Phil Spencer says he ‘doesn’t envision’ a time when every Xbox user subscribes to Game Pass

Microsoft's head of gaming insists Game Pass isn't Xbox's 'sole focus'.

[_SilverHawk_]

Well only a certain type of core gamer would subscribe to Xbox gamepass and they know that a lot of gamers aren't interested which is a big reason they barely talk about numbers

[blackblades]

Those gamers are casual I suppose, while the other are the HC that likes collecting and owning there games unless that's niche now idk these days.

[NeoGamer232]

GamePass is simply a game purchasing model. I use it to play MS games on day one. And it allows me to buy a lot of games later (and cheaper) then I would normally.

I can see it being good for casuals, but that is not the only use.

[TheHan]

@_SilverHawk_:

Don’t try and diminish the value of the gamepass if you don’t understand it.

[1Victor]

🤣@title
what’s next he’s going to say he don’t need a paycheck everyone smile is payment enough 🤦🏿

[ElvisHuxley]

I consider myself a core gamer (I game every day), and I stay away from subscription services. Would rather own the game, be able to hold it in my hand, etc. I don't like the idea of pushing the industry in a service based direction. I know it's probably inevitable, but that doesn't mean I have to support it.

[DOMination-]

I can respect that this is your mindset. A lot of people here say the same but the cynical side of me thinks people say that because Sony don't have a comparable service - it'll be interesting if this changes when Sony announce their version in the coming months (not at all suggesting you are btw!)

For me, I don't really get the whole needing to own a physical copy. They take up space, nearly always you have to download an update day one anyway, playing discs is really noisy and of course its really convenient to be able to switch games whenever you want without having to get up and swap media over. Not to mention, the overall price of your machine is significantly reduced and there's less parts to go wrong.

If you're a hardcore collector than I guess I can see the appeal. The trade-in argument is a fair and good point and for some people where money can be tight, I do understand that - but for me, £120/year for Game Pass Ultimate is cheaper than buying even just a handful of AAA games at launch with trade ins against each one. And GPU has 300 games across PC, Xbox, XBL, GWG and xCloud. And if you want anything outside the offering you can usually get it discounted anyway.

So I do get the whole owning a copy thing but for me, there's way more ticks in the digital column and I strongly believe physical media in gaming will not be around for too much longer

[Orchard]

I mean, that’s sorta obvious. You don’t put all your eggs in one basket plus you need to diversify if you want to maintain a viable brand and product that reaches many audiences.

That’s why these mega corporations reach valuations of trillions of dollars - get rich off one or two things and then diversify into 20 other things.

[Godmars290]

Given that AAA titles are made available day-one on GP, which has to impact the direct sales of those games, how isn't this a case of "all eggs in one basket"?

[Sitdown]

The answer is in your own words...notice you didn't say all AAA titles, which means, not "all eggs in one basket".

[Godmars290]

@Sitdown:
*facepalm*

Its especially sad that all of MS's titles are on GP, all of *their* eggs are in that basket, needs to be said. Much less that many 3rd party AAA's aren't.

GP is MS's gamble, not the industry's.

ffs...

@Hatchetforce:
From what little I care to understand at this point its actually worse. While many count Halo Infinite a win, they're also complaining about a dearth of MT 343 is blaming on it being f2p.

[DJStotty]

@Hatchetforce

So what is your take on Sony's rumoured gamepass competitor?

[Sitdown]

@Godmars290
*Facepalm*
You do realize all of their eggs being in the basket would mean through gamepass would be the only method in which to access them right? Plenty people still prefer to purchase titles, which means nobody has to fully rely on gamepass. By your account, is gamepass fails, Xbox is doomed...and that's simply not true.

[tronyx12]

GamePass has been shown to actually not impact that much on sales. People who like to buy games, buy games.

On PC, people still prefer to keep a Steam Library, few people rather keep their games only on Game Pass.

Casual players may still check the game out, and eventually may spend in DLC or MTX.

GamePass is not a substitute, its not the Netflix of videogames. People are still buying games, and, it looks like a damn profitable model if we have developers coming back when their games are taken out and Microsoft is willing to put their most expensive game there Day One.

Having a stable $5 income from millions of users every month is as profitable as having a $60 each quarter of a fraction of those users. And, remember, those services are not excludent. People pay $5 each month for gamepass, but still buy $60, $70, $80 versions of the same games when they want to own them.

[Godmars290]

@Sitdown:
"All their eggs are in one basket" because GP is their best presented method to access their exclusive titles as well as whatever 3rd party AAA and popular indie they can pay off. Should it become viable, be seen as required by the consumer market with tens to hundreds of subs, then you'll see the slow - more likely quick - elimination of benefits that draw people to it.

