The Beginner’s Guide to All Things Xbox Game Pass

If you’ve never been an Xbox gamer or are new to the Microsoft side of the console wars, you may not be familiar with Xbox Game Pass. The digital subscription service is one of the more beneficial gaming subscriptions on offer in the market, with lots of games available in the catalogue for Xbox and PC gamers.

For a quick rundown on all things Xbox Game Pass, keep reading.

What is Xbox Game Pass

As mentioned above, Game Pass is Microsoft’s gaming subscription service. It lets players enjoy hundreds of games on a console, PC or via cloud streaming.

New games are added (and removed) monthly, but the subscription will get you access to any of the titles in the catalogue for the price of the subscription. It’s a great way to test out and play a bunch of different games without committing to buying them outright.

Microsoft is also fairly ahead in this area as it offers a lot of its first-party titles to Xbox Game Pass subscribers from day one. So if you want to play Starfield in September but don’t want to drop $90 on a copy, you can download it with a Game Pass sub.

Additionally, you’ll get access to free perks and member discounts.

What games are on offer?

The games in the Game Pass catalogue are constantly changing, but there are a bunch of reliable hits you can access, including:

• Starfield
• The Halo Collection
• Hollow Knight
• Firewatch
• Quake 2
• League of Legends
• Forza Horizon 5
• Grand Theft Auto V
• Sea of Thieves

New games, such as Forza Motorsport and Lies of P, will also be available on day one with a Game Pass subscription. And as a reminder, Xbox has a bunch of titles in development, many of which will be coming to Game Pass.

Xbox Game Pass Subscription Tiers and Pricing

Like most subscription services, Xbox Game Pass is offered in a few different packages with different price tags attached.

Here’s a bit of a breakdown:

Game Pass Core (replacing Xbox Live Gold)

• Online console multiplayer
• Access to catalogue of 25 games
• Member deals and discounts
• Free Play Days

Price: $10.95 per month

Game Pass Console

• Access to hundreds of games on console (new titles added all the time)
• Xbox Game Studios titles same day as release
• Member discounts and deals
• Riot Games benefits

Price: $11.95 per month

Game Pass PC

• Access to hundreds of games on PC (new titles added all the time)
• Xbox Game Studios titles same day as release
• Member discounts and deals
• Riot Games Benefits
• EA Play access – a library of top Electronic Arts titles on PC with exclusive rewards and content.

Price: $10.95 per month

Game Pass Ultimate

• Access to hundreds of games on PC, console and cloud (new titles added all the time)
• Xbox Game Studios titles same day as release
• Exclusive member discounts and deals
• Riot Games Benefits
• Free Perks, including in-game content and partner offers
• EA Play access – a library of top Electronic Arts titles on PC with exclusive rewards and content.
• Xbox Live Gold – includes access to Deals with Gold, Games with Gold and console multiplayer.

Price: $18.95 per month

For comparison’s sake, PlayStation’s new PS Plus tiers cost between $11.95 a month for the basic tier and $21.95 a month for the top tier.

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is the flagship subscription that Microsoft promotes, mainly because it combines EA Play and Xbox Gold benefits. It’s ideal for those seeking multiplayer options on console, but if you don’t care about online play and just want the major games, you should be fine with one of the other tiers.

What about Xbox Live Gold?

You may have noticed that Xbox Live Gold is being phased out, instead it will be replaced with Xbox Game Pass Core.

Xbox Wire has since provided further details on this explaining that Core will bring essential features, like online console multiplayer, but instead of access to all Game Pass games it will feature a catalogue of over 25 high-quality console games that have been pre-selected. This library will be updated 2-3 times a year.

The games will be included from day 1 that have been announced include:

• Among Us
• Astroneer
• Celeste
• Dead Cells
• Descenders
• Dishonored 2
• DOOM Eternal
• Fable Anniversary
• Fallout 4
• Fallout 76
• Firewatch
• Forza Horizon 4
• Gang Beasts
• Gears 5
• Golf With Your Friends
• Grounded
• Halo 5: Guardian
• Halo Wars 2
• Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice
• Human Fall Flat
• INSIDE
• LIMBO
• Ori & The Will of the Wisps
• Overcooked! 2
• Payday 2: Crimewave Edition
• Powerwash Simulator
• Psychonauts 2
• Slay the Spire
• Spiritfarer: Farewell edition
• Stardew Valley
• Stare of Decay 2: Juggernaut Edition
• Superliminal
• The Elder Scrolls Online
• TMNT: Shredders Revenge
• Unpacking
• Vampire Survivors

Any existing Xbox Live Gold members will be automatically transferred to Game Pass Core subscriptions when it arrives on September 14.

If you’re now tempted by Game Pass and all that it offers, you can explore more on Xbox’s website. Alternatively, if you’re looking to learn more about the latest Xbox consoles, we have a breakdown on that here.

This article has been updated with additional information.

Lead Image Credit: Microsoft/Xbox