Global Subscribers Displeased by Xbox Game Pass Price Increase
'Owing' to the Xbox Game Pass Price Increase, the Global Subscribers Are Displeased; Price Reviews in Some Regions Have Reached 100%
After the recent price revaluation and rebranding of the Xbox Game Pass, there is global grievance among subscribers. The emergent markets like Brazil, Turkey, Greece, and South Africa have been disproportionately hit with price increases of up to 100%.
The countries mentioned have regarded the maximum increase of 100% disproportionately in relation to the U.S. increase of 50%: The Xbox Game Pass Ultimate saw an increase from $19.99 to $29.99 per month effective October 1, 2025. According to Microsoft, the U.S. price hike added the Ubisoft+ Classics and Fortnite Crew subscriptions, with the justification of 75 titles available on day one yearly.
Heavy Fine on Pocket for International Markets
Price adjustments harm more in areas with lesser purchase power. Subscribers sometimes in the region pay more for lesser features, as things like advanced cloud streaming services are not available everywhere.
- Brazil: The Game Pass Ultimate price has nearly doubled, from BRL 59.99 to BRL 119.90 per month. The new price equates to about 8% of the country's monthly minimum wage.
- South Africa: Subscribers have seen a 75% surge, with Game Pass Ultimate priced up from R200 to R350 per month.
- Greece: The price for Game Pass Ultimate starts at €26.99 in Greece, the same as Germany, while Germany has a greater average income. Another downside for Greece is that it also does not have access to the Xbox Cloud streaming.
FTC Warnings and Market Consolidation
These price increases have revived interest in the warnings given by former FTC Chair Lina Khan in reference to the Microsoft acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Khan has stressed the idea that the merger could harm consumers, most recently on social media.
Khan said, "increasing market consolidation and increasing prices often go hand-in-hand."
Critics cite a promise made by Microsoft during 2023 court proceedings in which they dismissed the idea that the acquisition would lead to an increase in Game Pass prices.
The Widespread Industry Context
Although Microsoft is presently facing the most serious consumer backlash, Xbox price hikes are not an exclusive incident. Sony, too, has been raising prices for PlayStation Plus subscriptions and the PS5 console, while Nintendo has been selling original Switch hardware and new games at high prices.
However, in this seemingly short time, the massive price increase for Game Pass in regions economically sensitive and at the wake of recent layoffs and project cancellations by the Xbox division has put Microsoft's strategy under severe scrutiny. This may lead to the first-ever drop in net subscriber numbers for the service before now.