And while its highly unlikely such a mentality will work, by all counts if Xbox was it own things, under anyone else than MS while doing the things it did under them, if Xbox didn't fold with OG Xbox for never making a profit, loosing money because of a production error, it would have with the RRoD on the 360.

[darthv72]

@hatchet, you can't really call GP a cancer without going back and seeing where it all started. GP is the natural progression of rent-to-own services. The model has existed for much longer. Especially if you consider from the very first time a piece of digital content was made available to download... things were forever going to change.

So what if there is a game that ONLY comes to gamepass. We have games now that are ONLY in digital form, no physical release. Just like we have music ONLY in digital form with no record or tape or CD. Same with movies. So please... dont give me this crap about GP if you can't see how much bigger things are around you. You can still buy that gamepass ONLY game just as you can buy the digital ONLY songs/movie/tv shows.

@god, I am the exception, not the rule but i am picking up my copy of Halo this afternoon even though i have it preloaded on my xbox at home thanks to gamepass. So i have given MS two nuggets of data. The first being a sale and the second being a gamepass user statistic. I have done that quite a few times and I'm not about to stop.

[OptimusDK]

@hatchetforce
Maybe you should drop your pathetic warning of a future that is only in your imagization. MS always said they will have borg avenues and why shouldnt they. Halo is on top of sales on Amazon and stream.

But hey just relax about your fantasy future and let us enjoy great games at a fraktion off you 70usd Sony games.

[Sayai jin]

I have game pass as well as other subscription services. None of the services stop you from owning games. One can purchase games at a discount. Just recently I purchased Forza 5 and Halo Infinite, for a discount as well.

[Hofstaderman]

Have the number of subscribers peaked? Or are they realizing they not making money? Have people not renewed subs or do they only renew when MS releases a big hit on the service? Are publishers not buying into the model like Rockstar?

[Scissorman82]

I wouldn't say peaked but it is most certainly not meeting projections.

[Magog]

There was probably a surge then a dip after covid lockdowns. All game companies experienced this with their offerings.

[Sayai jin]

@Retro and Knight, oh ok. I was only offered the $1 USD initially back in 2017. Also, for my family and friends I purchase game pass for I only received that offer initially as well. Maybe due to the fact that they were stacked with 1 to 3 years of XBL.

[Knightofelemia]

$1 dollar for a month or sometimes Microsoft will do $1 for three months worth of Gamepass will get people to nibble.

[ocelot07]

It's pretty much every month for the £1 for a month or £1 for 3. Am currently a month into my 3 month for a £1 deal. I know once I let it laps if I leave it a week or two they will send me another £1 offer. It's the only way I pay for gamepass.

[Sayai jin]

The $1 USD is for new game pass subscribers, not existing.

[IRetrouk]

Sayai, they reoffer it all the time,
Me and the wife swap it between our profiles, when she gets the offer she becomes the main sub untill I get the offer and then switch it back and fourth like that, we pay full price every few months but the offer always comes back.

[Knightofelemia]

@ Sayai

Microsoft has offered it to me a couple of times I was able to try out B4B for a dollar there is a gap between when they offer it again and once you claim it. Once claimed Microsoft will force the regular price then after a while they cough up the $1 deal again if you do no renew your Gamepass subscription.

[ChasterMies]

Not peaked but much slower growth. It’s because if you want to play games online, GamePass is $15 per month. At that price, shit gets real. During the early days of Game Pass, Microsoft had a lot of promotions to bring in new subscribers. The early days are over.

[MIDGETonSTILTS17]

Well, your game lineup for the XsX says otherwise.

[porkChop]

Huh? How does their game lineup suggest they think every single Xbox user will sign up for GP? That doesn't make any sense.

[MIDGETonSTILTS17]

There aren’t any exclusives for the XsX that you can’t play on the Xbone.

Zero.

But, you can sub to game pass and play a thousand games at 120hrz 🤙

[13sentinel]

It's average.

[CaptainHenry916]

I feel like I've played a lot of games for free while on game pass. I don't have to start paying until late January. Microsoft rewards points is one of the best thing Microsoft has created Thank you Microsoft 😊

[Godmars290]

You're not playing them for "free", you're playing them through a paid subscription service. that it sounds like you're doing so through reward incentive is besides the point.

[CaptainHenry916]

Dude, all the games I've played on gamepass I've haven't paid more than a $100 dollars yet. I've had 4 months of it for free and not to mention you can cancel the service and subscription at anytime you want. You can wait for a game you wanna play and subscribe again for just under $15 bucks and then cancel it again after. It's kinda like stealing to be honest. I've played mostly the games that I was interested in already. After I play Halo Infinite and once my free subscription expires I'll cancel again until a game I'm interested in releases on gamepass. You're capable of getting months of gamepass for free with Microsoft reward points

[rippermcrip]

On top of that, he thinks he is getting GP for free because he is using Microsoft Reward points, but you have to spends hours of your time to earn $10 worth of rewards. You make like $1/hr earning points. Complete waste of time.

