Generally, when something feels too good to be true, it’s because it isn’t going to last for much longer. That was very much the feeling around Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass, which made the launch of the Xbox Series X/S feel like such a great deal. There was this extraordinary library, including day-one releases of Microsoft-published titles, to delve into for just ten bucks a month.
Over the years since, the prices have climbed, albeit at the same time as massive international financial issues were occurring following the covid pandemic. In 2023, Game Pass for console went up to $11, while the Ultimate version that also got you access to PC games went up two dollars to $16.99. Which still felt like a pretty decent deal, and despite talk of the increase coinciding with Microsoft’s outrageous purchase of Activision Blizzard for $69 billion, was actually a slightly below-inflation rise.
But then came 2024. In July, it was revealed that Game Pass Ultimate was going up from $17 to $20, a whopping 18 percent increase, and now massively above inflation. But worse—far worse—Microsoft simultaneously killed off the more affordable $11 console-only tier. It was replaced with a new tier called Game Pass Standard, which would no longer include day-one game releases, and was priced at $15! Yup, an almost 50-percent price increase for a far worse version.
What this meant, really, is that the price of Game Pass—for anyone who was using it as a means to access the full library and play the day-one Microsoft games—went from $11 to $20 a month. And this time, with the $69 billion Activision Blizzard deal having somehow gone through, it really did feel like it was a factor.
In 2024, Game Pass went from one of life’s great deals to one to somewhat resent, now a whopping $240 a year, with no discounted annual pricing. Which royally sucks. – John Walker