How do you think Microsoft will use Game Pass as an incentive for the Series X?

[FernandoRocker]

So, let's say Microsoft announces the price of the Xbox Series X: $499. But Sony is also going to sell the PS5 for $499. Both have very similar specs, and both include one controller but zero games.

Sony has their PS+ service. Microsoft has their Game Pass service, which as you know, gives access to all first party releases, even if they are brand new.

Do you think Microsoft will use Game Pass as an incentive? Let's say... Microsoft could include 1 or 2 years of Gamepass for free with the purchase of a Series X... that way people won't have to buy games initially, and they will be hooked into the ecosystem.

What do you think? Is Game Pass a decivide factor for you for choosing one console over the other?

 

[tarman76]

Without question. The only detail is what length of sub they'll include.

 

[Einbroch]

Kinda two different topics here in the poll: what will they include and does GamePass matter to you.

 

[XVerdena]

It will come with one or three months of game pass included, seems like a no brainer

 

[CloseTalker]

It might include a month of GP, but the real incentive will be making as many launch titles as possible available on the service. And speaking for myself, if I can save a couple hundred bucks on launch games, that makes a platform about a thousand times more appealing in the short term. PS5 can wait for a sale at that point

 

[QuinchoOsito]

I voted one month but I could see up to like three months.

 

[Lobster Roll]

They'll probably include a month or three months. If a few months of Gamepass is enough to tip the scales for somebody on the fence, it's a no-brainer giveaway.

 

[Bgamer90]

I would expect a month of Game Pass in the box. One year (or more) would be too much—especially considering that the audience that buys consoles early are usually pretty hardcore. I'm sure many hardcore Xbox gamers have Game Pass.

But yeah, just Halo Infinite being on Game Pass will more than likely help the Series X.

 

[cw_sasuke]

I think they are going for a full year - it will be the big reveal, to get new customers.

 

[Damn Silly]

There will almost certainly be the option.

 

[Iso]

I think the biggest thing they could do is pack in a 1-3 month pass and get as many of the launch titles (both FP/3P) as they can in, even if they're only on the service for 3-6 months.

 

[MrCibb]

Can't see them not including some kind of free Game Pass per Series X purchase. As you say they want people in their ecosystem first and foremost.

If they throw in 3 - 6 months of Game Pass and most, if not all, of the big launch titles into it, so you just literally buy the box, walk out the store and have a tonne of awesome games to play for a while, that's a sweet deal.

 

[Windu]

Well Xbox Consoles today come with like a month of game pass. So I'm sure they will continue doing that. As for incentives to buy an xbox? Eh tbh I think its the other way around. They want to sell game pass more than a console.

 

[Kalem]

Full year for the first 3 months after launch, 3 months after that until first year, 1 month afterwards.

Should keep new owners/early adopter loyalty until exclusives/new gen games start rolling proper

 

[Deleted member 56752]

I think they'll heavily heavily market game pass for series x. I said they'll do one month. They don't usually do crazy deals at retail. The most intriguing part about it to me is that the argument (which is valid) is that the Xbox has no good exclusives. That being said, Xbox and Xbox game pass gives you more games to play than you know what to do with, lots of recent titles. It's crazy

 

[Deleted member 13645]

I believe the payment plan version includes game pass of some sort, so I'd be surprised if they don't use it as an incentive as an in-box bonus for the new console release. I don't think it'd be a year but something like 3 months.

 

[wearejoel]

One month is more than enough but I think they'll reintroduce the $1 pass for new users. You give a service away for free, that term loses value in a new users' mind. But you sell someone access to hundreds of games and a brand new Halo for $1. They feel like they're the winner. You establish a transactional bridge. From there, it's all a matter of keeping that user. And Microsoft will be extremely aggressive to achieve their goal of keeping a subscriber for as long as they have the hardware and beyond. Sony already said they are not interested in including brand new games on PS plus. This is where Microsoft will pounce. Access to a brand new Halo at launch that you can play anywhere. The value proposition is enticing.

 

[Vivian-Pogo]

PS Now is Sony's Game Pass equivalent, not PS+. Apparently they don't market it very well.

On topic, I see 3 months of Game Pass Ultimate being bundled in.

 

[EvilBoris]

1 month

That's went exclusive launch title for free with your new machine.

 

[FernandoRocker]

PS Now is Sony's Game Pass equivalent, not PS+. Apparently they don't market it very well.

On topic, I see 3 months of Game Pass Ultimate being bundled in.

Click to shrink...

Isn't PS Now a streaming service like Google Stadia? I honestly don't know.

 

[MrFortyFive]

I have little doubt that they'll include some. The question is how much. I could see it being anywhere from 3-12 months. I don't think 1 month for a $500+ system will be enough.

 

[MYeager]

I'd bet 3 months.

 

[Welfare]

Instead of including a 14 day free trial for Gold, they should do a 30 day trial for Game Pass Ultimate.

 

[Deleted member 5725]

How do you think Microsoft will use Game Pass as an incentive for the Series X?
I prefer to pay for PS+ than Game Pass
Game Pass is irrelevant to me

How do those options answer the question?

To answer the question I think 1-3 months for free.

 

[Vivian-Pogo]

Isn't PS Now a streaming service like Google Stadia?

Click to shrink...

No, the PS4 games on the service are download or streaming. The PS3 and older games are streaming only.

 

[MrBob]

Isn't Ms offering similar phone plans for buying Xbox? Like pay X amount in two years for Xbox with gamepass. This is where I think they go because they ultimately want that recurring subscription money. Plus once you get done paying 35 a month for a couple years then 15 a month to keep gamepass ultimate is cheap.

