The company explained the price increase by the expanded capabilities that the plan provides to subscribers.
From October 1, Microsoft is introducing three new subscription plans — Essential, Premium, and Ultimate, which will replace the existing Core, Standard, and Ultimate. At the same time, the cost of Game Pass Ultimate has now been increased by 50%, to $30 per month. The remaining subscription levels — Xbox Game Pass Core (now Essential) and Standard (now Premium) — will retain their current prices in the US ($9.99 and $14.99 respectively), but price increases are also expected in some regions.
The cost of PC Game Pass has also been increased from $11.99 to $16.49 — almost 40%.
Microsoft explains the price increases with significant improvements to the service. Game Pass Ultimate now includes a Fortnite Crew subscription ($11.99/month) and Ubisoft+ Classics ($15.98/month), and also promises more than 75 games available on release day annually, which is 50% more than last year. The total cost of games in the Game Pass library exceeds $10,000, and the average Ultimate subscriber would save $550 per year by buying games separately.
All subscription levels get access to cloud gaming and expanded libraries. Premium now includes all games that appeared on Xbox within a year of release, and the total number of projects across all levels is increasing.
In addition, subscribers can earn up to $100 per year (100,000 points) in the Xbox store by playing games, as well as receive up to 30% discounts on select Game Pass games and points for purchases of games and add-ons.
