Microsoft revamps Xbox Game Pass plans: Essential, Premium and Ultimate - See what has changed
Here's all you need to know about Microsoft's reshaping of Xbox Game Pass with three new tiers as well as new rewards.
Microsoft on Wednesday, October 1, announced a major revamp of its Xbox Game Pass plans, introducing fans to three distinct plans: Essential, Premium, and Ultimate.
In a blog post, the company said it has raised the price for the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription and announced the rebranding of some of its other Xbox Game Pass plans.
Starting from Wednesday, Xbox players will be required to pay $29.99 per month (instead of $19.99) for Game Pass Ultimate. The Xbox Game Pass Core has now been rebranded as Xbox Game Pass Essential, while the Standard plan has been made into Xbox Game Pass Premium.
Microsoft said it decided to evolve Game Pass in a bid to offer "more flexibility, choice, and value to all players".
In a briefing with The Verge, Dustin Blackwell, director of gaming and platform communications at Microsoft, said all three new plans now feature "bigger game libraries, including PC games across each of the plans”.
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate
It has witnessed a price jump from $19.99 to $29.99 per month, as per The Verge. This comes after the company increased the prices for this plan last year. However, what is new this time around is that Microsoft has come up with several key improvements.
Blackwell shared that the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate will now provide access to over 400 titles globally. Interestingly, 45 games have been added to this plan on October 1. Among these is Hogwarts Legacy. Further, it will give access to over 75 day-one releases each year to the gamers. This will be 50 per cent more than what it used to provide last year.
Subscribers will get access to Ubisoft+ Classics, while Fortnite Crew will be made part of the Ultimate plan on November 18. Also, it will provide 1440p resolution support and other significant bitrate improvements for certain games.
For the rewards program, Ultimate subscribers will now get to earn up to $100 per year.
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Xbox Game Pass Premium
Priced at $14.99 a month, Premium will offer over 200 games across Xbox and PC, such as Diablo IV and Hogwarts Legacy. It includes unlimited cloud access, meaning that players will not require an Ultimate subscription to gain access to Xbox Cloud Gaming.
Moreover, gamers will be provided with in-game benefits while playing titles like League of Legends and Call of Duty: Warzone, among others.
Premium members can earn up to $50 a year by playing games via the rewards program.
Xbox Game Pass Essential
This plan has been priced at $9.99 a month and will have over 50 titles in the library, which is double the amount that were available in Core. Players will also get unlimited cloud access.
Players will get to earn up to $25 a year in the store through this revamped rewards program.
PC Game Pass: What to know?
The subscription for PC Game Pass has been hiked from $11.99 to $16.49 per month.
Dustin Blackwell said the only major change taking place for PC Game Pass is "that they won’t be getting Ubisoft Plus Classics, but they’ll be getting about 50 additional Ubisoft titles across PC Game Pass”.
The company is expected to hike the price of its Xbox consoles in the US in the coming days.
FAQs
What new Xbox Game Pass tiers have been announced by Microsoft?
Among these are Essential, Premium, and Ultimate.
How much money can players make via the revamped rewards programs?
Essential subscribers will be able to earn up to $25, while it is $50 for Premium and $100 for Ultimate.
When will the new prices come into effect?
The updated pricing goes into effect on October 1.
