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Xbox Game Pass Is The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Gaming

The best games in existence aren’t on GamePass, so no...it’s not the best thing to ever happen to gaming.

And unlike Netflix, where you can experiment with movies that aren’t the best quality and it only wastes a small amount of your time, Gaming is completely different with games that take 30-40+ hours sometimes to finish.

most people have limited free time, so buying a service that largely is quantity over quality doesn’t have much value for many.
 
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longdi

Banned
The best games in existence aren’t on GamePass, so no...it’s not the best thing to ever happen to gaming.

And unlike Netflix, where you can experiment with movies that aren’t the best quality and it only wastes a small amount of your time, Gaming is completely different with games that take 30-40+ hours sometimes to finish.

most people have limited free time, so buying a service that largely is quantity over quality doesn’t have much value for many.

didn't MS managed to get rdr2 on gpu pretty quickly.

seems like their net will only widen this gen.

i mean,we are going to get the whole zenimax library now.

gpu is just going to grow and grow and be rather unstoppable
 
didn't MS managed to get rdr2 on gpu pretty quickly.

seems like their net will only widen this gen.

i mean,we are going to get the whole zenimax library now.

gpu is just going to grow and grow and be rather unstoppable

Well that’s just type thing... nearly all of the really great games on the service are old...and if you buy these day 1, the fact that it’s on GP is kind of irrelevant
 

Xenon

Member
No that would be Microsoft entering the console market ;) but it's up there.

Ganepass is a great value for consumers. While it's not going to change the AAA game devs its huge for the mid tier and indie developers who fly below the social media hyped games. It helps people find the games they never knew they wanted.

Like I just started playing Monster Sanctuary. I never would have touched this but it's really scratching a nostalgic itch Ive been having lately.
 
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GamePass definitely is the type of service to open up gamers to a new way of experiencing games the same way Netflix has done for TV.
In no way is this a bad thing so It can only be good for everyone. The rapid adoption rate should push Sony and Nintendo to at the very least consider rival services.
This is why competition is so good. It drives down prices and creates services to draw consumers to your platform. We as the gamers win in the end.

The fuck is wrong with you guys. GamePass is good.
Right, I wish that many gamers appreciate halo franchise more than ever, I'm talking at least 15m and more , rather than just 5m at the moment.
 

Fredrik

Member
The best games in existence aren’t on GamePass, so no...it’s not the best thing to ever happen to gaming.

And unlike Netflix, where you can experiment with movies that aren’t the best quality and it only wastes a small amount of your time, Gaming is completely different with games that take 30-40+ hours sometimes to finish.

most people have limited free time, so buying a service that largely is quantity over quality doesn’t have much value for many.
You’re clearly not factoring Microsoft growing list of 1st party studios into the equation here.

There is nothing at this point that says that a MS studio won’t make the best game ever, and since all MS games are on Gamepass the best game ever will in that case be on Gamepass. 🥳

Really, it’s great now and it’ll just get better going forward when all studios start opening the floodgates.

And it’s also fun just trying out different game types you would never try if you had to buy them. Like sports games for me, I would never waste money just to see if I like a sports game since I have zero interest in sports.
But if it’s free? Sure why not.

And you don’t have to play a game for 30-40+ hours unless you end up loving them and want to finish them. You never feel like you wasted your money if you uninstall a game after 5 hours so you never have to waste your time on a game you don’t really like, you never payed for it anyway so you can just go -uninstall- without feeling bad about it. It’s great!
 
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Chukhopops

Member
They're old, crap games. You may like them, but that doesn't change the majority of the library.

No advice here, bud. I couldn't give a fuck what you do. The contention that Gamepass is 'the best thing that ever happened to gaming' is laughable. Sorry.
It’s ok to be out of arguments and stick to your opinions even when actual numbers don’t show what you say - just keep repeating the same claims but in a more condescending way.
 
