Xbox Series X is going up in price outside of the US, while Xbox Game Pass getting more expensive pretty much everywhere.
The basic console Game Pass subscription will be $10.99 / £8.99 / €10.99 (up from $9.99), while Game Pass Ultimate will be $16.99 / £12.99 / €14.99 (up from $14.99). PC Game Pass prices are unaffected by the news. These new prices go into effect on July 6, but only for new subscribers. Existing subscribers won't have to pay anything extra until their next renewal after August 13.
Like the PS5 before it, Xbox Series X is getting more expensive throughout much of the world. As The Verge reports, the console will be priced at "£479.99 in the UK, €549.99 across most European markets, CAD $649.99 in Canada, and AUD $799.99 in Australia starting August 1st." Existing prices will remain the same in the US, Japan, Chile, Brazil, and Colombia. Xbox Series S will remain at its same price globally.
"We’ve held on our prices for consoles for many years and have adjusted the prices to reflect the competitive conditions in each market," Xbox communications head Kari Perez tells The Verge. Perez also says the Game Pass price increases "are not related to the Activision Blizzard deal, and are intended to match local market conditions."
While Game Pass will still be the cheapest way to play Starfield later this year, it looks like you'll have to drop Microsoft a couple of extra bucks for the privilege. As we've seen in other subscription services, like with the Disney Plus price increase, you can never count on these costs remaining stable.
Can those upcoming Xbox Series X games justify the increased cost for you?
