Free Ad-Supported Tier of Xbox Cloud Gaming Under Testing by Microsoft
As per a report from The Verge, Microsoft is apparently testing an advertisement-supported, free version of Xbox Cloud Gaming for internal purposes. It is expected that the public test will be announced soon, whereas a full rollout is slated for the forthcoming months.
How the Free Tier Will Work
The free service comes with certain conditions and restrictions. The following structure is discussed in the report:
- Ads: Players have to watch two minutes of advertisements before they can start a game streaming session.
- Time Limits: Reportedly, the Game Pass will allow just five hours of playtime in a month, with an obligation to play in one-hour sessions.
- Game Access: Free-to-play games are streamed, along with a certain selection of games a player may own, in addition to a collection of "Xbox Retro Classic" titles.
- Devices: It will run on any PC, console, or portable device.
Relevance and Reactions
This news comes on the back of a hike in Xbox Game Pass prices by 50% very recently. Along with this, the Xbox Cloud Gaming was also made accessible under the less expensive Essential subscription category, as opposed to the previous Ultimate plan requirement.
The limitations on the free tier reported would really make a user pay for an actual experience in a Game Pass Essential subscription: one-hour session time length, five hours a month.
Players might even be less likely to welcome this ad-supported model, free or not, especially after the recent price hikes in consoles and obsolescence of added benefits for subscribers.
