By Nelson Schneider - 07/14/24 at 03:21 PM CT
I still remember when you could buy a brand-new, just-launched console for $200. Now simply “owning” a console costs $240… annually.
Microsoft, the company that first successfully foisted subscriptions upon console gamers after the failures of Nintendo’s Satellaview and The Sega Channel, has made it abundantly clear that the only thing that matters to them, as far as the Xbox Division is concerned, is making their once-optional Gamepass service into a successful, predictable, and perpetual revenue stream. Unfortunately for Microsoft, Gamers haven’t really taken a liking to Gamepass, even among the tiny slice of the pie who are oblivious enough to Microsoft’s past failings to willingly involve themselves in the Xbox ecosystem.
As a result, the company re-branded their Xbox Live service to the Gamepass moniker in an attempt to make the sinking ship appear to be afloat, in spite of being fully underwater. Furthermore, the “introductory pricing” of Gamepass and the ability to earn “free” Gamepass time with Microsoft Rewards Points have both been heavily curtailed. An annual Gamepass Core (formerly Xbox Live Gold) subscription is increasing in price by $15 annually, while the month-to-month subscription fees for Gamepass PC and Gamepass Ultimate are increasing by $2 and $3 respectively.
Even more dismally for those who either “like” Gamepass or whose financial situation requires them to rely on it for access to games, Xbox first-party titles will no longer be launching on Gamepass Core or PC, requiring the most expensive Ultimate subscription to continue partaking of the latest and… ugh… let’s say “grate-est” from the dozens of studios being held hostage in Microsoft’s version of Plato’s Cave.
We all knew this was coming. Launching your “AAA” or “AAAA” or “III” or whatever-they’re-calling-it-now big-budget titles on an inexpensive subscription service without a critical mass of users is a recipe for bankruptcy. We knew Gamepass wouldn’t stay cheap. We knew the Xbox Division couldn’t sustain development costs if everyone just played new releases in an all-you-can-eat buffet ecosystem. But now that those things we knew were coming have all come to pass… why is anyone still willing to give Microsoft money for such a miserable excuse for a service?
