A new console generation is on the way and it’s more than just the games that will be getting a facelift. Having popularized the now-standard subscription model for online play way back in 2005 with the Xbox 360, both Microsoft and Sony charge in the region of around $60 a year per head, much of which is used to maintain the gargantuan server farms required to accommodate millions of gamers all year round.
In recent years, Microsoft has delivered a separate feature in the form of Game Pass, a service not dissimilar to Netflix that allows users to download and play any applicable games as much and for as long as they want. It’s the latter of these two paid-for services, however, that appears to be sticking around when Xbox Series X launches later this year, with the original Xbox Live Gold brand likely to be phased out.
That’s what many over on Twitter believe to be the case, at least, and for good reason. While it remains unclear when the change occurred, Xbox fans have discovered that the yearly Gold membership option has been completely removed from view when attempting to extend or renew membership, suggesting that it’ll no longer be present once Series X is out. This could all be the result of a technical glitch, of course, though given that the 1 and 3-month options remain, that seems to be an unlikely explanation.
Assuming the suspicions are true, then, it’ll be interesting to see what Microsoft intends to replace its long-running Games With Gold promotion with, if, indeed, it plans to at all. It’s certainly no secret that this year’s selection of free titles has been routinely criticized by fans for being lacklustre, so it could well be the case that Game Pass will supplant it in some way.
Tell us, though, what do you make of all this? Let us know how you think the situation is going to play out in the months ahead via the comments below!