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Access will only be open to friends and family members within the same region, so this Xbox Game Pass feature won’t be available across the world yet (if ever). However, it’s a unique opportunity forXbox usersto potentially share their subscriptions or even figure out a deal to share Xbox Game Pass Ultimate’s costs and then share the service. For the time being, only four people are able to be added to an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate plan under the new preview.
It should be clarified that this isn’t a free upgrade. Rather, it’s a new version of theXbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription. It could be considered a family plan, of sorts. While a price point hasn’t been clarified, “conversion” of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate to the new group-based subscription is equivalent to 1 month of the subscription being shifted into 18 days of the new service. As such, prices would be less than double. If a month of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is $15, the new subscription would be below $30.
Family plans aren’t rare in the video game industry for similar subscription services, of course. Nintendo offers aNintendo Switch Online Family Planat a discounted rate, which may be the most direct comparison. If a company can charge extra and allow gamers to invite family members to join their service, it’s reaching players it may otherwise have missed out on. The more players in the ecosystem, the more opportunity for additional monetization.
It’s unclear at this point whether Microsoft would consider bringing thisXbox Game Pass Ultimate family planto other regions. That’s what the testing is for, after all. If too many Xbox Game Pass Ultimate users begin to end their subscriptions, so they can share with other players to save money, that’s counterproductive to Xbox’s interests. With that said, it’s undoubtedly something many Xbox Game Pass-using families and groups of friends would love to see.
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