It being a "good deal" is a fallacy. To keep your access to games you have to keep paying every months even when there's no new games that interest you. And as soon as you stop the sub, you're left with nothing for the money you invested in.

I don't like to pay rent. I'd rather just buy on sale the few games I want. 120€ per year can get you a lot of good games on PC.
Your option continues to exist just fine; buy what you want and don't sub to GP.

What you miss is with GP you're free to buy anything you want, often at a discount too. You're also free to play any GP games and not buy them if you don't like them.

Without GP you just don't have the option to try or discount buy. You're also not locked into some contract, GP is just a month by month service for you to start or stop whenever you feel like it. Given family friends, kids friends and my own experience with GP I've played more games and diverse genres than I have in decades. It's great for the exposure of devs/studios and it's great for gamers and their friends. The same goes for trying games out with friends e.g. Among Us on PC with my daughter and her friends or Golf with Friends on Xbox. Fads die out and I have no interest in owning those games beyond playing them solo or with friends for a short time.

Each to their own but to label this as some fallacy seems disingenuous to me.
 

bender

What time is it?
Gamepass won't be great until its confirmed I'll be able to use it to play MLB: The Show '21 with it on PC.
Magic_8_Ball_featured.jpg
 
You’re clearly not factoring Microsoft growing list of 1st party studios into the equation here.

There is nothing at this point that says that a MS studio won’t make the best game ever, and since all MS games are on Gamepass the best game ever will in that case be on Gamepass. 🥳

Really, it’s great now and it’ll just get better going forward when all studios start opening the floodgates.

And it’s also fun just trying out different game types you would never try if you had to buy them. Like sports games for me, I would never waste money just to see if I like a sports game since I have zero interest in sports.
But if it’s free? Sure why not.

And you don’t have to play a game for 30-40+ hours unless you end up loving them and want to finish them. You never feel like you wasted your money if you uninstall a game after 5 hours so you never have to waste your time on a game you don’t really like, you never payed for it anyway so you can just go -uninstall- without feeling bad about it. It’s great!

sure, it could happen... but the fruits of Microsoft’s investments into first party are yet to be seen

If they start competing with Sony and Nintendo on that front then GamePass will be an awesome deal, but I expect GP price to rise considerably if that happens
 

Kagey K

Banned
sure, it could happen... but the fruits of Microsoft’s investments into first party are yet to be seen

If they start competing with Sony and Nintendo on that front then GamePass will be an awesome deal, but I expect GP price to rise considerably if that happens
If that happens people will cancel. It’s not like they are locked in and forced to pay the price. 🤷‍♂️

In the meantime people are enjoying games.
 

Fredrik

Member
sure, it could happen... but the fruits of Microsoft’s investments into first party are yet to be seen

If they start competing with Sony and Nintendo on that front then GamePass will be an awesome deal, but I expect GP price to rise considerably if that happens
Are you talking about a specific type of games here? The way I’m looking at it the fruits are already hanging there, I mean I don’t see many games like DOOM and The Elder Scrolls from Sony and Nintendo so unless you have very specific taste in games their new studios are already capable of competing, and with a bigger budget they could be even better and bigger, and unless they change their strategy their games will appear on Gamepass like the rest. It’ll be awesome!
 
I blame Game Pass for the annual cost of a gold XBL membership going up (I used to buy 12 months for $80 AUD, now its $30 every 3 months/$120 a year).
For this reason and the fact that Im very selective with what I play, Im not a fan of Game Pass. I have it now, as my Gold expired and MS basically gave me 3 months for free, but it doesnt give me the value my old $80 gold memberships did.
Once my three months of Game Pass expires, I plan to just have Gold for the odd month or so, if some AMAZING online-centric game appears. Other than that, I'll probably just play free to play online shooters on xbox and everything else on PC.
 

greencoder

Member
It's great if you're struggling financially and can't choose which game to buy because you have a limited budget. For the lower middle-class and above, buying games is not a problem.
 
