Following a leak that suggested a new Xbox Game Pass tier was on the way, Microsoft has gone ahead and confirmed that news by unveiling “Game Pass Friends & Family.” This new tier effectively adds an expanded account sharing option for Xbox Game Pass subscribers which allows for up to four different people to be added to one subscription for a total of five Xbox Game Pass accounts including your own. Pricing info has also been revealed for this new Xbox Game Pass tier, though its availability is currently limited.
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While Xbox Game Pass currently allows for multiple profiles on one console to use the subscription’s games so long as that device is set as the primary one, this new Friends & Family tier makes it so that people using the same subscription don’t have to be on the same console or in the same home. Though the Xbox Game Pass subscription itself will be shared, the accounts using it remain separate so that you’re not getting conflicting game recommendations or other mix-ups involving someone else’s usage.
“Add up to four friends and family members, whether they live under the same roof or not,” Microsoft said about this new Xbox Game Pass tier. “Each person uses their own account and Xbox profile to save their games, track their achievements, and receive personalised recommendations.”
What’s even better about this deal is that it grants subscribers not just Xbox Game Pass but Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. That means this tier grants perks like cloud gaming and the catalog of games available through the included EA Play subscription.
Xbox’s new Friends & Family tier is priced at 21.99 euros in the Republic of Ireland and at 49,900 COP in Columbia. Those are the only two regions that this tier is available in at the moment with Microsoft saying additional areas “might be added in the next months.” Subscribers must be in the same country to be on the shared plan, so don’t expect to hop on early even if you’ve got friends in one of those two areas.