[jaymacx]

The rewards system is very good. If you are diligent with tasks you can get $10-$20 every month

[Godmars290]

And the point you're missing is that you are working to play games.

[MIDGETonSTILTS17]

I really don’t like that dynamic personally.

I value my time. I barely have enough free time to play every game that I genuinely want to play. And one day I will not have that time to myself.

I am not about to let ANY incentive influence what game I play next. I’d rather pay for games I want than get paid to do ANYTHING in a game.

[darthv72]

I've been a long time rewards member and use bing for all my searches. I even like doing the little quizzes every now and then. Since i work with computers all day... its easy for me to rack up rewards points and then trade them in for GP credit.

[Godmars290]

The point remains that they're still not "free". Active effort as well as money, within constraints set by MS, was used to access them. MS can change said constraints and even remove them.

[darthv72]

Why are you so concerned with how others spend their time?

[Godmars290]

@darthv72:
Because we've been dealing with MS attempting to dominate and influence the industry. Suffered decades of them insisting single player games were dead right along with EA and Activision. Now they're buying up popular, formally multiplatform, 3rd party titles.

[FanboysKiller]

I bet he's scrolling down in the comment section on every site to see their opinions about it.

[Terry_B]

OKAAAAAAY!

[Deathdeliverer]

It would be unrealistic for him TO envision that. Many console owners play offline only. Cue Xbox Ones skydive into oblivion. On top of that many people only play what they are into. Gamepass could have a literal million games to play. They will only play Madden and 2k until the next seasons version comes out. Maybe sprinkle in some COD. 3 games a year.
That’s right boys. Believe it or not us “search the internet for news, buying all the hot titles, can never have enough variety” players are not the majority. Therefore yeah, it would be unrealistic of him to envision that.

[KillBill]

Of course not... unlikely for any service to find 100% subscription base. Even Facebook doesn't come close to that kind of use.

[darkrider]

Well, for their model he shouldn't say this. By putting day one triple games he need that the majority of Microsoft gamers got gp. Otherwise it will flop. And it doesn't make any sense when can still get it for one buck after 5 years. There no model sustainable with that kind of offer except if Microsoft got 300 or 400 millions. This coming for someone that talk about billions of gamers available...

[EasilyTheBest]

“It’s not the only thing that’s growing in Xbox,” he explained. “It’s not the only focus of the organisation, and it, as a standalone thing, is very sustainable as it sits today. It’s sustainable.

“I know there are a lot of people that like to write [that] we’re burning cash right now for some future pot of gold at the end. No. Game Pass is very, very sustainable right now as it sits and it continues to grow.”

[Magog]

Of course not. Not everyone likes to rent games. Even fewer like to rent a grab bag of games someone else is picking out.

[DJStotty]

Sony are also working on a gamepass "rental service" direct competitor.

That be ok though right?

[IRetrouk]

Are they though? Is throwing two already available and older services together and offering a few extra benefits to the tiers really a direct competitor to gamepass? Or is it just sony improving what's already available?

[DJStotty]

@IRetrouk

If it competes with gamepass, then yes, it is a competitor that would also offer "rented" games.

[IRetrouk]

Their services are already available much longer than gamepass, them putting them together is not them competing with gamepass....at all lol, why would them putting them together suddenly make them a gamepass competitor? Surely they already were in that case?

[DJStotty]

@IRetrouk

At this moment in time, gamepass has no competition, no other sub service offers what GP does.

If Sony merge 2 services, and the end result is a similar service to GP, it is competing, a competitor, i'll put a definition to try and assist in understanding :-

"Competitors are other businesses who can offer the same or similar goods and services to your customers."

PSNOW and PS+ are not the same or even similar services to GP, so at this moment in time, they are not competing.

PSNOW is competing with Xcloud
PS+ is competing with Games with Gold
PSN is competing with XBL
PS5 is competing with XSX

You following?

[IRetrouk]

What a load of crap.

Other than day 1 releases psnow offers more games than gamepass.

How is merging psnow and ps+ gonna suddenly turn them into a competitor to gamepass? Unless they are adding day one titles, which they are not, then it's the exact same service we were already getting, only better.

Spurt out all the definitions you like, you are wrong, if in your eyes merging the services together make it a gamepass competitor then by your own view they already should be, a bundle offer don't change anything lol.

[DJStotty]

@IRetrouk

If it does not offer the same/similar service to GP, then it is not competing.

Pretty sure your clarifying what i said?

But to clarify what i said, rumours are, PS is working on a "competitor" to GP, now if said service offers a similar service to GP, then it is "competing".

Number of games available is irrelevant, not sure why you actually mentioned that?

