Microsoft’s gaming chief says Xbox Game Pass is too expensive
▼ Summary
– Microsoft’s new Xbox chief, Asha Sharma, stated in an internal memo that Xbox Game Pass pricing is about to change.
– Sharma admitted the subscription service has become too expensive for players and requires a better value proposition.
– The company plans to evolve Game Pass into a more flexible system in the long term.
– This evolution will require time for testing and learning according to the leadership.
– The memo was obtained by *The Verge* and signals a shift in Microsoft’s strategy for the service.
Microsoft’s recently appointed head of Xbox, Asha Sharma, has indicated that significant changes are coming to the Xbox Game Pass subscription service. In a company-wide memo to staff that was later obtained by media, Sharma openly acknowledged that the current pricing structure has created a barrier for many gamers. She stated that the service has “become too expensive for players” and emphasized the need for Microsoft to establish “a better value equation” moving forward.
Sharma reinforced that Game Pass remains central to the value proposition of the Xbox platform, but she was clear that the existing model is not permanent. “It’s also clear that the current model isn’t the final one,” she explained in the communication. Her comments outline a two-phase strategy: addressing affordability concerns in the near term, followed by a longer-term evolution. The goal is to transform Game Pass into “a more flexible system,” though Sharma noted this transition will “take time to test and learn around.”
This internal admission follows a series of price increases for Xbox Game Pass over the past year, which have drawn criticism from the gaming community. The leaked memo suggests corporate leadership is now directly responding to that feedback, signaling a potential shift in strategy to improve accessibility and retain subscribers in a competitive market.
(Source: The Verge)
