Xbox Game Pass Gets A Huge Edge Over PlayStation Now

Microsoft has just announced a major expansion to the way its Xbox Game Pass service will work moving forward. While Xbox Games Pass has been a hub for finding older Xbox One and Xbox 360 titles, it will soon change to feature games that are much more recent. Though Xbox Game Pass ultimately arrived a little late to the party, this move could give it a big edge against Sony's longer-running PlayStation Now service.

According to a new Xbox Wire post, gamers will soon be able to play first-party exclusive Xbox One games through Game Pass. While this change will only apply to a limited range of titles – games developed by Microsoft Studios specifically – this means that Xbox Game Pass will offer something that competing services like PlayStation Now don't, potentially attracting more customers to the service.

All of these Microsoft Studios games will be available through Xbox Game Pass on their release date. In the short term, that means we'll see games like Sea of Thieves, State of Decay 2, and Crackdown 3 become available on Game Pass the same day they're available to buy in stores. Looking further into the future, Microsoft also plans to release its major franchises through Game Pass as well, including Halo, Forza, and Gears of War.

That should be exciting enough on its own, but this could potentially spark a larger shift for the games industry in general. Even though this new Game Pass feature is limited to just Microsoft Studios games for the time being, it's always possible that we'll see Microsoft convince third-party developers to make their games available through Game Pass on day one as well. There's no guarantee that'll happen, of course, but if Microsoft can bolster user numbers by doing same-day launches for first-party titles, wooing third parties to do the same is certainly within the realm of possibility.

Going hand-in-hand with this announcement is the launch of new subscription options for those who would like to pay for more than a month-long subscription all at once. Beginning on March 20, Microsoft will begin offering 6-month Game Pass subscription cards through various retail partners (GameStop was mentioned specifically) for $59.99.

So, Xbox Game Pass suddenly has an edge over PlayStation Now, despite the fact that it has a far smaller library. We'll see if this prompts Sony to do something similar, but in the meantime, head down to the comments section and let us know if this announcement turns Xbox Game Pass into a more attractive subscription for you.