"in your eyes merging the services together make it a gamepass competitor"

I never said anything about any service merging, you did?

"How is merging psnow and ps+ gonna suddenly turn them into a competitor to gamepass? Unless they are adding day one titles"

So you are admitting, if they change to add Day 1 games, they are competing?

[IRetrouk]

The rumor is they are merging the service, not day1 games, sony have already come out very recently and told us again that they won't be doing day 1 on their services.

[gravedigger]

This guy bought an entire publisher.

What a damn LIAR!!!

- Xbox main Twitter account engages in console wars
- Aaron Greenberg engages in console wars
- Xbox employees engaged with guys like Colt and Dealer and TimDog and what not on Twitter and on their podcast..

Until Phil stops this, then I won't take him seriously about this console war stuff.

[kryteris]

60 bucks a year, i'm all in even though I've not put in 10hours 6 months of pass time.

[OneLove]

Look at the jealousy in the comments🤣

[BehindTheRows]

Jealousy of what, pray tell?

[Futureshark]

Looks like the Gamepass subscription numbers have more or less levelled out at MSHQ analytics, even with Forza and Halo Infinite I guess all those who will subscribe have subscribed by now (for maybe $1 or thanks to MS rewards), apart from new Xbox owners who are probably deciding at the moment which platform (X or PS5) to try to get hold of for Christmas depending on stock news.
Hence the spin (for shareholders too remember) "‘doesn’t envision’ a time when every Xbox user subscribes to Game Pass".

[Lexreborn2]

Considering that they released 3 games of their own this year on gamepass. And the rest has been very mediocre to good games. It doesn’t take long to realize if the service is for you or not.

I have 2 years of gamepass since it came bundled with my series X. So far it’s showed me that most of the games I’ve played on it weren’t for me then anything else.

Just downloaded Mortal Shell and Serious Sam 4 and after trying both I can comfortably delete them. The vast majority of the catalog from 3rd party content is games I bought over the years elsewhere. And the indie titles are indie titles, your mileage will vary depending on your taste.

X cloud honestly looks worse the psnow streaming. As the bigger the title the worse the bit rate is. When streaming on other services (stadia has had the best quality from my experience) it has a long ways to go.

Honestly the only people I see glorifying the service are elite Xbox fans. They don’t give any honest assessments of the games or quality. Just happy to say they got it for several years for a buck.

If by 2023 I don’t see massive improvements then I’m definitely not renewing.

[anast]

This is code for, "we are going all subscription next gen.".

[Sayai jin]

There will never be a day that all Xbox gamers will want game pass.

[BoneMagnus]

Let’s do some math. If I bought Halo, Forza and 1 year of Gold all at full price, I’d spend $180 plus tax. 1 year of GP Ultimate is also $180 - no tax. With GP, I get Halo, Forza and Gold, plus a lot extra. For me it was a no-brainer

[TheTony316]

“I spend zero energy on ‘how do I make other gaming platforms smaller so that Xbox gets bigger’,” Spencer said. “I’m more interested in the growing pie of gaming than I am our slice of the pie-eating into someone else’s.

Says the guy who bought an entire publisher. :D

[Deathdeliverer]

Man that’s one contradictory line of I’ve ever read one 🤣. I had to read it twice cause he always does things like this. Say one thing but actions show another.

[Magog]

Exactly. If he meant a word of that he would have started 15 new studios from the ground up instead of buying an entire publisher.

[iraqmilner]

Well, okay. That makes perfect sense. Neither do I, Phil. What's the point of this, exactly?

[ChasterMies]

Phil Spencer says a lot of things. Microsoft’s strategy is open for all to see. Not just games-as-service for free-to-play titles but for all games.

[Nuclearmoon]

I can see the game pass model being used by individual publishers. Each publisher having their own platform on consoles where they can use a stable subscriber based income to take risks on developing new IP's. The worst part about games at the moment is that more money is spent on making games we already know, instead of creating new experiences. I got into gaming to experience things I never have before.

[Magog]

EA and Ubi tried that. EA's was basically gobbled up by Game Pass for an ungodly sum of money and Ubi's is irrelevant. You have to own the platform for a sub to get traction. The fact that game pass is a loss leader for Microsoft doesn't help. These publishers can't make money when going up against a company that cares less about money than increasing subscriber counts to impress investors.

[derek]

Philip Spencer says alot of things, infact he never shuts up.

[Ursozord]

Nice

[execution17]

Same guy that preaches game preservation but only uses disc's as license keys since you have to download the full game

[Donjune]

Where's Sony day one game drop service?

[stefd75]

I have had my xbox x for about 5 months now and still not bothered with GP. I perfer to own psychical versions of my games.

[GamesAsAService]

Well there you go people.

Enjoy games whatever way you want to!

[MocBistro]

This guy will kill xbox sooner or later