GAME PASS

[VSW]

Xbox Game Pass Subscription Service

2017 was not the most promising year for the future of the Xbox One. While the Switch dominated headlines and the PS4 got more console exclusives than anyone knew what to do with, Microsoft remained quiet (save for the launch of the admittedly fantastic Xbox One X). But quiet stretch is now over, as Microsoft announced on Tuesday that all new Xbox One exclusives from Microsoft Studios will be added to the Xbox Game Pass on launch day.

In case you missed it last year, Microsoft launched a subscription service that allows Xbox One owners to pay $9.99 a month in order to have access to a ever-growing collection of downloadable games. Going forward, all first-party Xbox One games will be available as part of the Xbox Game Pass service from the day they launch.


“This plan to bring new games timed with their global release into Xbox Game Pass not only includes announced titles like Sea of Thieves, State of Decay 2 and Crackdown 3 but future unannounced games from Microsoft Studios including new iterations of our biggest Xbox One exclusive franchises such as Halo, Forza and Gears of War, on the same day they launch,” said Xbox head Phil Spencer on the Xbox Wire this week.

The program will kick off with Sea of Thieves on March 20th, which means that anyone with a subscription for Xbox Game Pass will be able to download and play the game on launch day. Not only does this add significant value to the service, but it gives Xbox One owners an affordable way to try new games without shelling out $60.
While the library of Xbox One exclusives is far thinner than that of the PS4 at the moment, 2018 is going to be a make or break year for the platform. This development won’t mean much if we only see half a dozen first-party games on the Xbox One this year, but if Microsoft Studios increases its output, this could be a huge boon.

UK Retailers Consider Boycotting Xbox Products in Light of Game Pass


Microsoft recently announced all games from Microsoft Studios will be added to the Xbox Game Pass subscription service at launch, including upcoming pirate RPG Sea of Thieves, and while that is great news for gamers, especially those fond of single-player narrative games, some retailers are unhappy with the announcement.

GamesIndustry.biz reports that some independent stores will go as far as refusing to stock Xbox games and hardware.

The point of contention for those shops, according to the report, is that if the subscription service can offer new titles at release alongside a growing library of games, the potential for repeat business from customers is going to drastically drop.

“Essentially, it’s made [our Xbox business] worthless overnight,” one UK retailer told GamesIndustry.biz. “You’ve got the whole section sat there, and why would people buy a £12 to £15 second-hand game when they can just pay a tenner and get a massive catalogue of titles to keep them going? Effectively overnight they’ve wiped massive value off our company and made it not worth doing.”

Of course, it is important to note Microsoft would not see a share of used games sales from these retailers. So Games Pass, from a Microsoft point of view, makes perfect sense to keep that money in-house instead of going entirely to secondary independent retailers.

“Why should we support them and sell their consoles and accessories if we’re going to get very little out of it?” they said said, adding, “We might as well go where we’re supported, which is Sony.”

The general consensus among the many business owners is that they feel unsupported, and that the roll-out of the service will be detrimental to business overall.

“Game Pass will have an effect on all first-party titles,” said another. “We have already told [Xbox’s UK distributor] we will not be stocking Sea of Thieves at all. Why bother when supermarkets will throw it out less than cost, online e-tailers will break street dates – which are a joke – and ship up to five days before release cheaper than us, and now Microsoft is throwing it on Game Pass for a tenner.”

Now, Game Pass hasn’t frightened off all independent retailers in the UK, as many have pretty much written off their concern. After all, there are more Xbox Games than just those made by Microsoft Studios. The sentiment on that side essentially boiled down to – as long as it isn’t Ubisoft, Activision, or EA going along with it, it isn’t worth worrying about.

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C(:

[VSW]

I think it's a bad idea.
$10 to play any xbox exclusive titles so there's no reason to ever buy them at full price.
If i had an X1 & got GAME PASS I'd see no reason to ever again buy any 1st part Xbox exclusives at full price.

An article listed other reasons it's a bad idea as well.

• 1) Are The New Games Permanently There: Just like Netflix, Xbox Game Pass has established a history of rotating content in and out of its catalog. Titles like Metal Gear Solid V will be leaving the service soon, and that means you can’t play them unless they’re previously downloaded under an active subscription. While it’ll be nice to have instant access to Sea Of Thieves this March, will that still be true in April, May or June?
  
  In other words: the Xbox One Exclusives will be a permanent part of game pass moving forward. https://t.co/QE5V7O5toI
  
  — Larry Hryb___ (@majornelson) January 24, 2018
  
  That much is still very unclear. Xbox Programming Director Larry Hryb has said “the Xbox One Exclusives will be a permanent part of Game Pass moving forward,” but that could just mean the idea of having exclusives as opposed to unlimited licenses for individual games. If access is limited by time, it might actually be more worthwhile to buy a full copy instead of subscribing. Your other option, of course, is to store tons of Game Pass games on a large-capacity hard drive to play them long after they’re potentially gone.
  
