It was only a couple of months ago that Xbox announced (and subsequently followed through with) plans to raise the prices of not only the Xbox Series X console but also of Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscriptions. With that still fresh in the mind, a recent remark from Xbox boss Phil Spencer has conceded that this is unlikely to be the last price hike we’ll see for the service.
In an interview with Japanese outlet Game Watch at last week’s Tokyo Game Show, Spencer was asked about the possibility of future price increases on the service, and answered (with translation via Idle Sloth):
“Although the main premise is to provide more value, the price is I think it is inevitable that it will rise in the future. We recently raised our prices once, but the decision was made after careful consideration. We believe it is important to provide services that are recognised as being of sufficient value even if prices are increased.”
(FYI) Phil was asked if there would be a Game Pass price increase in the future
Phil Spencer: "Although the main premise is to provide more value, the price is I think it is inevitable that it will rise in the future. We recently raised our prices once, but the decision was made… pic.twitter.com/jpN1zbAyaV
— Idle Sloth?? (@IdleSloth84_) September 23, 2023
Of course, it doesn’t take a whole lot of sense to figure that neither Game Pass nor any subscription-based service can stay the same price forever just based on consistently rising costs and inflation as an inevitability. Even disregarding that, we’re seeing streaming services all over the place begin to raise prices and try new tactics to seek out better (or any) profitability, which is something that Microsoft will certainly need to think about now that its proposed $69 billion USD bid to acquire Activision Blizzard seems likely to go through.
