Xbox reportedly considering ‘first-party only’ tier for Game Pass

Recently we learned through a leaked internal memo that the new leadership at Xbox now believes Game Pass to be too expensive, tasking the team with exploring ideas for new tiers and other ways to make pricing more flexible. One of the ideas already floating around is a new Game Pass tier that only includes access to first-party Xbox titles. 

Sources speaking with The Verge claim that newly appointed Xbox head, Asha Sharma, is now looking closely at Game Pass and re-examining the model, presumably in response to lower growth following last year's massive price hikes. One option currently under consideration is a new tier, cheaper than Game Pass Ultimate, that offers access to the library of Xbox first-party titles. Currently, in order to access the Xbox first-party library on Game Pass, you either need to wait a year after release for new games to come to Game Pass Premium, or you need to pay extra for Game Pass Ultimate to obtain day-one access.

Microsoft is also apparently exploring subscription bundles with third-party services. Recently, a Netflix executive did confirm this, saying that Microsoft had discussed the idea with them previously.

While initially, bringing Call of Duty to Game Pass was a big reason for Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard, the company is now also reconsidering and may keep future COD titles off of Game Pass Ultimate in an effort to reduce costs.

KitGuru Says: Last year's Game Pass shake-up and price hike seemed like a mistake at the time and now, all signs are pointing towards Microsoft itself coming to the same realisation. 

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