Highlights
- Spending on subscription services like PlayStation Plus and Xbox Game Pass has stalled for nearly a year, showing limited growth.
- Microsoft and Sony are expected to continue investing in Xbox Game Pass and PlayStation Plus despite stalling growth, with new titles coming to both services.
A new report is bad news for subscription services like PlayStation Plus and Xbox Game Pass, as data suggests that spending on those services has been stalled for nearly a year. Microsoft and Sony have both bet big on PlayStation Plus and Xbox Game Pass, with Microsoft in particular going all-in on Game Pass. Xbox Game Pass is a cornerstone of Microsoft’s current gaming strategy, with the company bolstering the service through the release of massive, day one games.
Day one games are a huge selling point for Xbox Game Pass and the main reason to sign up for the service. If one had planned on buying just a couple of the games that are added to Game Pass on day one, the service practically pays for itself. Unfortunately, the day one games combined with the extensive library and other perks associated with Game Pass don’t seem to be increasing the service’s subscriber count, if a new report is any indication.
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Mat Piscatella has indicated that the growth of video game subscription services has stalled, stating that spending is up by only 1% when compared to last year. This suggests that PlayStation Plus and Xbox Game Pass are struggling to attract new subscribers in significant numbers. Stalled growth doesn’t mean that the services aren’t already successful though, and so fans should keep that in mind.
Gaming Subscription Service Spending Has Stalled
Moving forward, Xbox and PlayStation gamers can expect Microsoft and Sony to continue investing in Xbox Game Pass and PS Plus. As far as Xbox Game Pass goes, a bunch of Activision-published titles are expected to come to the service in the near future, including all the classic Call of Duty games. In the meantime, Sony has continued to add new games to all three tiers of PlayStation Plus, with fresh titles added on a monthly basis.
The next couple of months could be particularly important for both Game Pass and PS Plus. Rumor has it that a PlayStation Showcase is taking place next week, and if so, it’s possible big PS Plus news could come at the event. After all, Sony has previously used events like these to announce day one PS Plus Extra games like the acclaimed Stray. Meanwhile, the Xbox Games Showcase is dated for June 9, and it will almost assuredly be packed with reveals for day one Game Pass games.
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Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is the highest tier of Microsoft’s flagship game subscription service that offers over 100 game titles that you can play with a single purchase, making it one of the most outstanding value propositions of the Xbox ecosystem to date.