Xbox Raises Game Pass Prices, Adds ‘Standard’ Plan

It’s time for Xbox fans to adjust their budgets. Xbox Game Pass is increasing its prices this year in a phased rollout. Starting July 10, any new subscribers will be charged the updated price, while existing subscribers will see the higher costs starting September 12. For the US, Game Pass Ultimate will increase from $17 per month to $20 per month, while a year of access to Game Pass Core will increase from $60 to $75. Microsoft has outlined all regional increases in .

Microsoft will also add a lower-cost option in September with Xbox Game Pass Standard. This plan provides access to Game Pass titles but without some of the Ultimate bundle’s perks, like day-one releases and Xbox Cloud Gaming. The Standard option will include online multiplayer, some in-store discounts, and all of the other features of the Core plan. It will cost $15 per month in the US.

The latest change is what appears to be the beginning of the end for the Xbox Game Pass plan for consoles. This option will no longer be available to new customers, and if any current plan holders have turned off auto-renewal, they will have to choose a different option if they want to renew.

This is the latest in a string of sad news stories about Game Pass. In February, we heard from Microsoft that the program had , indicating a noticeable slowdown in growth with just 9 million new players added in the past two years. That total includes Core, which is for online gaming with minimal other perks, meaning the number of new subscribers is even lower. And in June, Xbox’s much-anticipated big hardware announcement turned out to be . It’s a great proposition for gamers who want to keep up with the sheer number of new games released each month, but it doesn’t seem to be connecting with audiences the way Microsoft had hoped.