Game Pass on PC Finally Feels Complete

The last couple of weeks have been fantastic if you are a subscriber to Xbox Game Pass on PC. First, you had the Microsoft acquisition of ZeniMax Media becoming official which led to an assortment of Bethesda Software games being uploaded to the Game Pass client. Then last Thursday, EA Play finally became available to Game Pass on PC patrons. As a result, more than approximately 80 new games are now a part of Microsoft’s gaming subscription platform.

I’ve been waiting for this for quite a while and now it finally feels like Game Pass is what it should be on PC. Now, there truly is something for everyone who subscribed to the service. Due to Bethesda, Game Pass on PC subscribers now have Doom, Fallout, The Elder Scrolls, Dishonored, Prey, and Wolfenstein games to choose from. EA Play brings a beastly selection of games with its Madden NFL, FIFA, Need for Speed, The Sims, Battlefield, Star Wars, Mass Effect, and Dragon Age game library. With all these additions, you’re getting sports, shooters, role-playing games, life simulation, action, racing, and so much more.

Even before these additions, I have believed that Game Pass was the best value in gaming when it came to a gaming subscription service. Of course, this is provided that you don’t care about owning any of the games. But $15 a month to have a consistently rotating library of games to play and sample on my PC as well as other devices through the cloud service is something I’m willing to pay for. It’s my way of staying in the Xbox loop since the only Xbox console I own is the 360.

As a customer, I’m fully satisfied with the service. When I initially signed up for Game Pass, the PC version was in its beta state so the monthly rate was just $4.99. When it increased to $9.99, I happily continued my subscription because for what is offered, $10 isn’t much at all. Then I started researching into the Ultimate version of Game Pass and saw that I was able to get Xbox Live Gold and access to the cloud (which includes games not featured on PC). I signed up for Ultimate on a deal where I only paid $1 for the first three months. And I don’t mind paying $14.99 a month at this point because of the awesome value I’m getting. Because I was thrilled already with the service, the Bethesda and EA Play additions just serve as bonuses…HUGE BONUSES.

I’m truly hoping this is the beginning of the Xbox resurgence that has been needed for a while. Not only do I wish success for the sake of the people within the company, but I want to see Microsoft be more competitive with Nintendo and Playstation in the console market. Competition not only brings out the best in the organizations, but it is also what best benefits consumers. It’s one of the reasons why many gamers look to the past as their favorite time in gaming and not the present.

Think about how great EA Sports games were when there was competition in multiple sports and the lack of exclusive licenses. In the early 2000s, the competition in pro football alone was fierce as EA Sports (Madden NFL), SEGA (NFL 2K), Acclaim (NFL Quarterback Club), 989 Sports (NFL Gameday), Midway (NFL Blitz), and Microsoft (NFL Fever) all published games simultaneously based on the National Football League. The Gameday and Fever series were console exclusive to the Playstation and Xbox respectively. The 2K series began as an exclusive series to the SEGA Dreamcast, but later made its way to the Playstation and Xbox consoles. As a result of so many NFL games being published, consumers had several choices to pick from. The quality of the games was higher because every developer and publisher was putting its best foot forward to gain sales. Today, all we have for the NFL is Madden.

That’s all I have for today. If you have Game Pass, let me know what you think of the service in the comments below. Happy Game Pass gaming.

-TVGA
admin@videogamersadvocate.com