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Kagey K

Banned
It's great if you're struggling financially and can't choose which game to buy because you have a limited budget. For the middle-class and above, buying games is not a problem.
That’s fucking insulting and you should feel ashamed.

I‘m willing to bet I have bought more games than you since these new consoles released and I pay for Game pass on top of it.

Stop assuming everyone is as poor as you, and projecting.
 

greencoder

Member
That’s fucking insulting and you should feel ashamed.

I‘m willing to bet I have bought more games than you since these new consoles released and I pay for Game pass on top of it.

Stop assuming everyone is as poor as you, and projecting.
Let's assume that an average true-gamer buys 45 games in a year (why would he buy more considering how little free time he has). He probably buys at least half of them with the discounts or on the sales. Let's assume that the average price is $40. 45 * $40 = $1800, not a big number for the main hobby. And the games usually don't disappear from his library because he owns them, or at least leases for an unlimited period.
 

Heisenberg007

Gold Journalism
While GP is good for some, It's still a game rental service for God's sake.

None of the big AAA games come on Gamepass day one anyway (like RDR2, CP2077, Hitman 3, Sekiro), so people have to buy those games anyway -- on top of paying $180 per year.

On the contrary:
  • People aren't buying games hoping that a game may come on Gamepass (evidence: Hitman 3 sales on XSX vs. PS5, when both consoles have sold roughly the same amount of consoles, i.e., ~3.1M vs. ~4.5M).
  • Plus, developers may not be as accountable for the quality of their games (e.g., The Medium. People are justifying the shortcomings because "It's free on Gamepass; what else do you want?")
  • Moreover, Gamepass may also encourage releasing half-baked games that will be updated or optimized later, e.g., Sea of Thieves and Grounded.

So, no, this Gamepass is definitely not the best thing that happened to the gaming industry.
 
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Wizz-Art

Member
If you have an Xbox One, Xbox One S, Xbox One X, XSX or XSS it's pretty close to be the best thing in gaming at the moment simply nothing else compares.
 

Optimus Lime

(L3) + (R3) | Spartan rage activated
It’s ok to be out of arguments and stick to your opinions even when actual numbers don’t show what you say - just keep repeating the same claims but in a more condescending way.
'The numbers' do support what I say. You're just a blind fanboy, so you're refuting them.

Which is fine. I don't give a shit what you do. You want to pay Microsoft to rent old games and their Xbox first party? Go for your life, kid.
 

Caio

Member
Sure you can: the best thing to ever happen to gaming is Hidetaka Miyazaki.

That's exactly what I mean, the beauty of taste and opinions. Most of casual gamers back to 2007, 2008 and 2009 considered Wii and the motion controllers and Wii Sports the best thing to ever happen to gaming...other say GamePass...
I'm more with you, and for me Hidetaka Miyazaki is the best thing to ever happen to gaming more than the Wii motion controller and gamePass combined, by a huge margin ;)

for you mate​

 

kuncol02

Banned
Let's assume that an average true-gamer buys 45 games in a year (why would he buy more considering how little free time he has). He probably buys at least half of them with the discounts or on the sales. Let's assume that the average price is $40. 45 * $40 = $1800, not a big number for the main hobby. And the games usually don't disappear from his library because he owns them, or at least leases for an unlimited period.
"True-gamers" don't buy games because they are busy playing Counter Strike\Dota\LoL\WoW. Only 30% of players spend more than 500usd on gaming yearly. You have really, really skewed image of gamers, most people don't spend that much on games because they can't even afford that.
Is there even 45 games yearly worth buying at all?
 

Perrott

Gold Member
You are telling me that a subscription service that's only enjoyed by a tiny portion of the audience and that doesn't feature the industry's very best as part of their lineup it's "the best thing that ever happened to gaming"? Nah.

Online multiplayer was the best thing to ever happened to this medium, the chance to connect and interact with other players from around the world has brought us some of the most memorable gaming experiences of all time.
 

greencoder

Member
Only 30% of players spend more than 500usd on gaming yearly. You have really, really skewed image of gamers, most people don't spend that much on games because they can't even afford that.
Yeah, there is Game Pass for them.

