Xbox Game Pass changed again: New, expensive tiers detailed

Core is dead. Long live Essentials.

Xbox Game Pass is again being changed by Microsoft, which today introduced new tiers, new benefits, and bigger price hikes.

From today, Xbox Game Pass will offer three tiers: Essentials, Premium, and Ultimate. All three tiers will provide access to a library of titles alongside Xbox Cloud Gaming, which finally leaves the “beta” moniker behind.

Here’s more on each tier and what it’ll cost you.

Xbox Game Pass Essential | Xbox Game Pass Premium | Xbox Game Pass Ultimate

Xbox Game Pass Essential benefits and pricing

Formerly Xbox Game Pass Core, and before that technically Xbox Live Gold, the new Essentials tier offers cloud gaming, in-game benefits, online console multiplayer, and up to $25 worth of Microsoft Store Rewards depending on how much you spend and play. It also features the smallest streamable library of titles of all three Xbox Game Pass plans, sitting around 50 or so.

Xbox Game Pass Essential will set Australians back $12.95 AUD per month, or $9.99 USD per month in the USA. It was previously priced at $10.95 AUD per month.

As part of today’s announcement, four new titles were added to the Essentials library:

• Cities: Skylines Remastered (Cloud and Xbox Series X|S)
• Disney Dreamlight Valley (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Hades (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Warhammer 40,000 Darktide (Cloud, PC, and Console)

Xbox Game Pass Premium benefits and pricing

As the mid-tier option — which has been hit with a new price increase today — Premium offers cloud gaming, in-game benefits, online console multiplayer, and up to $50 worth of Microsoft Store Rewards depending on how much you spend and play. It also features a streamable library of titles of around 200 titles, including new Xbox-published games within their first year of launch.

Xbox Game Pass Premium will cost $17.95 AUD per month in Australia, or $14.99 USD per month in the USA. It was previously priced at $15.95 AUD per month.

As part of today’s announcement, a host of new titles were added to the Premium library:

• 9 Kings (Game Preview) (PC)
• Abiotic Factor (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
• Against the Storm (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Age of Empires: Definitive Edition (PC)
• Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition (PC)
• Age of Mythology: Retold (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
• Ara: History Untold (PC)
• Arx Fatalis (PC)
• Back to the Dawn (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Battletech (PC)
• Blacksmith Master (Game Preview) (PC)
• Cataclismo (PC)
• Cities: Skylines II (PC)
• Crime Scene Cleaner (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
• Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
• Diablo (PC)
• Diablo IV (PC and Console)
• An Elder Scrolls Legends: Battlespire (PC)
• The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard (PC)
• Fallout (PC)
• Fallout 2 (PC)
• Fallout: Tactics (PC)
• Football Manager 2024 (PC)
• Frostpunk 2 (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
• Halo: Spartan Strike (PC)
• Hogwarts Legacy (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Manor Lords (Game Preview) (PC)
• Minami Lane (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Minecraft: Java Edition (PC)
• Mullet Madjack (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
• My Friendly Neighborhood (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• One Lonely Outpost (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Quake 4 (PC)
• Quake III Arena (PC)
• Return to Castle Wolfenstein (PC)
• Rise of Nations: Extended Edition (PC)
• Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
• Sworn (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
• Terra Invicta (Game Preview) (PC)
• Volcano Princess (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Warcraft I: Remastered (PC)
• Warcraft II: Remastered (PC)
• Warcraft III: Reforged (PC)
• Wolfenstein 3D (PC)

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate benefits and pricing

The most expensive of the lot — and with a new price increase today — Ultimate offers cloud gaming at up to 1440p, in-game benefits, online console multiplayer, and up to $100 worth of Microsoft Store Rewards depending on how much you spend and play. It includes the largest streamable library of titles of around 400 titles, including “75+” day one releases each year, including all new new Xbox-published games at their day one launch. Access to Ubisoft+ Classics and EA Play is also included, with Fortnite rewards starting in November.

Xbox Game Pass Premium pricing now sits at a whopping $35.95 AUD per month in Australia, or $29.99 USD per month in the USA. It was previously priced at $22.95 AUD per month.

As part of today’s announcement, a bunch more titles were added to the Ultimate library:

• Hogwarts Legacy (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Assassin’s Creed II (PC)
• Assassin’s Creed III Remastered (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag: Freedom Cry (PC)
• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood (PC)
• Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: India (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: Russia (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Assassin’s Creed Liberation HD (PC)
• Assassin’s Creed Revelations (PC)
• Assassin’s Creed Rogue Remastered (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Assassin’s Creed Syndicate (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Assassin’s Creed The Ezio Collection (Cloud and Console)
• Assassin’s Creed Unity (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Child of Light (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Far Cry 3 (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Far Cry Primal (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Hungry Shark World (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Monopoly Madness (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Monopoly 2024 (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• OddBallers (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Prince of Persia The Lost Crown (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Rabbids Invasion: The Interactive TV Show (Cloud and Console)
• Rabbids: Party of Legends (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Rayman Legends (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Risk Urban Assault (Cloud and Console)
• Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Skull and Bones (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
• South Park: The Stick of Truth (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Starlink: Battle for Atlas (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Steep (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• The Crew 2 (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• The Settlers: New Allies (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Extraction (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Tom Clancy’s The Division (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Trackmania Turbo (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Transference (Cloud and Console)
• Trials Fusion (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Trials of the Blood Dragon (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Trials Rising (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Uno (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Valiant Hearts: The Great War (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Watch_Dogs (Cloud, PC, and Console)
• Wheel of Fortune (Cloud and Console)
• Zombi (Cloud, PC, and Console)

PC Game Pass price change

PC Game Pass also suffers a price hike as well — it’s now $19.45 AUD per month, an increase from $13.95 AUD per month.

What do you make of today’s changes? Sound off in the comments area, below.