Photo: Xbox
You know how Microsoft keeps bragging, and rightfully so, that Game Pass is their next best thing with over 30 million subscribers? Well, as it turns out, roughly 240.000 of the company's core base automatically get Game Pass Ultimate through the perk of working there. Apparently, most of that core base is getting their Game Pass privileges revoked in just a few short weeks. The kicker is that the head of Xbox wasn't even aware of this.
For better or worse, during the entire 20 months of the trials and tribulations of the Microsoft-Activision-Blizzard-King ordeal, a lot of leaks seeped out.
Industry analysts and gaming industry fans alike were delighted to actually see cold, hard facts and figures about how much it costs for some AAA games to get on Game Pass. Many delicious hardware leaks disclosed the 2023 fall launch of the slimmer PS5, the 2024 Switch 2 reveal and release, but most importantly, this console generation's expiry date in 2028.
Coming back to Game Pass, it was revealed that games like GTA V cost between $12 and $15 million monthly, while Red Dead Redemption 2 is $5 million every month. Wreckfest 2 is $10-$14 million, Assassin's Creed Mirage is $100 million, Mortal Kombat 1 at $250 million, and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is $300 million, all as one-off deals.
So, if you were wondering why Phil Spencer, Head of Xbox, went on a buying spree with Bethesda and Activision for 76.5 billion dollars, now it's as clear as daylight. It was too expensive to buy timed licenses for Game Pass, so they went after publishers altogether who could churn out games regularly.
At least in theory, because since the new generation of Xbox launched in 2020, the vast majority of 1st party AAA (big-budget) games they've been putting out have been subpar at best. But that's neither here nor there.
So, how much is this renowned Xbox Game Pass? The basic subscription would run you for about 10 bucks. Then, there's the Ultimate pack with EA Play included for $17 per month. If you never subscribed, it's $1 for the first two weeks.
To quickly reiterate, according to The Verge, every core Microsoft employee was getting Game Pass Ultimate for free, but it now seems this won't be the case starting January 2024.
According to sources, it's believed that only people working directly at the Xbox division will get to keep this bonus perk. I don't know if it's like putting salt on the wound, but the rest of them will still get to buy a 12-month Ultimate membership at a discounted (undisclosed) price from their internal storefront.
It's also believed that Phil Spencer wasn't aware of this issue until employees started expressing their unhappiness. Not to speculate, but given Phil's track record, he might be all in favor of restoring this benefit. Now, if it's in his hands or not, that's an entirely different matter.
Industry analysts and gaming industry fans alike were delighted to actually see cold, hard facts and figures about how much it costs for some AAA games to get on Game Pass. Many delicious hardware leaks disclosed the 2023 fall launch of the slimmer PS5, the 2024 Switch 2 reveal and release, but most importantly, this console generation's expiry date in 2028.
Coming back to Game Pass, it was revealed that games like GTA V cost between $12 and $15 million monthly, while Red Dead Redemption 2 is $5 million every month. Wreckfest 2 is $10-$14 million, Assassin's Creed Mirage is $100 million, Mortal Kombat 1 at $250 million, and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is $300 million, all as one-off deals.
So, if you were wondering why Phil Spencer, Head of Xbox, went on a buying spree with Bethesda and Activision for 76.5 billion dollars, now it's as clear as daylight. It was too expensive to buy timed licenses for Game Pass, so they went after publishers altogether who could churn out games regularly.
At least in theory, because since the new generation of Xbox launched in 2020, the vast majority of 1st party AAA (big-budget) games they've been putting out have been subpar at best. But that's neither here nor there.
So, how much is this renowned Xbox Game Pass? The basic subscription would run you for about 10 bucks. Then, there's the Ultimate pack with EA Play included for $17 per month. If you never subscribed, it's $1 for the first two weeks.
To quickly reiterate, according to The Verge, every core Microsoft employee was getting Game Pass Ultimate for free, but it now seems this won't be the case starting January 2024.
According to sources, it's believed that only people working directly at the Xbox division will get to keep this bonus perk. I don't know if it's like putting salt on the wound, but the rest of them will still get to buy a 12-month Ultimate membership at a discounted (undisclosed) price from their internal storefront.
It's also believed that Phil Spencer wasn't aware of this issue until employees started expressing their unhappiness. Not to speculate, but given Phil's track record, he might be all in favor of restoring this benefit. Now, if it's in his hands or not, that's an entirely different matter.
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