Xbox Denies Game Pass Is Coming to PS5 and Nintendo Switch

Xbox has no plans to bring Xbox Game Pass to new platforms anytime soon. Xbox Game Pass is a bit of a game changer for the gaming industry. The service allows Xbox and PC players to enjoy a library of games for a monthly subscription, similar to Netflix. Tons of amazing games like Grand Theft Auto V, Batman: Arkham Knight, and every first-party Xbox game like Starfield and Halo have been on the service over the years, making it one heck of a value for players. However, many have begun to wonder if the service will ever make its way to other platforms, especially as Xbox is now bringing select titles to PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch.

The short answer to that is a simple no. During today's Xbox podcast, Xbox's Matt Booty made it clear that Xbox Game Pass will only ever be available on Xbox (and PC). Booty didn't really go into why that is since they're expanding the Xbox platform to other pieces of hardware, but one has to imagine this serves as an incentive to own an Xbox. 

"Well, to build on what Phil just said, one thing I would add-- you were talking about growth-- is just that we've seen this inversion over the last five years where it used to be that the platform was the biggest thing, and the games would tuck in within the platform," said Booty. "Today, big games like a Roblox or a Fortnite could actually be bigger than any one platform."

"And that really has changed the way that we think about things. So in the midst of all that, I think we at First Party can come back to some core principles-- first, that all of our games will be on the Xbox platform. Second, all of our games will go into Game Pass on day one. And third, we know that Game Pass will only be available on Xbox. So there's starting points for us. As Phil mentioned, there are games today that you can play that only can be found on Xbox. And at the same time, we want to bring more of our games to more players. So we're going to continue to look at that."

Of course, this could change or have some asterisks to it in the future. Since Xbox Game Pass is on PC already, it's possible Xbox could bring Game Pass to something like the Steam Deck in the future. It's not a direct competitor to Xbox like PlayStation and is something a lot of people have as an extension of their PC, a device that Xbox proudly releases games for.