Xbox Live Gold is no longer required for more than 50 free-to-play online games

Free-to-Play online multiplayer games will no longer require an Xbox Live Gold membership on Xbox consoles.

In an announcement today, Microsoft shared the details of plans to remove the Xbox Live Gold membership from more than 50 titles, including Fortnite, Apex Legends, and Call of Duty Warzone. The message states that the change arrives today "and all Xbox players will be able to access online multiplayer at no charge."

In a follow-up FAQ, Microsoft confirms that "effective April 21, 2021, all Xbox players can access online multiplayer for free-to-play games on their console at no charge. For these games, an Xbox Live Gold membership is no longer needed. You'll be able to download and play online entirely for free on your Xbox console." The company also confirms that if you only use your subscription for free-to-play games, you'll be able to immediately cancel your membership, and receive a credit based on the time remaining on the subscription.

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Xbox Live Gold has been a requirement for online play on Microsoft consoles since the days of the Xbox 360, but has come under increased scrutiny in recent years, as it's limited access to certain explosively-popular free games. The change means that Fortnite, for example, will be entirely free-to-play on an Xbox console for the first time since the launch of its battle royale mode. If a game contains both free and premium game modes, however, online play will still require a subscription.

The full list of games affected by the change can be found below, but it's not clear if or when new titles will be added to the list:

3on3 FreeStyle
Aegis Wing
APB Reloaded
Apex Legends
Armored Warfare
Battle Ages
Battle Islands
Battle Islands: Commanders
Bless Unleashed
Brawlhalla
Call of Duty: Warzone
Crackdown
Crackdown 2
Crimson Alliance
Crossout
CRSED: F.O.A.D.
Darwin Project
Dauntless
DC Universe Online
Dead or Alive 5 Last Round: Core Fighters
Dead or Alive 6: Core Fighters
Defiance 2050
Destiny 2
Doritos Crash Course
Dungeon Defenders II
Enlisted
Eternal Card Game
Family Game Night
Fishing Planet
Fortnite
Galaxy Control: Arena
Gems of War
Happy Wars
Harm’s Way
Hawken
Hyper Scape
Killer Instinct
Korgan
Minion Masters
Neverwinter
Outriders (Demo)
Paladins
Path of Exile
Phantasy Star Online 2
Phantom Dust
Pinball FX2
Prominence Poker
Realm Royale
Rec Room
Resident Evil Revelations 2
ROBLOX
Rocket League
Rogue Company
Skyforge
SMITE
Spacelords
Spellbreak
Star Trek Online
Techwars Global Conflict
TERA
The Four Kings Casino and Slots
Too Human
Trove
Vigor
War Thunder
Warface
Warframe
World of Tanks
World of Warships: Legends
Yaris

Check out our list of upcoming Xbox Series X games.