Xbox has been in a weird spot for a while now. They stopped reporting consoles sold some time ago and started to use Xbox Game Pass as a metric, but even that service has been on the rocks lately. Following a price hike for the Xbox Game Pass service, fans were reaching the point where it was too expensive to continue.

Thankfully, the current CEO seems to agree. Based on a leaked memo obtained by The Verge, it seems the new CEO, Asha Sharma, believes Xbox Game Pass is too expensive, which could lead to a retooling of the service in the coming months.

Xbox CEO Has Words For Game Pass

“Too Expensive”

In the memo, Asha Sharma shares the following: “Short-term, Game Pass has become too expensive for players, so we need a better value equation. Long-term, we will evolve Game Pass into a more flexible system which will take time to test and learn around.”

For reference, this message follows the recent price hike in late 2026, when the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate service increased by 50% to $29.99 a month. For what was once called the “Netflix of gaming,” Xbox Game Pass can cost as much as several other services on a monthly basis.

Dissecting the memo, the whole concept of a “long-term” plan also bodes well for the Xbox brand. Some fans were concerned that it would be phased out entirely, but it seems Microsoft is more interested in readjusting and giving things another go than in exiting the gaming industry.

That might come with downsides. Games could be removed from the service, including Call of Duty, which is reportedly part of the higher cost of Game Pass. If that happens, Microsoft will need to almost reconfigure the entire Game Pass framework, including reworked tiers and new price points.

There’s a chance the new Ultimate could still include all the prior bonuses and perks, and other tiers are more customizable in some way. It’ll be interesting to see how Microsoft proceeds from here, and how Sony and Nintendo will respond in turn.

Xbox Game Pass Is Expensive

Especially Post Price-Hike

Right now, fans are united in thinking that Xbox Game Pass is too expensive. Although there’s a lot of value added there if you take advantage of the service every single day, there isn’t much incentive to buy in for short periods of time if the subscription fees are higher than those of competitors.

At one time, Nintendo boasted the cheapest service in all of gaming, but at this point, no publisher seems safe from price hikes. Either way, this is going to be a pivotal year for Xbox. They have a lot to figure out, especially when it comes to regaining fans’ trust. With a price reduction and a good showing for Project Helix, they could start to mount a comeback of sorts.

Brand

Xbox

Original Release Date

November 10, 2020

Original MSRP (USD)

Series X priced at US$499 and the Series S priced at US$299

Weight

9.8 lb