Is there even 45 games yearly worth buying at all?
Last year:
Final Fantasy VII (remake)
Resident Evil 3 (remake)
Mafia: Definitive Edition (remake)
SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom - Rehydrated (remake)
Destroy All Humans! (remake)
Demon's Souls (remake)
Cyberpunk 2077
Doom Eternal
Spider-Man: Miles Morales
Ori and the Will of the Wisps
Watch Dogs Legion
Assassin's Creed Valhalla
Immortals Fenyx Rising
Factorio
Black Mesa
Half-Life: Alyx
Dreams
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Crusader Kings III
Microsoft Flight Simulator
Wasteland 3
The Last of Us Part II
Ghost of Tsushima
Yakuza: Like a Dragon
Nioh 2
Ghostrunner
Gears Tactics
Besiege
Carrion
Hades
Baldo
Röki
Noita
Hylics 2
Creaks
Inmost
Spiritfarer
The Pathless
The Pedestrian
The Last Campfire
Kentucky Route Zero
Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time
TROUBLESHOOTER: Abandoned Children
Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin
Impostor Factory
Deep Rock Galactic
Pumpkin Jack
Spelunky 2
Risk of Rain 2
Desperados III
The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners
Streets of Rage 4
Them's Fightin' Herds
 

Kimahri

Banned
So far it has been a great service, but it'll be interesting to see how viable it is in the long run. A lot of users got a good deal and loaded up on several years, but is it viable at full price? Is the current price sustainable in the long run?

You also have to wonder how it will affect games. I find Gamepass best for discovering new indie games, but I hope it doesn't result in AAA games being shorter or analyzed less just because it's "free" on Gamepass.
Oh I sure hope AAA games will get shorter. So tired of the bloat. Most games should be around 10-20 hours imo, then the occasional epic journey of 50+ or so. More if you're completionist.

If you expect me to spend 100+ hours on a game, forget it. I wanna play several Assassin's Creed games, but man, can't be bothered. Too big.
 

martino

Member
Yeah, there is Game Pass for them.


Last year:
Final Fantasy VII (remake)
Resident Evil 3 (remake)
Mafia: Definitive Edition (remake)
SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom - Rehydrated (remake)
Destroy All Humans! (remake)
Demon's Souls (remake)
Cyberpunk 2077
Doom Eternal
Spider-Man: Miles Morales
Ori and the Will of the Wisps
Watch Dogs Legion
Assassin's Creed Valhalla
Immortals Fenyx Rising
Factorio
Black Mesa
Half-Life: Alyx
Dreams
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Crusader Kings III
Microsoft Flight Simulator
Wasteland 3
The Last of Us Part II
Ghost of Tsushima
Yakuza: Like a Dragon
Nioh 2
Ghostrunner
Gears Tactics
Besiege
Carrion
Hades
Baldo
Röki
Noita
Hylics 2
Creaks
Inmost
Spiritfarer
The Pathless
The Pedestrian
The Last Campfire
Kentucky Route Zero
Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time
TROUBLESHOOTER: Abandoned Children
Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin
Impostor Factory
Deep Rock Galactic
Pumpkin Jack
Spelunky 2
Risk of Rain 2
Desperados III
The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners
Streets of Rage 4
Them's Fightin' Herds
You need to have a very open and heteroclyte profile to buy all that
It surely exists but to find them you need to look for a niche in the niches.
 

LokusAbriss

Member
Maybe not the best thing that every happened to gaming, but it gave me the chance to play many games I would have never bought. It is a win-win-situation for players and developers. Developers can reach players like me, who would never buy their games normally and still receive income from those people.

Short list of games I played and never would have bought or only with a huge price cut: Sea of Thieves, The Medium, Call of the Sea, Battlefield V, Star Wars BF2, State of Decay 2, No Man's Sky, Gears 5, The Outer Worlds, The Touryst, Wasteland 3, Quantum Break, Journey to the Savage Planet, Deliver us the Moon.

