Microsoft's new Game Pass Standard subscription isn't getting day-one releases included in more expensive plans, but they could be added up to, and possibly more than, a year later.
The middle-tier $15/month Game Pass Standard plan is officially being rolled out after being announced back in July, and it's noticeably missing big hitters like Starfield, Diablo 4, and Hellblade 2, which had been selling points for the subscription previously. Notably, these games were available to all Game Pass subscribers prior to the restructuring of plans.
In a statement to Kotaku, Microsoft declined to commit to adding these missing games and future day-one releases to the Standard Game Pass tier, saying it's possible for them to be added at a future date that could be a year or more out.
"New day one games available with Game Pass Ultimate or PC Game Pass will not be immediately available with Game Pass Standard and may be added to the library at a future date," reads the statement. "This could be up to 12 months or more and will vary by title." The key word here is "may," as this leaves the door open for such games to never come to Standard.
In July, Xbox revealed the Game Pass price changes that are going into effect for existing subscribers this week. The increase comes alongside a brand new Standard plan that replaces the existing Console plan and removes the long-running perk of getting certain new Xbox games on release day. This perk only jumped in value with the confirmation of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 coming to Xbox Game Pass on day one – a first for the series and a major push from Microsoft.
