Xbox Game Pass Price Hike Not Worth It with These Games

jamesschierer

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate now costs $29.99 a month, but instead of exciting new releases or Activision Blizzard titles, we’re getting recycled additions like Assassin’s Creed II, Hogwarts Legacy, The Division, Hades, and yes—even Wheel of Fortune. Add in the clunky new Rewards system that makes redeeming points harder, and this price hike feels like a big misstep. Do you still think Game Pass is worth it?  #XboxGamePass #Xbox #GamingNews

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00:00Xbox Game Pass has officially gone through one of the biggest shakeups in its history

00:05and the reaction from the community has been far from positive.

00:09The centerpiece of this change is of course the price hike.

00:14Xbox Game Pass Ultimate now costs $29.99 a month.

00:19That is a 50% increase from the $19.99 price that most subscribers had gotten used to paying.

00:26For existing users, that new cost is going into effect starting November 4th, but for

00:32new subscribers, the higher price is already here.

00:36It's a steep jump and it's the kind of change that makes you stop and ask the question, what

00:41are we really getting for all that extra money?

00:45Microsoft has also reshuffled the Game Pass tiers, something that complicates things further

00:50for people who were used to the simple setup we had before.

00:54There's now Game Pass Essential which runs at $9.99 a month.

00:59That gets you access to around 50 titles with cloud support, a smaller trimmed down version

01:04of the service.

01:06The next level is Game Pass Premium priced at $14.99 a month.

01:11Premium opens up the library to more than 200 games, includes PC titles, cloud gaming and

01:17gives you access to rewards.

01:19Then of course there's the crown jewel, or maybe the source spot, depending on how you

01:24see it.

01:25Game Pass Ultimate.

01:27That is the one sitting at $29.99 a month.

01:31Ultimate promises more than 400 games, day one releases, Ubisoft Plus classics, Fortnite

01:37crew membership and the new reward system.

01:40On paper, that sounds like a lot of content.

01:43But the real question is whether the actual editions justify the biggest monthly increase

01:48Game Pass has ever had.

01:51When you look at the lineup of new games that Microsoft just added, it feels a little underwhelming.

01:56The titles announced include Assassin's Creed III Remastered and Assassin's Creed IV Black

02:01Flag.

02:02We also have Hogwarts Legacy which is obviously a newer edition, but not a day one title.

02:08Tom Clancy's The Division made its way into the catalog as well, along with Cities Skylines

02:13Remastered, Hades, Quake, and yes, Real Fortune.

02:18Because nothing screams premium value like having a decades old game show in your lineup.

02:22I'm sure that'll really get people rushing to subscribe.

02:28Now there's no denying that some of these games are good, even great.

02:31Titles like Hades or Assassin's Creed IV are fan favorites.

02:35But here's the thing, many of these games have either been available on other services

02:40before, or were already given out through Microsoft's old Games with Gold program.

02:45So for long time Xbox players, these don't feel new at all.

02:50Instead of giving the community something that feels fresh or exclusive, it feels like Microsoft

02:55just recycled titles that people had already had the opportunity to play years ago.

03:00What's especially disappointing is that after all the talk and all the hype about the

03:04Activision Blizzard merger, none of those titles were included in this batch.

03:09No Call of Duty, no Diablo, no Overwatch, not even a single Crash Bandicoot or Spyro game.

03:16Nothing that would make this price increase feels like it comes with a huge leap in value.

03:22And then there's the reward system, which has also been completely overhauled.

03:27For years, one of the biggest benefits of being an Xbox player was Microsoft Rewards.

03:33By completing daily activities, searches or challenges, you could stack up points and redeem

03:38them directly for Game Pass subscriptions.

03:41It was a straightforward system that made a lot of people feel like they were getting

03:44extra value.

03:46Starting today, that's gone.

03:48You can no longer directly redeem your rewards points for Game Pass.

03:52Instead, the system now forces you to redeem your points for Xbox gift cards and then use

03:58those gift cards to purchase a subscription.

04:02It's not only an extra set of steps, but it's also a sneaky way of raising the cost.

04:07The amount of points required to cover a month of Game Pass is effectively higher now.

04:12What used to feel like a rewarding player-friendly perk has turned into something that feels more

04:17like busy work, and at the end of the day, you're paying more.

04:22And here's where my frustration really sets in.

04:25Microsoft is asking for more money, but the value isn't keeping pace.

04:30A service started out as a great deal, an easy recommendation for friends, something that

04:36felt like it was really pushing the industry forward.

04:39Now it feels like it's slipping backward.

04:42Instead of innovating or rewarding loyalty, it feels like the decisions are being made to squeeze

04:47more from players without giving back the kind of content that would actually justify the

04:52increase.

04:53And honestly, I can't help but point the finger at leadership here.

04:57I've disagreed with Phil Spencer's decisions multiple times in the past, and this feels

05:02like yet another case where the vision just isn't there.

05:06Microsoft has spent years building up goodwill with Game Pass, but decisions like this risk

05:12burning through it quickly.

05:14At some point, maybe the responsibility of these calls should go to someone else, because

05:18right now, it doesn't feel like the direction is aligned with what players actually want.

05:26The lack of Activision Blizzard content right out of the gate is baffling.

05:30The price increase feels aggressive, the game lineup feels recycled, and the changes to the

05:36reward system turn something that used to be simple and appealing into a headache.

05:41It's disappointing, because Game Pass was once the shining example of how subscription

05:46gaming could be done right.

05:47It made Xbox feel like it had something unique to offer, something no other platform could

05:52match.

05:53But with each new move like this, the service feels less like a revolution, and more like

05:58just another overpriced subscription.

06:00For me personally, this isn't worth the extra cost.

06:05Until Microsoft shows a real commitment to delivering big new titles, until they make use of the Activision

06:10Blizzard catalog they spent so much money on, and until they find a way to respect the players

06:16who have been loyal to the service for years, it's really hard to justify the new price tag.

06:21It's not that there aren't good games here, it's that the majority of them don't feel

06:25new or exciting, and the ones that do, aren't enough to offset the frustration of the changes.

06:32So here's where I land, I'm disappointed.

06:35This isn't what Game Pass was supposed to be, and it's not the kind of updates that make

06:39me excited for the future of the service.

06:41I hope Microsoft takes the backlash seriously, because right now, this feels like a step in

06:47the wrong direction, and for me, it's a decision that makes sure I won't be subscribing to Game

06:53Pass anytime soon.

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