Xbox Game Pass: Worth It?
As if Netflix wasn’t already turning my life into one of solitude with so many shows to watch and so little time, Microsoft decides to launch its subscription service, game pass. It’s been almost a year since they released it and so far, I’ve only gotten through about a quarter of the games. Now the question that remains, is it worth it? For only ten bucks a month you have access to an expansive library of games and more are added each month. Not only that, but first party exclusives are also included on launch with some play anywhere titles. This means your data will be available to play across both Windows 10 and Xbox. Sounds great from the jump, right? Lets analyze it a bit more to see if it really is worth the moola.
Unlike PlayStation Now where you have to stream the games which can lead to latency issues, running up your internet bill, and loss of pixels, game pass allows you to download the game as if you bought them. Let’s say you wanted to try out Dead Rising 3 and Gears of War 4 before buying. This allows you to essentially demo the game for the month and if you decided to purchase, it’s also discounted at 20% along with any of the add on’s which is great. If you’re someone like me who likes to achievement hunt, a bunch of indie titles are also available, as well as many classic 360 games such as the Fable series. They also got Farming Simulator …I mean come on… what more do you need. In all seriousness, interest in games is subjective so you may not be ok with the limited flagship titles available. In which case it may behoove you to buy Halo 5 or Gears of War 4 outright.
With the latest first party release, Sea of Thieves, many wondered if this was gonna be enough to sustain how game pass holds up. State of Decay 2 and Crackdown 3 are also slated to release in the coming months. This is where consumers are skeptical because the demand for more AAA games is high. Most players aren’t interested in the odd title and just want to play what’s popular, *cough Fortnite cough PUBG cough*. Sorry I think I’m getting sick. Taking to Twitter, I perused through peoples responses to Corporate Vice President Mike Ybarra’s tweet about the service.
Having to pay for the service on top of a year for gold was an issue as well. These are valid concerns and it will be interesting to see what Microsoft does in order to stay in competition with PlayStation Now which has more titles in general and free access to the network. Making Xbox Live free and up the price of game pass itself or bundle the two services together at a discounted price could alleviate some of the communities issues. What are some of the ideas you have to improve upon the system?
Being the Xbox fanboy that I am, I believe game pass is a great option because of the low price. Only a year in and there are many titles to keep you occupied. For ten bucks more and if you have a PlayStation 4, you get a wider variety of games (600+)but at the cost of dealing with the PlayStation Network, which I’ve heard some things about. Of course this is just my opinion and you should check out both services for yourself before making a decision if you are a console player. Good thing they got that free trial, boy are you lucky. I think it’s a great way for those on a budget to enjoy a plethora of games and weed out the ones they actually care for. I do look forward to Microsoft releasing more titles in order to keep their consumers happy, satisfied gamers. I’d love to hear what you think so feel free to drop a comment below or message me directly. Until next time!
