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Xbox Game Pass is getting more expensive and a little bit worse for consoles.
Microsoft has announced massive changes coming to the Xbox Game Pass subscription service, including a new paid tier, widespread price changes and the removal of Day One releases for selected tiers. Windows Central reports that Microsoft has confirmed that Xbox Game Pass for Console is shutting down in September, replaced by a new ‘standard’ tier that won’t include Day One releases.
Additionally, every Xbox Game Pass subscription tier, from PC Game Pass to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, is getting a global price increase.
Xbox Game Pass price increase detailed
If you’re subscribed to Xbox Game Pass at any tier, you should know that you’re about to pay quite a bit more to keep your subscription going. We’ll start with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, the highest paid tier that gives subscribers access to PC Game Pass, Day One releases, all back catalogue titles and cloud gaming. Starting on September 12, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is getting a monthly price hike from $16.99 to $19.99.
PC Game Pass will also cost $11.99 per month, up from $9.99, but will continue to support Day One releases. Xbox Game Pass Core, which includes access to multiplayer via Xbox Live Gold, along with a selection of games and deals, will now be priced at $74.99 annually, up from $59.99. However, Game Pass Core will still cost $9.99 monthly.
These price changes are global and will come into effect on September 12, 2024. You can find local prices for your region here.
Xbox Game Pass for Console removes Day One releases
We suspected that Microsoft wouldn’t allow players access to Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 without some kind of price increase to Xbox Game Pass, but the company has opted to make a slightly more radical change to its console tier too. Starting from September 12, 2024, Xbox Game Pass for Console is going away permanently. New console Game Pass users will soon be offered a ‘Standard’ tier instead, which includes all Game Pass titles except for Day One releases. Notably, that means Standard subscribers won’t get access to Black Ops 6 at all.
However, existing subscribers will still be able to stack their existing subscriptions for up to 13 months from September 12, keeping access to their Day One releases and back catalogue without being affected… for a while. The new Standard tier will thankfully also include Xbox Live Gold for multiplayer access, and will cost $14.99 per month, up from $10.99.
This means that if you want to get access to Black Ops 6 on Day One, you’ll need to stack a few months’ worth of subscriptions for the Console tier before September 12. After that, only the Standard tier will be available for new subscribers.
All in all, this is a very messy way for Xbox to make a little more money when the new Call of Duty arrives, but that’s par for the course for all subscription services these days.