Way back in 2017 when Xbox Gamepass first launched it was met with quite an amount of uncertainty. Could a game subscription service really be as diverse and broad as Netflix? Was it something that people would want? And is it possible to have a family plan? Well, Xbox was out to do all of these things, especially the Gamepass family plan. As it was an original idea, that didn’t go through… till today!
In an exclusive with Windows Central; they were recently notified by their own trusted sources that Xbox is moving ahead with a family plan. Now in an age of digital media and subscription services, a family plan is a no-brainer. We see this with other services like Netflix, Hulu, & Disney+ just to name a few. But, according to their report, some of the biggest hurdles came down to potential royalties and third-party license deals. And this is all very fair in terms of potential issues.
But, the fact remains that Xbox and MSFT see Gamepass as a success to push a family plan. Along with the confirmation of them moving ahead with this came some smaller tidbits; such as that the family plan will provide Access to five members of a family. Xbox will utilize the Microsoft family account system to keep track of users; note this is the same system currently in place for their Office 365 family plan.
Now while it is exciting there are a couple of things that are unknown, namely Price and launch date. So we know that by opting for a higher price point, the host of the family can cover the cost of the Gamepass family plan of five people. We know this will be significantly cheaper than paying for five separate subs to the service. However, we don’t know if this will only encompass only PC or Console Gamepass, or if it will only be for Gamepass Ultimate.
So without confirmation of which service will offer the family plan, we can only speculate. Along with the fact, there is no set launch date. The earliest possible time would be later this year. However, this did not receive a set-in-stone confirmation. So for now wait till we get more information later this year.
The fact that Xbox Gamepass continues to prove its stance as the best deal in gaming is hard to deny. And it seems the team at Xbox agrees. With Microsoft all in on Gamepass, we will only continue to see pushes and support like this going forward.
So what do you all think, are you excited about an Xbox Gamepass family plan? Do you plan to switch to a family? Are you even subscribed, let us know in the comments below!
-Jess (Bloodieknux)
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