All good things must come to an end, and Microsoft has decided to bring the $1/£1/€1 Xbox Game Pass Ultimate trial promotion to a close after half a decade.
A Microsoft spokesperson told Eurogamer, “We have stopped our previous introductory offer for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass and are evaluating different marketing promotions for new members in the future.”
The $1/£1 trial was especially popular amongst Xbox gamers for a few reasons, the first one being that you could simply spend $1 and get access to every Xbox first party game for a month, but the second is that Xbox Live Gold subscribers could convert their remaining subscription time at a 1:1 rate to Ultimate for just a single dollar. A common tactic is to stock up to the maximum 3 years time and then pay the $1 trial to get three years of Ultimate at a fraction of the price.
At the time of writing, that option is still reportedly available, though the upgrade costs $15/£11 instead of $1. We’ll see how long this lasts!
So why bring what is such a staple trial option to a close? Well, it’s really immediately clear, but comes at a time when various tech companies are reacting to rising inflation and operating costs, and when subscription services are feeling a squeeze, including juggernauts like Netflix and Disney+.
It’s more than four years since the offer was first made in 2018 – Game Pass Ultimate’s debut at E3 2019 made it effectively permanent – and with Microsoft saying in recent months that they feel they had largely saturated the console audience, it could be they’re no longer seeing the required returns and engagement with the promotion. Far better to take it away now and then potentially bring it back for major game events and to spur on engagement during slower time of year and the Xbox release schedule.
Speaking of which, Microsoft is hoping to have some major hits on their hands in the form of Redfall and Stafield later this year. Starfield in particular is likely to push subscriber numbers, with PlayStation gamers perhaps turning to xCloud game streaming to check out the latest game from the makers of Skyrim and Fallout 4.
Microsoft is also looking to subtly shift the price of Game Pass around the friends & family plan that is slowly rolling out around the world, charging a little bit more per month, but making it more cost effective for families with multiple consoles.
Source: Eurogamer