All great games, but I wouldnt pay money for them or wait for a sale, because I would be unsure if the investment will be worth it. Some games I play through the end, some I stop after 20 minutes.

For my usage, Gamespass is great and offers me a lot of value. But if you want to collect or own games it has a lot less value for you.
 

Kagey K

Banned
Let's assume that an average true-gamer buys 45 games in a year (why would he buy more considering how little free time he has). He probably buys at least half of them with the discounts or on the sales. Let's assume that the average price is $40. 45 * $40 = $1800, not a big number for the main hobby. And the games usually don't disappear from his library because he owns them, or at least leases for an unlimited period.
Jesus most gamers buy less than 3 games per year. Not 45.

Could you imagine the attach rates if everyone bought 45 games/ year.
 
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Kagey K

Banned
You are telling me that a subscription service that's only enjoyed by a tiny portion of the audience and that doesn't feature the industry's very best as part of their lineup it's "the best thing that ever happened to gaming"? Nah.

Online multiplayer was the best thing to ever happened to this medium, the chance to connect and interact with other players from around the world has brought us some of the most memorable gaming experiences of all time.

I don’t even know where to start with this.

It’s more people than have PS5, and they are having fun playing games instead of websites.

When they do get thier PS5 what are they going to do? buyPS4 games. Old shitty crusty games, because there is Nothing else.
 
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From the first moment I tried it, I was smitten by the amount of titles for the price. But as time went on, the experience on the Windows was just a travesty. Clunky interface, unexpected updates and who in the hell thought putting games as a Windows App format is a good idea.

Dropped it entirely. Meanwhile, my steam library is growing, bought Monkey Island 3 & 4 for a great deal added with enhancement mods with a brilliant steam community.

Like the Kinect before it: Brilliant in concept; absolute shit in practice.
 

Perrott

Gold Member
I don’t even know where to start with this.

It’s more people than have PS5, and they are having fun playing games instead of websites.

When they do get thier PS5 what are they going to do? buyPS4 games. Old shitty crusty games, because there is Nothing else.
What are you even saying? When did I ever mentioned the PS5? Get out of here with you console war bullshit, I'm putting you on ignore.
 
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Kagey K

Banned
From the first moment I tried it, I was smitten by the amount of titles for the price. But as time went on, the experience on the Windows was just a travesty. Clunky interface, unexpected updates and who in the hell thought putting games as a Windows App format is a good idea.

Dropped it entirely. Meanwhile, my steam library is growing, bought Monkey Island 3 & 4 for a great deal added with enhancement mods with a brilliant steam community.

Like the Kinect before it: Brilliant in concept; absolute shit in practice.
Doubt.

It’s nothing like Kinect, and your reference to it makes it absurd.
 

Kagey K

Banned
What are you even saying? When did I ever mentioned the PS5? Get out of here with you console war bullshit, I'm putting you on ignore.
Sweet. Its always easier if you ignore me, that way I don’t have to click your name first.

im a big fan of people ignoring me and I wish more of you would follow this example.
 
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kuncol02

Banned
Jesus most gamers buy less than 3 games per year. Not 45.

Could you imagine the attach rates if everyone bought 45 games/ year.
Consoles would be given away for free with that kind of attach rates.

Yeah, there is Game Pass for them.


