The Xbox as a console might not be performing well lately, but Xbox Game Pass remains the best deal in gaming—if you’re aware of it. For those who aren’t, that’s likely due to Microsoft’s increasingly poor branding.
Following another round of price increases, which echo the trends in TV streaming services, Xbox Game Pass has become even more perplexing.
As of July, if you’re a PC gamer, you have two Game Pass options:
- PC Game Pass ($10 per month) provides a library of several hundred games from Microsoft and its partners, including most EA Play titles, with day-one access to new Microsoft-published games. These games are downloaded and installed locally, so a gaming desktop or laptop is necessary to fully benefit.
- Game Pass Ultimate ($17 per month) includes the full PC Game Pass library and adds the ability to stream many of those games from Microsoft’s cloud. This streaming library isn’t comprehensive but includes some current and classic Xbox games, even from the Xbox, Xbox 360, and Xbox One eras, which are not usually installable on a PC.
For Xbox console owners, there are additional choices. Game Pass Core ($10 per month), previously known as Xbox Live, allows you to play Xbox multiplayer games online and includes a small library of “over 25” games.
Console players can also opt for Game Pass Ultimate to access streaming of some PC games and even stream games on mobile devices. There’s also Game Pass Console ($11 per month), which offers a library of downloadable Xbox games minus the EA Play titles and lacks the online multiplayer access included in Game Pass Core.
The array of Game Pass options can be confusing and may lead to paying more for less. Upcoming price hikes in September will coincide with the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6. Game Pass Ultimate will rise to $20 per month, PC Game Pass to $12 per month, and a new tier, Game Pass Standard, will be introduced at $15 per month. This new tier includes downloadable console games and online multiplayer but lacks streaming and day-one releases.
Microsoft’s tiered plans for Game Pass resemble the varied and often confusing options for Microsoft Office and its cloud-enabled counterpart, Office 365. Simplifying the plans to three options might help: PC Game Pass, Game Pass Basic for Xbox, and Game Pass Ultimate. This would make it easier for gamers to choose the best option for their needs.
