Xbox Game Pass will reportedly get a family plan

The days of getting kicked off of Xbox because a partner or family member decides to sign in from another room may soon be over. Microsoft is reportedly adding a family plan as a separate subscription tier to its Xbox Game Pass, according to common frustration amongst Xbox players over the years, particularly those who share a household with other people who love to play games. Xbox Game Pass subscriptions are tied to specific Xbox profiles and not specific devices, allowing players to sign-in from anywhere. While players can technically add a secondary Xbox console to their Game Pass subscription, the primary account holder must be signed in for the second person to access their games. Households with multiple gamers often get around this inconvenience by paying for multiple individual Game Pass subscriptions.

The family plan will reportedly allow up to five players on a single subscription and should debut later this year. It is unknown what the exact pricing will be, and whether the family plan will be exclusive to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, or include the other subscription tiers. 

A family plan will likely give Microsoft an extra edge over Sony Playstation, which this week announced a newly revamped set of noted in the past, Microsoft has been very eager to grow its Xbox Game Pass subscriber base. The cloud gaming service is currently at $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard is expected to close next summer, meaning popular titles like Call of Duty, Diablo and World of Warcraft are coming to Game Pass. It’s not surprising that one of the ways Microsoft will accommodate this larger subscriber base is by making it easier for households to share a subscription.