Xbox Game Pass price hike confirmed by Phil Spencer

It’s a sad day for Xbox fans, as a price hike for Xbox Game Pass has been confirmed by none other than Phil Spencer himself.

Subscription services like Xbox Game Pass and PlayStation Plus have given players near-endless titles to download and enjoy, as well as access to online multiplayer, and the occasional freebie for being a long-time member.

Check out the new trailer for the Zombies mode in Call Of Duty Modern Warfare 3

Unfortunately, fans haven’t been very pleased with what these subscription services are turning into, with a good example being PlayStation Plus, which received a lot of hate recently for a price hike announced by Sony. The price increase has apparently been put in place to provide a better overall service, but fans are dismissing this claim as rubbish.

Despite Xbox bosses slamming Sony’s decision, it seems the company will be following suit, as Phil Spencer recently addressed the future of Xbox Game Pass, and sadly confirmed that price hikes are on the cards as the service continues to evolve.

Spencer recently attended the Tokyo Game Show, where the Japanese gaming publication Game Watch spoke to him about the future of Xbox.

After confirming that Xbox Game Pass is doing incredibly well in terms of revenue and concurrent users, Spencer said: “First, we always want to give you options in how you build your library. You can subscribe to Game Pass and play, or you can purchase the game. Currently, millions of users have subscribed to Xbox Game Pass, and many of them are satisfied with using it. Although the main premise is to provide more value, the price is I think it is inevitable that it will rise in the future.”

Spencer went on to say: “We recently raised our prices once, but the decision was made after careful consideration. We believe it is important to provide services that are recognized as being of sufficient value even if prices are increased.”

Xbox currently has a lot riding on the success of Xbox Game Pass, with Phil Spencer even saying that if subscribers on PC aren’t where they need to be in 2028, it could result in Microsoft leaving the gaming business entirely.

It wasn’t confirmed when we can expect the future price hikes, but they’ll likely follow some significant additions to the Xbox Game Pass library, possibly when Activision Blizzard titles finally make their way onto the service.

Topics: Xbox, Xbox Game Pass, Microsoft