Michael Pachter, a well-known and often controversial analyst, has made a new prediction that has sparked debate. He believes Microsoft may have harmed the future of the next Xbox by raising the price of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate to $30 per month.
This is surprising because Pachter has usually supported Game Pass. However, he now questions the service after the recent price increase.
Game Pass Price Increase Raises Concerns
According to Pachter, the main issue with Game Pass is that it feels like an “all or nothing” offer. In his view, asking users to pay $30 per month is too expensive. He believes the service would make more sense at $10 per month. At that price, he thinks it could strongly support the launch of Microsoft’s next console.
At $30 per month, however, he considers it too costly to attract enough users to help drive console sales.
There are rumors that Microsoft plans to add more games to Game Pass, including more third-party titles, to justify the higher price. While this could be a smart move, Pachter suggests it may not be enough to significantly boost subscriptions.
Game Pass has always been one of Xbox’s biggest strengths. Now that Microsoft owns major studios like Activision Blizzard and Bethesda, the company has the opportunity to increase the value of the service by adding more games from these studios.
For example, the addition of Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 to Game Pass was seen as a strong decision. Expanding the catalog with more major titles could make the subscription more appealing.
Still, the question remains whether increasing content alone will be enough to offset the higher monthly cost and support the success of the next Xbox.
In other news, many analysts argue that giving Xbox more freedom could help it regain the success it has lost over the years.
