Xbox Studios' Leaders Reportedly Hate Game Pass for This Reason

XBOX Game Pass has been at the center of biggest talking points ever since Microsoft’s sweeping layoffs sent shockwaves through the gaming industry. Questions around the subscription service only intensified after reports claimed its subscriber count had fallen from 34 million to 30 million, prompting developers and industry analysts to debate whether XBOX’s long-term strategy is finally starting to crack.

Now, Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier believes Game Pass isn’t going anywhere, but he does think Microsoft could be preparing for one of the biggest changes in the service’s history.

Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier thinks XBOX may rethink day-one Game Pass releases

Speaking on the latest episode of the Triple Click podcast, Schreier said Game Pass itself is unlikely to disappear. Instead, he believes Microsoft may stop launching many of its biggest first-party games into the service on day one because the business model no longer adds up financially.

I think they keep it going, but at some point, they’re just going to remove day one sales, because that makes no sense anymore.

Using South of Midnight as an example, Schreier explained that selling a $40 game while simultaneously offering it through a monthly Game Pass subscription creates an obvious value problem.

And so, not only is that kind of this, put this load on it that I can’t really support as being part of the subscription service, trying to grow the subscription, it also is being completely devalued to the point where people might be like, why would I spend $40 on this when I could just get it on the Game Pass service for, quote, unquote, free, or for my monthly subscription charge?

Some XBOX studio leaders reportedly “absolutely detest” Game Pass

Speaking of Game Pass’s impact on developers, Schreier claimed the criticism isn’t only coming from outside XBOX. According to him, several leaders within Microsoft’s own first-party studios have grown increasingly frustrated with the service because they believe it hurts game sales and lowers the perceived value of their work.

“And that, I think, happened to a lot of games, and there are a lot of people out there in studio leadership within XBOX who absolutely detest Game Pass and think it has destroyed the value of their games, think it has taken away from the value of all games in general just as a service, and just has contributed a lot of just… It’s been a detriment to the games industry and those people’s views because of how it devalues games.”

Schreier also pointed out that Netflix isn’t a fair comparison because subscribers can’t separately purchase Netflix originals, whereas XBOX continues selling its games individually alongside Game Pass.

While Microsoft hasn’t announced any changes to its subscription strategy, speculation around the future of Game Pass has only intensified following the company’s restructuring. If Schreier’s prediction proves accurate, future blockbusters such as The Elder Scrolls 6, which is being developed on Creation Engine 3, could be released as premium purchases first before joining Game Pass months later, just as Call of Duty has been.