Xbox Game Pass Price Increase Groups

[Boot Cleaner]

Xbox Game Pass is getting a price hike across all tiers and platforms, and day-one AAA releases are also getting more expensive. In addition, Xbox Game Pass will be temporarily unavailable on console soon, returning later in September with the new Xbox Game Pass "Standard". Pre-existing subscribers will not be affected.

Here are all the major changes. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is getting its price raised to $19.99 / £14.99 a month (previously $16.99 / £12.99), and PC Game Pass is getting its price hiked up to $11.99 / £9.99 a month (previously $9.99 / £7.99). The annual subscription for Xbox Game Pass core is also being increased, rising up to $74.99 / £55.99.

As for this new tier of Game Pass coming to consoles in September, it'll cost $14.99. However, perhaps more importantly, it will not be recieving day-one game releases as part of the sub. It will include Xbox Live Gold - which provides access to online services - but not Xbox Cloud Gaming. If you're on console and still want those day-one releases, you'll have to upgrade up to the Game Pass ultimate tier.

The UK price of the new Standard service has not yet been confirmed but it will be $14.99 in the US, so you'd assume the UK price will be over £10.

Surprisingly, PC Game Pass will still be getting first party games on day one and while it's also getting a price increase it's a more modest increase from £7.99 a month to £9.99 in the UK. The reason being remains uncertain, but one massive factor might be competition on that platform! PC has Steam, a monster of a service that the vast majority of players are happy to stick with. As such, keeping the day-one release perk at a lower price may be an attempt to keep Microsoft sweet in the eyes of this often illusive consumer base.

If you've been left with questions about how exactly these changes will affect your subscription in particular, it's probably worth checking out the FAQ Xbox has posted on its website.

 

[David76]

In the midst of Gamescom's Opening Night Live chaos, the Xbox team has provided some more info on its new upcoming Xbox Game Pass Standard option and announced that Xbox Insiders have the choice to preview it, starting now. It's good to hear more from the Xbox team after last month's initial announcement that Game Pass is set to make big changes with price hikes and this new Xbox Game Pass Standard option.

The preview is available for Xbox Insiders starting today and if you participate in the preview, you'll be able to sign up to Game Pass Standard (and renew during the preview period) for £1. Game Pass Standard will cost over £10 ($14.99 in the US) per month when it launches in full.

"We created a new membership option in the Game Pass family to give players more choice in how they discover and play games and provide different prices and plans so players can find what works best for them," Xbox Game Pass senior community lead Megan Spurr says. "For those looking for a larger library with hundreds of games to play on your console, plus all the benefits of Game Pass Core including multiplayer access, Game Pass Standard may be the option for you. Game Pass Standard also includes select member deals and discounts, including up to 50% off select games."

According to the Xbox team, "Hundreds of great games will be available with Game Pass Standard at launch. Players will get access to select titles as part of the new Game Pass Standard library, with more games being added throughout the preview period."

However, Spurr continues to add that "Some games coming to Game Pass Ultimate (day one games or other game entries) will not be immediately available with Game Pass Standard and may be added to the library at a future date (can be up to 12 months or more and will vary by title). We'll continue to share with all Game Pass members when games are being added and available to play for each plan."

Xbox Insiders can have a look at joining the preview in the Xbox Insider app, and Spurr says that "Game Pass Core members with less than 2-months stacked onto their account, Game Pass for Console and PC Game Pass players who are a part of the Xbox Insiders program can participate and share their feedback."