Xbox Game Pass has faced some pretty major changes over the past year, with a price hike causing it to lose millions of subscribers and other adjustments that have made the platform somewhat of a rocky experience for users. Even with these complaints, however, Game Pass has been around for so long at this point that it’s easy to forget several of the most unique selling points from the platform.
While a majority of Xbox Game Pass users reportedly haven’t used this feature nearly as much as others, Xbox recently announced one of the modern staples of the platform would be the next out the door, unless you’re willing to pay extra, that is.
Xbox Game Pass Just Lost One Of Its Most Underrated Features
Announced this morning on Microsoft’s official Xbox Wire blog, cloud gaming on Xbox Game Pass will be getting some drastic changes, limiting the currently infinite playtime to a locked number of hours per month depending on your subscription, with the following rates starting in November of this year:
- Game Pass Essential — 5 Hours
- Game Pass Premium — 10 Hours
- Game Pass Ultimate — 15 Hours
Once you’ve used up your limited hours, you’ll then have to pay for cloud playtime hours or additional packages in order to keep using the functionality, which Xbox claims will only “impact 4% of Game Pass subscribers.” Citing the rising costs associated with cloud gaming and users that play for longer periods of time, Xbox claims the monthly limits allow them “to keep offering the service while continuing to invest in its reliability and performance.”
Xbox will provide more details on hour pricing, regional availability, and other features related to cloud gaming in November.
It isn’t all bad news, however, as the updated cloud gaming service will allow you to use the program without paying for a full Game Pass subscription, ideally helping players save money who don’t consistently need the service, especially if the biggest factor in determining if Xbox Game Pass is worth buying for them was due to the inclusion of the feature.
Game Pass Will Continue To Change Over Time
For anyone unaware of Game Pass’s cloud gaming feature, the added feature allows you to play your owned games or those on Xbox Game Pass anywhere without downloading them or even having a console, letting you stream them through the cloud on mobile devices, Smart TVs, and even play Xbox Series S|X games on your Xbox One.
Although it’s not too surprising to hear that only 4% of subscribers were fully utilizing the cloud gaming feature on Game Pass given how rarely it gets talked about, with how many players actively use the platform every day, this isn’t as insignificant a number as it sounds.
Potentially affecting millions of gamers who rely on cloud gaming to play on the go or simply can’t afford to purchase the hardware needed to play them, the announcement has already been getting hit with a wave of criticism for making the already limited service even more frustrating for players.
- Number of Devices Concurrently
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Five, with Friends & Family (in limited countries)
- Number of Accounts
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1 Primary Account Holder
