Collaborations between Xbox Game Pass and outside developers are reportedly going on a “pause” — which could be a serious problem for the future of the Xbox brand. According to reporting from Twisted Voxel, several third-party developers and publishers who had been in active negotiations with Microsoft for Xbox Game Pass deals “got the rug pulled out from under them.” Reportedly, Microsoft was in deep negotiations with several developers only to suddenly change course, suggesting that the games company is reevaluating their approach to Game Pass.
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While Business of Video Games podcast co-host and Partner at Kaboodle Games Fernando Rizo doesn’t believe Game Pass is finished at the studio, he does believe that they are changing up their approach to Game Pass deals and “are figuring it out.” That’s bad news for Xbox fans for multiple reasons. With Game Pass having become one of the primary selling points for the brand, a stall in third-party support could be a serious issue for the brand.
Xbox Game Pass Was Supposed To Save The Brand
Xbox Game Pass was introduced to players as a selling point for the brand and to developers as the future of gaming. Launched in 2017, the Game Pass serves as an ever-rotating digital library of games that are available to players through a subscription model. The format was sold to players and developers alike as an ideal evolution of gaming in the online space; players could access a changing library of games for an annual charge, potentially getting real bang for their buck by exploring new and retro games. Meanwhile, first-party and third-party developers alike had a perfect place to showcase their games to a broad audience, trading the risk of a traditional release for the security of being part of a larger entertainment service.
Designed as a gaming equivalent to other successful streaming services like Spotify or Netflix, Game Pass has gradually become the primary online service for the platform, with Microsoft phasing out Xbox Live Gold for Xbox Game Pass Core in 2023. However, things have been rough for the service (and Xbox as a whole) lately. Xbox Game Pass has been cited as a primary reason certain games haven’t gotten the sales that the publishers were expecting, putting pressure on the developers for decisions that are largely out of their hands given that their games are included in the Game Pass. Meanwhile, gamers have been increasingly frustrated by the company’s decisions to try and further monetize Xbox Game Pass, including price hikes in 2025 that, according to reporting from GameSpot, cost the service millions of subscribers.
This latest decision would cut off some of the major appeal of Game Pass in the first place, undercutting the desire to pay for a service that doesn’t offer enough exciting new games to be worth the annual cost. This move, while likely a good way to reduce costs while the company redirects their focus and shifts things around behind the scenes, also means that new third-party releases are going to dry up on the service, leaving it with first-party games as the primary selling point. Unfortunately, the studios that fall under the Xbox umbrella are also on the chopping block, further risking the steady influx of games for the service.
What Happens To Xbox Without Game Pass?
Xbox is in an interesting place right now, and the future of Xbox Game Pass might be one of the biggest question marks for their future plans. The service isn’t at risk of being shut down, at least publicly — the decision to pull out of several third-party deals may indeed just be a brief pause. In the meantime, the prices for Game Pass have gone down, seemingly in hopes of getting more subscribers to stay with the service or return to it following cancellations. However, it’s likely that even if the service does look to expand those third-party options again, it will be more selective in that process.
As a result, the options for Game Pass may become more selective, and the library will be smaller — potentially justifying the price cuts internally. However, Game Pass may be more important to the Xbox’s future than ever. The system is suffering from a lack of exclusive titles to draw in players, all while old rivals like PlayStation 5 and new challengers like the Steam Machine draw the attention of the larger player base. This is all on top of the rising costs of the gaming industry as a whole. Game Pass was, for all its faults, a good way for smaller developers to get their games in front of a massive audience.
In theory, it could have been a great way to further evolve the Xbox as a larger bastion for entertainment. Instead, the Game Pass’s costs seem to outweigh the advantages, putting it directly in the crosshairs of Microsoft’s stated intentions to cut costs at Xbox. The problem is, there really isn’t much other reason to specifically choose an Xbox over a PlayStation. The Game Pass was a useful selling point for the platform, even if the overall cost has proven difficult for Microsoft to justify. The Game Pass needs new games to stay relevant, however, so losing out on third-party deals seems like an easy way for the program to lose a major selling point. Xbox needs to figure out what it’s doing with Game Pass; otherwise, it risks losing one of its only remaining advantages in the modern gaming space.
What do you think is the future of Xbox Game Pass? Let us know in the comments and on social media!
