cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/17448834

Microsoft asks many Game Pass subscribers to pay more for less

"Launch day access to first-party titles now restricted to $19.99/month 'Ultimate' tier."

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[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago

This is was inevitable. I have opposed the idea of game pass since inception, and I still do.

[+] [email protected] -11 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Or just do what I do. Sign up for game pass once in a blue moon when friend wants to play games. Cancel it after 1-2 months once friend eclipses into non gaming mode for a while. Dispute the charge on card and say MSFT didn’t cancel trial. Get money back every time. Rinse and repeat as needed.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Yay fraud

[–] [email protected] -2 points 3 months ago

Gigantic corporations can get fucked for a few bucks here and there. Fuck em.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Regardless of how you feel about Game Pass, shouldn’t Microsoft (and the game’s publisher and dev) get paid for a game rental service you fully used and benefited from?

With my morals, that’s not something I could do. Definitely doesn’t sit right with me.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Megacorps can eat my ass

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Fair enough, megacorps certainly are amoral in their decisions, which generally leads to evil outcomes.

Have you considered what happens to indie game devs, which aren't megacorps? They list games on Gamepass to increase exposure. Microsoft takes a cut of the monthly fee and the rest is dispersed to the publishers and then all the way down to the game devs getting a small slice of the monthly fee.

When OP issues a charge back, the game devs aren't getting paid. Is that fair to indie game devs? They don't get paid if Microsoft and the various publishers don't get paid.

Granted, I'm not justifying subscriptions. I personally dislike Games-as-a-Service as I prefer to own my games. But using a paid service, and then charging back against the company? Especially when it's smaller game devs on that platform, too, hoping to make it big one day.

I don't think indie devs should eat your ass, or the original commenter's ass. Frankly, they need money to eat and pay their bills just like us plebs.

[–] [email protected] -2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

When OP issues a charge back, the game devs aren't getting paid

Not sure that's true.

[–] [email protected] -1 points 3 months ago

😂😂 it definitely isn't, msft has shit like $20 chargebacks covered

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago (3 children)

I think it's a pretty good deal. As a dad who has limited amount of time to play, I've had an Xbox for 16 months and bought it with game pass.

In that time I've played > 50 games and played about 15 of them to the credits.

In that time I've not actually bought a game. At the new price of $20 is have paid $320 which is the cost of about 5 or 6 games, Maybe 10 or a 11 if I'd aimed for sales.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago (1 children)

That does sound like a pretty good deal. The thing is, it used to be a fantastic deal. And judging by the way they are acquiring multi billion studios and IPs left and right it's clear as daylight that they want to monopolize the market and keep the subscription model for a long time, which means the deal will get ever worse. So yeah, this pricing change was definitely expected.

Didn't mean to diminish your experience, sorry.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago

Yeah, I can see that and I do worry about how the 'deal' with over change and how frustrating it could be to have seen the deal diminish already

[–] [email protected] 10 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I mean console games are always more expensive. There's always something amusing about getting about 20 good games for five bucks on PC. Also epic games is still trying to bribe us with free games.

[+] [email protected] -12 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Cool story, I'll take the extra expense for not having to use the limited time I have to manage updates and driver issues.

I like that my console just works

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago

What drivers issues, don't consoles require just as many updates? I distinctly remember console update taking upwards of a half an hour to install like 300Mb. Refusing to update would log you out and disable digitally purchased games. It often killed the mood when I just wanted to play some games after work, the steam deck filled that spot nicely.

Besides I use Linux so my drivers are built in and updates are unintrusive and take no time to apply. I have it set to remind me once a month, I get a little icon in the taskbar and I apply them before shutting down. It takes like two minutes.

I'm not judging if you like console but modern consoles are just as annoying as any other internet appliances. They need updates, they need regular Internet access to work, they can't really do anything else, when it shits the bed your expected to throw it away get a new one, and often have tack on a monthly fee for basic features.

I need a computer so instead of splitting the cost between a computer that won't be too slow to do any real work and a $500 game console I just get a more powerful computer and justify the cost with the money I'm saving.

[–] [email protected] 28 points 3 months ago (1 children)

And games are gimped on gamepass. When palworld released I had to purchase it on steam anyway to be able to play with my buddies. Also patches are late. Very late. I will not be renewing.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Yeah Xbox game pass uses the Xbox version of the game which is sometimes different. Deep rock galactic on game pass won't let you play with deep rock steam players and vice versa.

[–] [email protected] 56 points 3 months ago (3 children)

$16.99 was pretty steep for how much I used it, I just cancelled.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago

Agreed. I guess it’s that value proposition: if you have the time to play, and you play their whole catalog and have a blast, that’s $16.99 well spent.

As for me I love owning my games (where possible due to licensing and DRM), so the value isn’t there. But my spouse and I certainly took advantage of the heavy discounts they offered like the $1 month. I planned it so that I could try as many games as I could during that period and ended up buying them on GOG or Steam if I really loved them.

If their whole catalog is refreshed and they have another heavily discounted offer for 1 month, I’ll pick up a month just to try those games. But I definitely would never be a long term customer, I’d be a parasite loss-leader lol.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Cheap online codes are the way to do gamepass. I agree at 20 a month it’s not really a great deal anymore

[–] [email protected] 13 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

Yea, if you look at your purchases you probably spend less than 20/month on average for games. Plus many of the "big" games aren't on game pass, so you are paying even more.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

I’ve done the math; for what I currently pay if I play two full price games on gamepass a year I come out ahead. Now that’s only because codes are cheap on cdkeys and eneba but once that changes I’ll jump ship

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago

That also assumes you benefit from playing them day one.

There are plenty of games that I would play day one if it's available. But if not, then I would happily wait and buy it when it's cheaper. Also, the ownership adds to the value if I'm not keeping it all the time.

So if I would have waited until the game is $40, I'm saving $40 max. But also, I'll still have it 2 years from now when it's worth $25, assuming I want to play it again. So it maybe saved me $15, depending how you look at it.