Last year:
Final Fantasy VII (remake)
Resident Evil 3 (remake)
Mafia: Definitive Edition (remake)
SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom - Rehydrated (remake)
Destroy All Humans! (remake)
Demon's Souls (remake)
Cyberpunk 2077
Doom Eternal
Spider-Man: Miles Morales
Ori and the Will of the Wisps
Watch Dogs Legion
Assassin's Creed Valhalla
Immortals Fenyx Rising
Factorio
Black Mesa
Half-Life: Alyx
Dreams
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Crusader Kings III
Microsoft Flight Simulator
Wasteland 3
The Last of Us Part II
Ghost of Tsushima
Yakuza: Like a Dragon
Nioh 2
Ghostrunner
Gears Tactics
Besiege
Carrion
Hades
Baldo
Röki
Noita
Hylics 2
Creaks
Inmost
Spiritfarer
The Pathless
The Pedestrian
The Last Campfire
Kentucky Route Zero
Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time
TROUBLESHOOTER: Abandoned Children
Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin
Impostor Factory
Deep Rock Galactic
Pumpkin Jack
Spelunky 2
Risk of Rain 2
Desperados III
The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners
Streets of Rage 4
Them's Fightin' Herds
At least 5 of games on that list are older than 1 year. Also people who buy Flight SImulator don't play other games, for rest of players trying it through gamepass is more than enough.
 

Heisenberg007

Gold Journalism
So far it has been a great service, but it'll be interesting to see how viable it is in the long run. A lot of users got a good deal and loaded up on several years, but is it viable at full price? Is the current price sustainable in the long run?

You also have to wonder how it will affect games. I find Gamepass best for discovering new indie games, but I hope it doesn't result in AAA games being shorter or analyzed less just because it's "free" on Gamepass.
I think that's the big elephant in the room that no one wants to address. I don't think it is sustainable at all. And at $20-$25 per month, will it be an attractive option when the biggest releases of the year (like titles from Ubisoft + 2K + Activision + Square Enix etc.) won't even come on GP day one + all the Sony and Nintendo exclusives that won't ever come on Gamepass. I doubt it.

At the moment, GP doesn't make MS any profit. And that's without the development cost of first-party games. Now MS is actually spending money developing first-party games, so that will dent the operating profit (in respect to GP) even more. On top of that, MS has also acquired tons of studios, so that acquisition cost will also be included. On top of that, MS acquired Bethesda, so now it does not only have to pay for those development costs for 25+ games, it also has to pay salaries for 2,000+ new Bethesda employees, minus the profits that Bethesda would have made by selling on PlayStation (which was responsible for the majority of sales and profits).

Even if Gamepass grows by 3x (so around ~50 million subscribers), I still don't see how that would be sustainable and, more importantly, profitable it would be -- without a big price increase or a substantial decrease in the quality of the games MS produces going forward.

Lastly, I'm confident that a big percentage of the 15-18 million subscribers are there because of the $1 Gold upgrade. How many will remain once that is over (because it will have to over some time or GP will continue to rake up operational losses).
 
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Looking forward to marchs revelation that game pass is again the best thing ever.


Until MS studies start having regular aaa first party games on it, it will never be more than just slightly good. If you want to play a sea of old and indie games then sure. I used it for gears 5 and tactics - everything else was just a bunch of things that looked mildly interesting but nothing amazing or else I would have bought them.

They have a lot of studios but if the medium and the rest of the 2021 planned releases are indicative of what this service is going to offer then again it won’t be great. Maybe in 2022.
 

IntentionalPun

Ask me about my wife's perfect butthole
Have had GPU for over a year and barely used it.

I just like... specific games... and don't really enjoy trying random games that don't fit those tastes.

I play big open world games, and things like strategy games (mostly on PC).. and I'm picky w/ both.

It's a really great value for those that get value out of it obviously.. but not everyone wants to download and try a bunch of stuff. That's just not how I game.

I bought an XSX hoping I'd jump in and see some stuff I want to play; but the XSX has just sat being used for Disney+ for a month lol
 
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Justin9mm

Member
what? how do you get ps+ at that pricing.
gpu is all about the bargain prices that works across console, pc and soon mobiles. but that ps+ deal you got trumps gpu. but of cos, there are still ways to get gpu much cheaper
Every year the 12 month PS+ subscription goes on sale a couple of times for $59.95. I always buy one and stack it onto my existing subscription. Been doing that for quite a number of years now.
 
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