I hope this drives MS to keep expanding their 1P output aggressively. More games for Game Pass means more 1P expansions and dev acquisitions. :). This is truly the Netflix of gaming and Game Pass just got it's first blockbuster.
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Analyst: Gears 5 is Game Pass' first "mega hit", leads to great number of Game Pass sign ups
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Yes. Your Live Gold will turn into Game Pass Ultimate and you get two extra months that you pay for, so you will have it until March 2021.
How did you enjoy your breakfast this morning hopefully it was tasty mine was.
Nothing wrong for you to think that. However, this is no different than any other subscription service where the hope is that a percentage of new users will stay on the service who wouldn't have otherwise. If they can keep a steady stream of quality games (which they have nailed thus far), then there is reason to believe that a significant portion will stay subscribed.
I hope you haven't done it yet...just get 3 years worth and then do the 2 for $2...Basically up until July of 2022 worth of live and then do the upgrade. It will convert your entire Gold to Ultimate.
Just renewed twice, so got two extra months free for recurring billing (March 2022), and then added the gamepass £2 for 2 months, and it converted to Gamepass ultimate until May 2022! Not fussed about three years right now, May 2022 is ok for me tbh lol.
No offense to anyone, buy Sony better have a killer system, with at least a few killer titles in the first year of PS5, or I think next gen will be a single console gen for me personally.
Yeah it's not like there aren't tons of other great games on the service.
:::goes back to playing Devil May Cry 5 on Gamepass:::
Sorry for sounding dumb (again lol), but you know games such as Gears 5, that are play anywhere, are they also play anywhere as part of Gamepass?
Microsoft needs a 'Stranger Things' to really push subs and interest.
They need strong episodic content. Something like the first season of Life is Strange or Walking Dead, a game that reaches the masses, have a set schedule for monthly releases, do not miss or delay a single one, do that for six to eight straight months and watch the subs explode.
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Damn, I didn't realise both Shenmue I & 2 are on Gamepass.
Tbh, I don't know why anyone wouldn't go for Gamepass, especially if it's pretty much free, via upgrading your Live sub.
Tbh, I don't know why anyone wouldn't go for Gamepass, especially if it's pretty much free, via upgrading your Live sub.
That was for three accounts for Game Pass Ultimate. So, that includes xbox live gold, game pass for xbox and pc for all three accounts, for three years.
Eventually, a few years down the road, the number of first party games on there will be immense.
It's a good deal now, I'll be an amazing deal later.
The value of Game Pass to Microsoft
Hehe the arguments in this thread are silly. Is the only value for MS of GP the cash they get from it? Er. No, actually. Let's not forget that Xbox has a lot of things that it cares about. Let's think about it for a bit.
The benefits to Xbox, MS, their partners, and players go beyond just the initial cash influx. Gears has done its job. Hundreds of thousands/millions will keep their subscriptions to play TOW or Reach or Ori or any number of new and loved 3rd party games. As MS gears up for Scarlett, game pass, with its positive press and gamer good will, has already been wildly successful - no matter how much cash it makes.
Does Ms care about money? Of course. I think everyone can agree that if they get millions of subscribers at full price, the math easily makes sense. But, the sticking point is that a lot of people are not paying full price, right? Lots of people will stay subscribed. But lots of people won't.
OK.. So? Let's game this out. Let's pretend that everyone paid $2 and everyone is gonna cancel on 2 months, and thus MS is making no money whatsoever from this game. Completely impossible, and yet.. I would argue there still lots of value to MS. What are the benefits of having a ton of people play this game at launch?
The game's launch is bigger. How many people played SOD2 or Crackdown or 3rd party stuff like Outer Wilds and Void Bastards simply because they were available? I certainly did. Gears will be able to say it's the biggest launch ever in the history of gears. They may end up with comparable player numbers as mega hits like God of War and Spiderman. Considering where Xbox is now, that would be INCREDIBLE. That has many more benefits for the game too. We're talking about much larger player bases, and with faster matchmaking. It also means WAY more people are talking about your game. Especially when it's a great game like gears. Word of mouth expands immensely. That helps with the perception of the game, it helps with sales, it helps with game pass (which, again, in this extreme hypothetical makes no money).
This ALSO boosts the Xbox brand overall. It increases the prestige of the entire ecosystem with every new popular game on the platform. Every new game reinforces the idea that this ecosystem is with investing in overall. Your progress is here. Your friends' progress is here. Your achievements are here.
Also, every gamepass use is engagement in the ecosystem. You only have gamepass for a month or two? Well, you might as well play a few more games while you have the service right? That's a month or two where you are gonna play a lot more on MS platforms than you usually do. (I know that because if you are regularly on the platform already, you should really just stay subscribed if you can). That's a month or two where you're statistically spending more time playing games (in general), interacting with people online, getting achievements. That's a month or two where you're making the experience better for everyone else on the platform (assuming you're not a dick), as you provide a body for player base and matchmaking.
