Microsoft reveals that the preview period for the Xbox Game Pass Friends and Family plan will be ending in the near future.
Microsoft will soon be sunsetting the Xbox Game Pass Friends and Family preview plan, which will be coming to a close next month. Xbox Game Pass is a subscription service that is hosted by Microsoft, where it grants its users access to a variety of video games published on the platform. This service is not only provided to Xbox consoles but also PC via the PC Game Pass. For a monthly fee, gamers can get access to a rotating library of Xbox video games, which includes AAA releases like Persona 5 Royal to indie games such as Dead Cells. With its wide variety that gets updated monthly, it can be a great gateway for many Xbox and PC gamers to try out certain games or franchises.
There are a variety of levels for the Xbox Game Pass service, which offer a variety of perks and benefits such as Xbox Live Gold being included or exclusive member discounts. A new level for the service known as the Xbox Game Pass Family and Friends Plan was introduced last year, where one subscription could be applied to up to five gamers at a time under one subscription fee. This tier launched in a very limited capacity, with gamers getting a chance to see what it offered in a shared plan. This however was only a preview of the service before it was officially launched, with this period ending soon.
A statement was released to these subscribers, stating that the Xbox Game Pass Friends and Family preview program will end on August 15, 2023. According to a private statement released to Eurogamer, all active members of this plan will receive an Xbox Game Pass offer as a thank-you for participating, offering a way for gamers to continue playing after the preview has ended. It also states that it will be taking what the publisher learned during the preview period in order to build an offer that can be launched worldwide.
The current pricing for Xbox Game Pass is roughly $9.99 per month for both the console and PC tiers. Based on the service trial, the Xbox Game Pass Friends and Family’s pricing is likely to be $20 per month in the United States after converting to local currencies. While it’s a $5 increase, splitting it between the five users sharing the subscription would essentially make it $4 per user based on this estimation.
With the preview ending later in August, there’s no word currently about this new plan’s official worldwide launch. This month also saw the price of the Xbox Game Pass service increase, though the actual increase won’t be taking place until this August, a few days before the preview period’s closure. Gamers will need to wait and see if the price of this new Xbox Game Pass plan will also be revised to reflect the increased price of the current plan.
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