Times are tough, and everything’s getting more expensive. That being said, would you be willing to get in-game ads and a delay on new releases if it meant paying less for Xbox Game Pass?
According to an unsourced screenshot in a Resetera thread (thanks, Windows Central!), a survey was recently sent out to a select few Xbox users querying how they would feel about a newer, cheaper tier of Xbox Game Pass.
If this screenshot is proven to be legitimate, the new tier would cost around $5 and include online play like Xbox Live Gold and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate do. However, according to Eurogamer, the new plan would “run adverts before you play a game from the Xbox Game Pass library” as well as delay access to Microsoft’s first-party releases for up to six months.
While this could potentially be nothing, Windows Central also noted that Microsoft recently filed a patent that “covers technology that predicts when in-game interactivity has decreased”, suggesting that Xbox would “serve up an ad based on the user’s privacy settings and interests” if they were to include ads in a hypothetical cheaper Xbox Game Pass tier. However, they also reiterate that “patents don’t mean products”.
Xbox’s Game Pass is undeniably the best Netflix-esque gaming service on the market, touting an expansive game library with new additions every month. You’d be hard-pressed to not find something you’ll enjoy in there, and it’s a great place to discover indie games that otherwise wouldn’t get the time of day.
That being said, nobody likes ads. They take away from whatever you’re watching (or playing) and they can sometimes be very loud compared to the media already being played. Especially in live settings, they absolutely suck (ads on Twitch make no sense to me). But if they’re not too intrusive and they make a service cheaper, can they be forgiven?
What do you think? Would you pay less for Xbox Game Pass if it meant ads and game delays? Let us know!
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