Tired yet? We're not done. Again, none of these benefits make any direct money from a game pass sub, but surely you can see why they are valuable.
All of this ALSO just gets you into the store in the first place. You know? The platforms that tons of people would NEVER have touched for a second, let alone 2 months. That's valuable for all of MS, not just for Xbox. Maybe you think it's stupid and ineffectual because you don't buy anything. Sure. But remember the biggest hurdle for most people is even knowing the store exists and then launching it. With all of these people, Xbox is teaching them how to use the store and getting them comfortable with seeing it as a legitimate platform - not necessarily the best one - but a real one that you are fine with using. That's huge. Changing perceptions is slow and expensive. They're doing it.
Also.. Lots of people here bragging about canceling game pass have said that they have signed up multiple times over time. That's great for MS (and for every sub service). Recurring engagement shows that their pitches are working, their games are enticing, and that ppl are getting comfortable using the service. That shows everything I've said earlier, and it helps facilitate that for other people that see that happening.
This helps devs too, especially third party. If you're able to bring people into gamepass, that makes you immensely valuable to MS. Means they're more likely to pay top dollar for your stuff. And of course, the more people coming in for Gears who then discover Ori and Edith Finch and Gardens Between, the better for everyone.
And again. NONE OF THESE benefits has anything to do the money that game pass subscriptions bring in. The strategy here is apparently so far beyond what most people have even begun to consider. Does game pass need to make money? Yes, of course. Does it need to make more money in September than it would have if it sold only full price? No. (It still might do pretty well, but it doesn't have to.)
OK.. So? Let's game this out. Let's pretend that everyone paid $2 and everyone is gonna cancel on 2 months, and thus MS is making no money whatsoever from this game. Completely impossible, and yet.. I would argue there still lots of value to MS. What are the benefits of having a ton of people play this game at launch?
The game's launch is bigger. How many people played SOD2 or Crackdown or 3rd party stuff like Outer Wilds and Void Bastards simply because they were available? I certainly did. Gears will be able to say it's the biggest launch ever in the history of gears. They may end up with comparable player numbers as mega hits like God of War and Spiderman. Considering where Xbox is now, that would be INCREDIBLE. That has many more benefits for the game too. We're talking about much larger player bases, and with faster matchmaking. It also means WAY more people are talking about your game. Especially when it's a great game like gears. Word of mouth expands immensely. That helps with the perception of the game, it helps with sales, it helps with game pass (which, again, in this extreme hypothetical makes no money).
This ALSO boosts the Xbox brand overall. It increases the prestige of the entire ecosystem with every new popular game on the platform. Every new game reinforces the idea that this ecosystem is with investing in overall. Your progress is here. Your friends' progress is here. Your achievements are here.
Also, every gamepass use is engagement in the ecosystem. You only have gamepass for a month or two? Well, you might as well play a few more games while you have the service right? That's a month or two where you are gonna play a lot more on MS platforms than you usually do. (I know that because if you are regularly on the platform already, you should really just stay subscribed if you can). That's a month or two where you're statistically spending more time playing games (in general), interacting with people online, getting achievements. That's a month or two where you're making the experience better for everyone else on the platform (assuming you're not a dick), as you provide a body for player base and matchmaking.
Tired yet? We're not done. Again, none of these benefits make any direct money from a game pass sub, but surely you can see why they are valuable.
All of this ALSO just gets you into the store in the first place. You know? The platforms that tons of people would NEVER have touched for a second, let alone 2 months. That's valuable for all of MS, not just for Xbox. Maybe you think it's stupid and ineffectual because you don't buy anything. Sure. But remember the biggest hurdle for most people is even knowing the store exists and then launching it. With all of these people, Xbox is teaching them how to use the store and getting them comfortable with seeing it as a legitimate platform - not necessarily the best one - but a real one that you are fine with using. That's huge. Changing perceptions is slow and expensive. They're doing it.
Also.. Lots of people here bragging about canceling game pass have said that they have signed up multiple times over time. That's great for MS (and for every sub service). Recurring engagement shows that their pitches are working, their games are enticing, and that ppl are getting comfortable using the service. That shows everything I've said earlier, and it helps facilitate that for other people that see that happening.
This helps devs too, especially third party. If you're able to bring people into gamepass, that makes you immensely valuable to MS. Means they're more likely to pay top dollar for your stuff. And of course, the more people coming in for Gears who then discover Ori and Edith Finch and Gardens Between, the better for everyone.
And again. NONE OF THESE benefits has anything to do the money that game pass subscriptions bring in. The strategy here is apparently so far beyond what most people have even begun to consider. Does game pass need to make money? Yes, of course. Does it need to make more money in September than it would have if it sold only full price? No. (It still might do pretty well, but it doesn't have to.)
The benefits to Xbox, MS, their partners, and players go beyond just the initial cash influx. Gears has done its job. Hundreds of thousands/millions will keep their subscriptions to play TOW or Reach or Ori or any number of new and loved 3rd party games. As MS gears up for Scarlett, game pass, with its positive press and gamer good will, has already been wildly successful - no matter how much cash it makes.