  
  
  
• 2) Will Monthly Subscription Continue: As it stands right now, Game Pass subscribers pay a monthly fee of $9.99 with the ability to cancel at any time. It’s a flexible concept, but we wouldn’t be surprised if it were altered in the months ahead. After all, monthly fees make it very easy for customers to pay $10 to play the new Halo for a month and never come back. Microsoft will lose lots of money on those kinds of investments.
  
  As a result, it seems likely Microsoft might push for Game Pass as a yearly subscription instead. If that happens, however, fewer people may be interested in spending the money up front. It’s a delicate dance for the Xbox team no matter the decision. Is it more worth it in the short term to possibly lose some development capital, or do you recoup that capital by making a few past customers upset? It’s a lose-lose situation.
  
  
  
  
• 3) Will Back Catalog Still Be The Focus: It’s amazing to see new games coming to Game Pass on day one, but will this shift negatively impact Microsoft’s plans to support its back catalog on the service? We still, for example, aren’t playing Forza Horizon 3 or Quantum Break on Game Pass, and the addition of newer titles might make those prospects even bleaker.
  
  After all, as much as older games add value to subscriptions, they’re not going to be as valuable to Microsoft as the newer software in the lineup. Consider the assumption that Halo 6 arrives on Game Pass. Microsoft would want to push you toward the new experience because it has super-cool cosmetic loot boxes that generate revenue and lead to lasting community engagement. As such, Halo 5 and The Master Chief Collection might get cut. Especially if older games appeal to you, it’s not unthinkable that benefit might eventually get drowned out by newer titles.
  
  
  
  
• 4) What About Third-Party Support: This honestly isn’t a huge deal, but the future of Xbox Game Pass truly becoming a “Netflix for games” relies on major third-party support. Especially in the games industry, those kinds of licensing deals are notoriously difficult to strike.
  
  If the service winds up being a huge hit we’d imagine lots of developers will hop on board. If that doesn’t happen, though, the release cadence will start to look more like a trickle than the flood a good subscription requires. In fact, if new games are truly the emphasis, Microsoft may even shy away from third-party deals to shine a bigger light on its own games. Either way that’s a loss for subscribers.
  
  
  
  
• 5) Is There A Weak Future Lineup: Let’s assume everything checks out and all new games are permanently available with a monthly fee. That’s awesome to the point of almost being too good to be true, but it also raises questions about Microsoft’s first-party lineup going forward. Why is this company so OK with offering such a ridiculous value?
  
  Is it because its exclusive lineup for 2018 and beyond won’t be that substantial to begin with? We’ve got at least four decent titles in the pipeline this year, but 2019 is still a big question mark. We have no doubt Phil Spencer and crew are working hard to revive beloved franchises like Fable and Perfect Dark, but is this a quiet admission that maybe we’ll only get one or two big Xbox games a year from here on out? If that’s true, Game Pass may not hold as much subscriber value as it appears.
  
  What do you think of the new Game Pass exclusives deal? Will Microsoft deliver on its promises, or are there still some caveats to come? Tell us in the comments section!
  
  
  

http://www.ibtimes.com/xbox-game-pass-5-...il-2645277



I think this is Microsoft's way of adding DRM.
Going digital gives them probably the same level of control DRM does.

[Sumato]

I still think microsoft sucks ballz,
doesnt matter what they are trying to get thier fingers into,
wish I had a WII or a Backwards Compatible PS3.

[VSW]

I still think microsoft sucks ballz,
doesnt matter what they are trying to get thier fingers into,
wish I had a WII or a Backwards Compatible PS3.

I agree but i find GAME PASS odd as as i said i believe this is their way of getting DRM on the X1 system.

This only covered microsoft exclusives, meaning microsoft has total control over them. And going digital allows them so much more control.

[Kwa]

$10 monthly to play games, shit, think about all dlc, and onling multiplayer costs..
That's $100 a year, crazy is hell. sony wants $60 a year for psplus for online multiplayer, but u do get games from monthly...

[VSW]

$10 monthly to play games, shit, think about all dlc, and onling multiplayer costs..
That's $100 a year, crazy is hell. sony wants $60 a year for psplus for online multiplayer, but u do get games from monthly...

Yes but Going forward, all first-party Xbox One games will be available as part of the Xbox Game Pass service from the day they launch.

Not only does this add significant value to the service, but it gives Xbox One owners an affordable way to try new games without shelling out $60.


$100 you're getting access to new exclusives while not having to pay $60 for each individual game.
I think that's a bad idea for microsoft & it also makes me question how long before those first part titles not be as good as they use to be.