Xbox Game Pass price hike announced with new tier that doesn’t have day-one releases

Microsoft has recently announced significant changes to its Xbox Game Pass subscription service pricing and structure, including the introduction of a new tier.

The Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription will see a price increase from $16.99 to $19.99 per month, while the PC Game Pass subscription will now cost $11.99 per month, up from $9.99.

Starting tomorrow, July 10th, the basic $9.99 Xbox Game Pass tier will no longer be available, being replaced by a new $14.99 “Xbox Game Pass Standard” tier.

The new Xbox Game Pass Standard tier will no longer offer access to first-party games on their release day and will not include cloud gaming. However, it will now include multiplayer access on consoles, a feature previously exclusive to the Ultimate tier.

Existing Xbox Game Pass subscribers will be able to continue their current subscriptions, but new users will only have the option to choose between the Standard or Ultimate tiers after the changes take effect. The rollout of the new Xbox Game Pass Standard tier will occur in the coming months.

The price changes will be global, affecting all regions. Users can check their new regional pricing on the official Xbox website.

Additionally, as of September 18th, users will no longer be able to stack more than 13 months of Xbox Game Pass vouchers. The stacking feature will still be available but limited to 13 months, with existing stacks of redeemed vouchers remaining unaffected.