After a leak revealed Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family branding over the weekend, Microsoft has gone official with its new plan and announced its pricing in Ireland and Colombia.
Microsoft isnt restricting this new Game Pass plan to just family members; the only restriction is that people who are added to the Friends & Family program must be in the same country.
The new subscription will allow Xbox Game Pass members to share with up to four other friends or family members at 21.99 per month in Ireland and 49,900 COP in Colombia.
Microsoft is currently testing this new Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family plan in Ireland and Colombia, with pricing at 21.99 per month instead of the regular 12.99 per month for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. That works out to less than 5 per month per person to share all the usual Xbox Game Pass Ultimate benefits.
Xbox Game Pass is Microsofts Netflix-like play subscription, delivering access to hundreds of games for a relatively low cost.
Xbox fans, Rejoice, for Microsoft is about to plug an irritating gap in its Xbox Game Pass (XGP) service. Xbox Game Pass is Microsofts all-you-can-eat Netflix-like contest subscription service, providing you access to hundreds of games for a relatively low monthly fee. In addition, multiple plans offer you games across Xbox consoles, PC, or the cloud on mobile devices, featuring all the best Xbox games from Microsoft on day one.
Currently, we are piloting this plan in Colombia and the Republic of Ireland. Future countries/regions might be added in the next months, says Microsoft in a FAQ. Microsoft hasnt announced pricing for the rest of Europe, the UK, or the US yet, but its likely to be around $25 per month for Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family in the US.
Switching to the plan does mean adjusting the time remaining on your previous plan, and Microsoft will perform a conversion to the Friends & Family plan:
- 30 days EA Play = 6 days Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family
- 30 days Xbox Game Pass (Console) = 12 days Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family
- 30 days PC Game Pass = 12 days Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family
- 30 days Xbox Live Gold = 12 days Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family
- 30 days Xbox Game Pass Ultimate = 18 days Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family
Microsoft offers Xbox Game Pass or PC Game Pass for $9.99 monthly. Unfortunately, neither subscription includes online multiplayer capabilities. Still, you can upgrade to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for $14.99, and this unlocks Game Pass for console, PC, EA Play access, and Xbox Live Gold online multiplayer.
Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family will include all the same Xbox Game Pass Ultimate benefits for four other friends or family members. Thats five people in total, and it also provides access to Xbox Cloud Gaming, Xbox Live, and even the PC Game Pass versions of games.
Previously, one glaring deletion from Xbox Game Pass has been the absence of any Xbox Game Pass Family Plan, which would permit you to share credentials to the service among a household. Weve written about the market for such a plan before, especially since Nintendo offers a Family Plan for its online assistance, and platforms like Disney+ and Netflix (thru its multi-streams program) have had it for years.
Microsoft had a craving to create a Family Plan a while ago. However, there were details about how royalties might be distributed and how licenses from third-party publishers would be compensated for users who werent connected to the main plan. According to trusted sources acquainted with Microsofts efforts, we can now ensure that Xbox is moving forward with an Xbox Game Pass Family Plan, which could be launched sometime this year.
From our data, paying on a more elevated tier for an Xbox Game Pass Family Plan will net key for five players for games across the whole library. It will be far more affordable than paying for five distinct XGP accounts, as is needed today. Utilizing Microsofts Family Account system already in benefit for Office 365, players within the same country can play together using a single XGP subscription handled by a central account holder, in much the same way as comparable services.
Some details remain vague for now, though. For example, will there be individual Family Plans for PC Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass console, or will it all be sole to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate? And the exact pricing is also unknown as of writing; besides that, it will reportedly be far cheaper than paying for various separate accounts as required today.
Were not sure exactly when all of this will be announced, but it seems as though Microsoft is reading up to drive this public shortly.
The Xbox 360 is a game home video console designed by Microsoft. As the beneficiary of the original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox series. It contested with Sonys PlayStation 3 and Nintendos Wii as the region of the seventh generation of video game consoles. It was officially revealed on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detailed launch and game data at the 2005 Electronic Entertainment Expo later that month.
The Xbox 360 characterizes an online service, Xbox Live, which was extended from its previous iteration on the original Xbox and acquired regular updates during the consoles lifetime. Available in free and subscription-based combinations, Xbox Live permits users to play games online; download games (via Xbox Live Arcade) and game demos; buy and stream music, television programs, and movies through the Xbox Music and Xbox Video portals; and key to third-party content services via media streaming applications.
In addition to online multimedia elements, it lets users stream media from local PCs. In addition, several peripherals have been released, including expanded hard drive storage, wireless controllers, and the Kinect motion-sensing camera. The release of these extra services and peripherals supported the Xbox brands growth from gaming-only to encompassing all multimedia, revolving it into a hub for living-room computing entertainment.