Would much rather an article that explains how they make more money out of $1-$2 per month subscriptions vs selling the game at retail...
The two subs are separate, so games that happen to be on both subs may not interconnect. HOWEVER, games that are play anywhere like Gears will work on both platforms, even if you only have one type of sub.
It's a pretty common strategy to get a business/service off the ground. 15+ years ago it wasn't hard to find amazon discount codes. Not as much these days. Right now Uber & Lyft pass out tons of discounts, once the business expands to a certain point, it won't be as common.
It's all about eventualities. More people inevitably play games they normally wouldn't have otherwise. Hopefully enjoy the franchises enough from that point on to keep coming back, and add to the fact that your 2$ sub will eventually run out and won't be around forever. Eventually you'll be paying 10$ a month to keep doing what you're doing now.
They just hope that you do it enough now that it becomes a habit. Like paying for Netflix even when you're not watching.
I get that sense too. By the time those cheapo subs expire, it'll be MUCH harder to justify cancelling the service. They're likely hoping those people get used to the service, and by the time the aggressive promos stop or expire, they'll have a much stronger output of exclusive content, or at least are hoping to have it.
I think it might just pay off!
Not true, if the game is Play Anywhere you can play it on PC if you have Xbox Game Pass. That's why people thought there was already a PC Game Pass since games like Forza Horizon 4 worked on PC.
Very curious to see how many will stay after the luster of gears 5 is gone. If they're smart, they have a AAA title waiting to drop around the expected drop rate for Gears 5 (say 1-2months from now). I must admit though, i'm compelled to stick with gamepass after my ultimate/live deal is done. There's a lot of interesting titles that fall under "I wouldn't buy it, but i'd play it" territory that i kinda don't want to give up.
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It's sustainable in the same way as a free month of Netflix or Prime is sustainable.
Also don't forget how Netflix has increased its pricing over the years as the service has matured and hit necessary milestones. Expect Game Pass to do the same.
It won't stay at this price obviously. But yeah, for now it seems they sell at a loss to draw people into the subscription.
I mean I got like 10 games I would have bought for 5 - 30€ each that I will fly through in three months and then unsubscribe and in the end I paid 4€ ...
I played 1 through 4 in anticipation of 5 arriving on Gamepass. I only had nostalgia for 1 since it was the only one I had played before but I felt each subsequent game was better than the previous entry. More colours, better storytelling, and more impressive set pieces.
I had heard a lot of people didn't like JD but I thought he was alright. The ending also had the best set piece in the whole series. The Coalition is doing a great job and I like what I've played of 5 so far.
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By the way I don't think amazon make a single penny of the Amazon Prime subscriptions, maybe even lose money.
If people like it, they'll stay past the initial offer. If they stay they'll tell others it's good. As the user base grows it incurs guaranteed revenue for the provider because they can count on x million people definitely paying the full sub.
Whatever number it is you have to divide by 7 because of all the people that share between groups of 7 consoles.
maybe. I think netflix is different as the cost to own a movie is about $20aud (particularly digitally), a game is about $70aud. A movie is about 2hours long, a game is about 10-20. If anything game pass should cost $30/month not $2. I think game pass is getting devalued but as a consumer I probably shouldn't complain.
Bro you got it for basically 3 years...it's 2019, 2022 is basically 3 years. Good shit man.
Edit: I LOVE GAME PASS AND WANT IT TO SUCCEED BUT I don't feel very locked in over $2. Microsoft are delusional if they think that I'll ditch my PS4 pro and Sony exclusives, my switch and it's portability, over $2 to play gears 5 on my Xbox one S. These 3 year subscribers might be a different story though. And I'm sure as shit not buying dlc for games I'm renting. Jesus.
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I see this a lot and I did it too, but it didn't just cost me £1. It cost over £150 when you factor in the three years of Gold sub and the GP I had already bought before this upgrade offer popped up.
since it seems to be kind of hard to understand, most consumers don't buy 4-5 games at a time let alone in the holiday months. It's a novel idea but what if, what if you could play both call of duty and outerwilds for a sum of $70-$75 instead of $120. And also get access to a bunch of other games? That's why gamepass will continue to keep subscribers
Because I can play Forza gears sea of thieves dmc5 outer world without breaking the bank and also allow me to buy call of duty
Because I can play Forza gears sea of thieves dmc5 outer world without breaking the bank and also allow me to buy call of duty
Jesus, did you even read the tweet and understand what it's saying?
I don't know about the business model yet that's why you don't see bigger third-party publisher participating, certainly not with their newer games. It's a business model worth trying by MS and if it really proves itself as a viable business model for all parties involved then I don't see why other platform holders won't have something similar. It'll be good to see the year-end financial report for this and next year and see if the revenue kept growing for the whole gaming division instead of just people describing benefits subjectively.