Xbox has just announced an Xbox Game Pass price drop, introducing notable cuts to its subscription tiers. Game Pass Ultimate is dropping from $29.99 to $22.99 a month, while PC Game Pass is also seeing a reduction, now priced at $13.99 instead of $16.49. For many subscribers, this comes as a much-needed change after months of rising costs.
But that is not the only big change. Xbox has also decided to hold back new Call of Duty releases from launching on Game Pass day one. Instead, fans will have to wait about a year, with new titles expected to arrive during the holiday season. Existing Call of Duty games already on Game Pass will, however, still be available for playing.
This move is especially surprising given that Microsoft spent a staggering $68.7 billion to acquire Activision Blizzard, the company behind Call of Duty, just last year. According to Bloomberg, Xbox reportedly gave up more than $300 million in Call of Duty sales on consoles and PC in 2023, as many players opted to play through Game Pass instead. It seems likely that Xbox is rethinking its strategy after seeing profits take a hit.
Who Is Behind The Xbox Game Pass Price Drop?
As for the price cuts, the company said Game Pass needs to be made more affordable, noting that rising prices were driving subscribers away in droves. Just six months ago, Microsoft’s decision to hike subscription fees by over 50% sparked a wave of frustration among fans, with many threatening to cancel their memberships.
Like much of the gaming industry, Xbox has faced its share of layoffs and cancelled projects in recent years. With the newly appointed CEO pushing for a more accessible Game Pass, some experts, like business professor Joost van Dreunen, believe Xbox could soon lean more on advertising to bring in revenue, rather than relying solely on subscriptions or content sales.
To add to Call of Duty’s sales losses, when it finally landed on Game Pass, it was a game-changer, only initially, though. Black Ops 6, released in 2024, was the first in the series to launch on Game Pass from day one. The initial response was huge, with Microsoft calling it the biggest Call of Duty launch ever in terms of player numbers. Still, the excitement faded faster than expected, with a sharper drop-off after launch than usual.
Game Pass also seems to have taken a toll on premium sales for last year’s Black Ops 7. In some markets, launch sales dropped by more than 60 percent. In the US, Black Ops 7 ranked lowest amongst all Call of Duty titles in almost 2 decades.
Meanwhile, the Essential and Premium tiers of Game Pass are holding steady at $9.99 and $14.99 per month. Essential gives players access to over 50 games, as well as online multiplayer and cloud streaming. Premium bumps that up to more than 200 games, with new first-party titles joining the lineup within a year of release.
