Xbox Game Pass Ultimate adds in dual-platform support, across PC and console, as well as Xbox Live Gold. For the price, it’s not a bad deal at all.
Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is essentially a bundle of multiple services in one monthly payment. With it, subscribers get Xbox Game Pass for console, the PC version, and Xbox Live Gold all rolled into one. That means you can pick from a buffet of games on console or PC, and be able to play them all online, and you may never need to buy a game ever again on Xbox One or one of the new Xbox Series S / Series X consoles. The service is such a core pillar of Xbox’s strategy that you can buy one of the new consoles with it as part of the Xbox All Access service. With a wealth of third-party games rotated into the service on an almost weekly basis, first-party games arriving on launch day (including the upcoming Halo Infinite), and your monthly Xbox Live Gold fee included, it’s a great deal even if you’re just a console player. Factor in the PC version of Game Pass for even more titles to play, as well as the addition of EA Play on both platforms, and you’ll never run out of games to try. You’ll even be able to stream Xbox games to your Android phone via Cloud Gaming (previously known as Project xCloud), and while iOS compatibility remains a big question mark, the current system works very well for anyone using Google’s mobile OS. Here’s everything you need to know about the bundle, including how much it costs, and what it offers. While Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass on PC are two different services, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate bundles both together and then adds extra perks on top. While each of those will set you back $9.99 / £7.99 / AU$10.95 each, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate offers both for $15 / £10.99 / AU$15.95 per month, and also includes Xbox Live Gold (now only available annually in many territories, and costing $60.00 / £50.00 / AU$80.00). Subscribing allows users to download huge titles on the Xbox One (and soon, the Series S/X) like DOOM Eternal, Forza Horizon 4, and Gears 5. You can then play whenever you’d like, and try out backward compatible titles from both the original Xbox and Xbox 360 console generations, thanks to Xbox’s extensive backward compatibility program. Since you get Xbox Live Gold included, too, you’ll be able to hop straight into a match of Rainbow Six: Siege or any other multiplayer title in the service, too. PC players won’t need to play online, but they can still pick from a wealth of games to download.