 

[Nuclear Muffin]

They will offer a payment plan subscription for the hardware itself (ALA a mobile phone subscription); in order to get around the insane retail price that the console will inevitably sell for (probably $799.99 RRP).

The trick here? This payment plan will also include a subscription for Game Pass thrown in for "free". That'll be how they make the console look like a bargain and get around the sticker shock.

The ability to buy the console outright will be restricted and hidden away as a secondary option. The payment plan will be the primary way to buy the machine, and will be the focus of their marketing.

Isn't Ms offering similar phone plans for buying Xbox? Like pay X amount in two years for Xbox with gamepass. This is where I think they go because they ultimately want that recurring subscription money. Plus once you get done paying 35 a month for a couple years then 15 a month to keep gamepass ultimate is cheap.

Click to shrink...

They are already experimenting with this in the US with the Xbox One X and that is exactly what they will so with Series X. This will be pitched as the primary way of buying the machine, with the option to buy outright being presented as a niche option; exactly like how smartphone payment plans work.

 

[Goldenroad]

Instead of including a 14 day free trial for Gold, they should do a 30 day trial for Game Pass Ultimate.

Click to shrink...

This is what I think. I could see them doing 3 months if they felt they needed to get aggressive, but considering that most people that are going to be there for a XSX day one are probably already in that MS ecosystem, it'll likely just be one month.

 

[Deleted member 23046]

The problem is more to make it incentive for third-parties publishers to put their fresh new next-gen titles on it.

 

[jon bones]

Such weird poll options

 

[SlipperyMoose]

Well I believe by the series X launch xcloud will be out to the public. So I can see Microsoft having gamepass ultimate trial of some sort bundled in with every XSX. This will unlock every first party game at launch as well as some 3rd party games. The ability to play online. The ability to stream the games instantly so you don't have to wait for large downloads and to take the games with you on your phone/tablet. Not to mention the XSX is backwards compatible so you will be able to play previous generations of games.

As a side note I'd be interested to see if MS could somehow win some brownie points and be able to decouple online play from gold/ultimate. It's tough because the majority of people subscribe to gold due to online play. But if they can put enough value in gamepass, xcloud, games with gold and perhaps bundle mixer in there. It's tough and they would perhaps be losing money up front but if they had the ability to have free online play like the pc counterpart then I think that would attract people to the system and natural a percentage of those would end up signing up for gamepass and other subscriptions.

 

[LavaBadger]

I think 3 months is much more likely. But picked 1 month since that's the closest.

I also don't mind paying for PS+, but it needs to update its offerings to match the value of Gamepass.

 

[isahn]

I'd say one month included and some kind of discount for a game pass ultimate yearly subscription during the launch window

 

[Lowrys]

Zero chance they're going to give a year of gamepass for free.

 

[jelly]

Here is a hundred free games including brand new ones for 1-3 months at no extra cost. That leaves you more money for third party titles or basically saving you money. Pretty good deal if the games are to your liking.

 

[Belthazar90]

I think 3 months would be the sweet spot.

 

[iareharSon]

I can see there being a launch window incentive that's above the standard 1-month throw in. 3 month seems likely, maybe 6 months? That's more than enough to sell people on the service and earn their future business. Any more than that and you're needlessly throwing away revenue IMO. Who knows, maybe they want to be absurdly aggressive.

 

[DidactBRHU3]

They will use gamepass to promote their games, pretty insane to think that:

PS5 Price + $60 exclusive or more
vs
XSX Price + every first party game and many more for free for 1-3 months

The only thing MS has against them is the quality of the games themselves.

 

[Xiofire]

1 Month of free GamePass which will net you Halo Infinite at launch with the purchase of the console.

Lock. It. In.

 

[LavitzSlambert]

They'll give people a month and it will have some big hits in order to entice people to sub. A year or two in the licenses to all the best games will expire and it will look the way video streaming does today.

 

[MrHedin]

I would bet 3 months with maybe going up to 6 months (don't see it being a year) but yes I do fully expect them to include GamePass with the console purchase.

 

[TheGhost]

Microsoft already gave out a year worth of Gamepass for peanuts to build the base and prepare for next gen. There is no way they give out gamepass for anything longer than a month.

 

[rumbling]

The main incentive would be the existence of Game Pass. And they will make damn sure that everyone buying a new console this fall will know about it and how it works.

My guess is 1 month. Could see it being just 14 days. Dont think it matter at all how long "free gamepass" is included with the console.

 

[dedge]

Microsoft being able to market the cost of the console as say $500 out the door while still having access to first party launch games, the existing BC GP library, and whatever else they can secure, is a huge win for them, so they will definitely be including some length of it.

 

[ghibli99]

1 month as a standard, although if it releases around BF/Christmas, I could see a year being included or at least heavily discounted with a console purchase.

Edit: I do hope they change it so that the 1 month works even if you're currently enrolled. Otherwise it's a worthless add.

 

[LiK]

One year for people buying the launch batch.

 

[Typhoon20]

I mean just buying their newest console that will allow you to play so many great games for free with a free gamepass sub is a damn good incentive. I'm guessing they're gonna grab a few big games around the series x release to market with gamepass.

 

[Lastdancer]

3 months

 

[defaltoption]

Lmfao who chose i prefer to pay for ps plus over gamepass.

Hating or even just not enjoying Microsoft or their Xbox division is one thing but cmon.

You like paying for online play and 2 random games a month over paying less for 100s of games. Nobody likes paying for ps plus. Just say you dont think it's relevant to you.

 

[Last_colossi]

If they end up selling the console for a loss at launch they definitely won't include anything more than a month.