predictable move, Microsoft has announced plans to raise subscription costs for its “Game Pass” service in September, alongside launching a new Standard subscription package.
Microsoft has started emailing Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers to warn them of a price increase to $20 per month starting September 12th, a $3 increase over the current $17 per month.
This change raises the annual subscription cost from $204 to $240. Additionally, PC gamers who opt for the cheaper $10 package will see an increase of $2 per month. Despite these price hikes, both game pass variants will continue to offer day-one access to a limited range of Microsoft titles, which often struggle financially due to their inclusion in the subscription service.
For example, Microsoft recently shuttered Tango Gameworks following the critical success but commercial failure of Hi-Fi Rush. Similarly, Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II, a Microsoft exclusive, saw nearly half of XBOX players drop off after just 30 minutes of gameplay.
This price increase comes suspiciously after Microsoft announced their intention to include the next installment of Call of Duty as part of its subscription service. The upcoming release of the lackluster yet immensely popular franchise, Black Ops 6, will be included in Game Pass from day one. In contrast, PlayStation owners will have to pay the upfront cost of $70 to play this year’s slop.
The price increases will largely affect Ultimate subscribers, who make up the vast majority of Game Pass users, and come just over a year after the last Game Pass price hikes raised rates by $1–$2 per month. Microsoft also plans to offer a new “Standard” subscription package for Xbox Game Pass, which will not include day-one titles.
Despite losing the only truly positive aspect of Game Pass, the ability to license and rent newly released titles, Microsoft intends to sell the new Standard subscription for $15 per month or $180 annually.
The existing Xbox Game Pass for Console subscription will continue for current subscribers, but new subscribers won’t be able to select the console option starting July 10th until the new Game Pass Standard subscription becomes available. Microsoft says Xbox Game Pass Standard “will be available in the coming months.”
The new Standard option includes online console multiplayer access, something the previous Xbox Game Pass for Console lacked. So, for $15 per month, you’ll have the privilege of connecting your Xbox console to your internet while accessing a limited and revolving catalog of games you don’t own.
Existing Xbox Game Pass for Console subscribers can only stack for up to 13 months from September 18th, but this won’t impact existing stacks.
Paying over $200 annually for a subscription service that lets you play but not own a rotating selection of titles is retarded, with the cost of the console itself being exceeded after about two years. A game pass license without direct access to new releases isn’t worth it. The best way to use such a subscription is to pay for a single month and binge-play games during that time.
The games themselves often aren’t very good, so why buy them if you don’t have to?
Even games that received positive reviews, like Hi-Fi Rush, have floundered due to their spontaneous releases, lack of marketing by Microsoft, and day-one availability on Game Pass. Microsoft’s funding allocation from the subscription service is based on player count and retention, metrics that smaller single-player titles can scarcely hope to maintain.
Microsoft is cleverly hiking prices before the impending release of Call of Duty, typically the best-selling game each year, only beaten by Hogwarts Legacy in 2023. Increasing subscription prices by a few dollars per month will likely work in Microsoft’s favor upon the release of Black Ops 6.
Hilariously enough Microsoft themselves proclaimed back in March that they wouldn’t increase the price of their Game Pass subscription service as a result of the Activision merger.
Many players on Xbox and PC would prefer to access the game through their existing subscriptions rather than pay $70 outright. Call of Duty Black Ops 6 will likely boost subscriber counts for Microsoft’s Game Pass, potentially reducing direct sales of the game but strengthening the subscription service’s appeal despite the fact that the XBOX Game Pass has directly resulted in countless games flopping on the open market as they release as part of the subscription service on the day of release.
