Unlock Epic Savings: Xbox Game Pass – The Ultimate Deal

Xbox Game Pass offers a wide array of games to play across console and PC for a monthly fee. In this blog we discuss what does game pass get you, what came pass core and ultimate are and how you can get game pass much cheaper than advertised.

Game Pass is the Netflix of gaming. For a fixes monthly cost you get access to online services and a huge range of games that you can download and play.

New games are added throughout every month and Game Pass regularly sees day one releases for big games. Starfield was a big day one release last year and members can look forward to Call of Duty Black Ops 6 coming to Game Pass for a day one release later this year.

The Game Pass library includes over 400 games for you to try, so there should be something for everyone.

Game Pass also includes EA Play which gives access to a collection of popular titles from Electronic Arts including their every popular EA Sports titles; F1, FC 24, Madded, NHL and UFC.

Microsoft also acquired Activision Blizzard in 2022 which has already seen the popular Diablo IV hit Game Pass, with Call of Duty Black Ops 6 releasing on 25th October 2024.

A full price Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription will set you back £12.99 a month. That puts it a couple of pounds higher than a standard Netflix subscription or a higher than Spotify.

For that price, you get a subscription service for games. You’ll have over 400 games available at any one time and get access to some games on the day of release.

Taking Starfield as an example, this released for £69.99 on Xbox. Sure you could have grabbed it for more like £60 but that’s still over 5 months worth of Game Pass subscription, for one game! With that in mind you only really need a couple of big games as day one releases that you would otherwise buy to make Game Pass worthwhile.

Game Pass also lets you play online. Without it you won’t be able to play with your friends. You also won’t be able to play some games which require an always on Internet connection. Sadly the days of offline single player seem to be numbered.

Another perk is cloud gaming, you can steam the game, with it running largely the cloud which means you don’t have to fill your hard drive with huge downloads!

Microsoft offer three versions of Game Pass to appeal to every gamer’s needs.

Core	PC	Ultimate
Console Only 25 Games Online Console Play Included	PC Only Over 100 Games Online PC Play Included Day One Releases	PC & Console Over 400 Games EA Play Included Online PC & Console Play Included Day One Releases
£6.99 / month	£7.99 / month	£12.99 / month

For PC players, the PC Game Pass represents pretty good value. You don’t get EA play included but you get everything else, so unless you want console play this is a great value option.

For console players it’s a much bigger debate. Game Pass Core is significantly cheaper than Game Pass Ultimate however offers a lot less. If you are wanting to play the latest releases and take advantage Xbox exclusives then Ultimate is probably worth the cost. If however you know the game you want to play is on Core, then it’s probably worth going for that.

If you aren’t looking to be a long term member and instead stop and start your membership then it’s North checking the full game lists ahead of buying. All games are listed on the Xbox website.

The regular subscriptions can quickly add up, especially if you don’t remember to cancel when you are away or not using them.

For the added cost of a little bit of faffing, you can purchase Xbox Game Pass redemption cards. These work just like purchasing a gift card. You can buy from Amazon or CDKeys, with the latter being entirely digital so you can get online with Game Pass instantly.

To use a digital code:

1. Browse to https://microsoft.com/redeem and login to your Microsoft account online
2. Enter the 25 character code you have been emailed or sent
3. Click through the prompts and confirm you are redeeming the membership you expect

You can also redeem via the console through home, store, view, redeem.

I use the approach of buying from CDKeys and regularly pay between £6-8 for Game Pass Ultimate compared with Microsoft’s £12.99 for a month.

Words of Warning

Microsoft may require you to have a valid payment method stored on your account. You can simply add a credit or debit card and remove it once you’ve redeemed your Game Pass membership.

Microsoft may also automatically turn on auto-renewal for Xbox Game Pass membership. They’re obliged to email you to notify your membership will renew but the best approach is to simply login to your Microsoft account, scroll down to services and subscriptions and diable the auto renewal.

There are a few drawbacks to Game Pass.

You Don’t Own The Games

When you use Game Pass, you don’t own the games. To play, you must have an active Xbox Game Pass membership.

Games may also be removed from Xbox Game Pass, so if you only purchased Game Pass for Palworld, EA FC 24, Manor Lords or Ark Survival then there is a chance they’ll be removed at some point. When games leave Game Pass however there is usually a decent amount of notice and the games will go on sale so you can purchase them at a discount.

Game Arrivals are Unpredictable

Perhaps this one is just my personal viewpoint however I’ve found it really hard to predict which games are coming to Xbox Game Pass. Whilst it’s pretty clear that some PlayStation exclusives like Helldivers simply are not coming to Game pass, for others it’s less clear.

What we can be certain of is Microsoft games such as Forza, Forza Horizon and Flight Simulator will arrive on Game Pass.

I have been caught out buying a game only for it to be officially announced as coming to Game Pass a month later.

You’re Limited By Your Internet Connection

To be honest, this one probably isn’t going to be game changing for anyone. When you buy a physical game these days, the first thing that happens when you pop the disc in the drive is you trigger a huge update to be downloaded.

Xbox Game Pass is all digital and therefore every game is downloaded. If you have a limited Internet connection then you’re ability to quickly try out new games will be limited. You can only download new games for Game Pass if you have a live membership so you can’t queue them up.

I love Xbox Game Pass. I get hyped up about some big game releases, Starfield, Baldurs Gate, FC 24 to name but a few. It pains me to see just how expensive these games are on release. I’m just about frugal enough to resist the temptation to buy at £40+ however have been known to splash out before a holiday, Baldurs Gate being the most recent example.

The trouble is I appear to have the attention span of a gnat. I’ll get very into a game for the first few days of ownership only to drift away over the next week or so to suddenly find I’ve not played the game for 6 months.

This is where Game Pass comes in. With Game Pass I can try out and play a huge collection of games, including some day one releases. I don’t pay for a subscription, rather buying a digital code for a month. A month is usually long enough for me to get good value out of a game I enjoy and it means I’m not tied into a long contract I won’t use.

I don’t currently have a gaming PC so any PC games I play are pretty old – Civilization V anyone? As a result an Xbox is my go to for games. I can easily play the Xbox 2-3 days a week for a month and then not turn it on again for another 3 months, hence a one month membership that I don’t have to remember to cancel works great for me.

The other key advantage of this approach is that there are always new and exciting games available every time I come back to Game Pass.

Game Pass is certainly worth considering for both casual and dedicated gamers, and if you plan ahead a little you can get great value.