Microsoft has made its “largest investment in Game Pass to date”

Recently, a number of former Xbox employees spoke out against Game Pass, claiming that Microsoft's handling of the service unfairly punishes studios. That hasn't stopped the Game Pass train though, with Microsoft making its largest investment into the service yet. 

In a recent interview with Eurogamer, ID@XBOX head, Chris Charla, said that the Game Pass team is working with more partners than ever before to bring games to the service. According to Charla, Microsoft has signed as many as 150 upcoming titles to Game Pass deals, tripling the number from 2024.

“The majority of partners who've had a game in Game Pass want to bring their future titles to the service. As a result, we've signed deals with more than 150 partners to expand the catalogue. We continue to engage with hundreds of partners each year to review upcoming titles. Last year, we worked with over 50 teams to sign their first Game Pass deal. This year marks our largest investment in Game Pass to date.”

While Game Pass has given great incentives to third-party developers, the issue is how Microsoft handles first-party studios. In the case of third-party titles, those games are signed to a Game Pass deal and in some instances, these deals will offer enough money to make a game profitable from first sale. First-party studios may not get that same benefit, with Microsoft having both sales expectations for its games, alongside Game Pass performance expectations.

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KitGuru Says: Game Pass continues to be a somewhat controversial topic. Still, as long as the service remains good value for the consumer, customers won't be concerned with the intricacies behind the business model. 

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