Xbox Game Pass Changes, But What a Price for the New Ultimate!
The three new tiers of the service have been announced
The Xbox Game Pass subscription service is being revolutionized: Microsoft is reorganizing its gaming offering, introducing three new plans. Let's look at the new tiers in detail.
The New Game Pass Tiers
- Essential - Includes over 50 games.
- Premium - Includes over 200 games. Xbox first-party titles will arrive within one year of release.
- Ultimate - Includes over 400 games. It will offer more than 75 day-one titles per year, including all Xbox first-party games.
All three plans are available on console, PC, and also provide unlimited access to cloud gaming (with shorter waiting times as you move up in tier). All three plans include in-game benefits, including those for Riot Games. The Ultimate plan will also grant access to Ubisoft+ Classics and EA Play games.
The Transition from the Current System to the New One
Current Xbox Game Pass subscribers will be redistributed as follows:
- Game Pass Core users will automatically transition to Essential.
- Game Pass Standard users will transition to Premium.
- Game Pass PC users will remain on PC.
- Game Pass Ultimate users will remain on Ultimate.
The New Game Pass Prices
Here we come to the sore point. If we compare the old prices with the new ones, we cannot help but notice a significant increase for the Ultimate plan. Specifically:
- Essential costs €8.99 per month, compared to €6.99 for Core.
- Premium costs €12.99 per month, the same price as Standard.
- PC costs €14.99 per month, compared to the €11.99 previously charged.
- Ultimate costs €26.99 per month, compared to €17.99 for the "old" Ultimate.
The Ultimate plan, which allows playing new titles on day one on console, shows a 50% increase. For more information, consult the Xbox blog.