“We sell loads” and “it’s a great tool” – why the games industry still loves Xbox Game Pass, PlayStation Plus

Xbox Game Pass has been the talk of the town for a while now. Offering subscribers an ever-growing selection of games, both indie and triple-A, for relatively little cost, there are millions of people around the world right now who are playing new and exciting games for a fraction of the cost they would . a decade ago. With new initiatives being announced all the time (Xbox Game Pass Core being the most recent), it certainly seems like Microsoft is doing everything it can to keep the bar for playing new titles as low as possible.

The deal for consumers is good, but consumers only see one side of the benefits of such a program. As highlighted in the recent Microsoft FTC court hearing, Jim Ryan at Sony claims editors are not fansand that there are concerns about the perceived value of big-budget titles inside the offices of industry giants.

Was it just a statement meant to block the Microsoft/Activision Blizzard acquisition? Or is there some truth to these concerns? To find out, I traveled to Develop Brighton to speak with developers and publishers, hoping to hear directly from the people who see the stats and live with the realities and consequences of Game Pass.

“It’s quite difficult right now because what’s happening simultaneously is these subscription services are getting bigger and nobody has any money,” says Mike Rose, company director at No More Robots. “So you could try to blame [Game Pass] because of that, but also all video game sales have gone down.”

Rose has been behind the wheel of several indie game releases and stated that No More Heroes aims to bring all future releases to Game Pass following the massive success of Descenders on the service.

Rose continues: “There aren’t tons of Game Pass subscribers. Most people No Use GamePass. When we look at Descenders, which has been on Game Pass for so long, it’s consistently one of the top 20 most downloaded games on Game Pass every month, and we sell a lot on Xbox and PlayStation. We are not seeing any drops.

However, Rose acknowledges that, as an independent publisher, your situation differs significantly from that of some of the larger publishers. “We put low six-figure numbers on a game. So Game Pass ends up working out pretty well for us. If you’ve put $5,000,000 on a game, it’s a bit more difficult situation.”

So, let’s scale it up a bit with a developer who has published a bigger game in the last few years. Enter Josh and Mike Grier, the brothers who lead the charge at Emberlab. In 2021, the studio released Kena: Bridge of Spirits for the PlayStation and Epic Game Store platforms. And for Emberlab, PlayStation Plus was a positive influence for the action-adventure title.

“It was just a new wave of people,” exclaims Mike Grier. “We definitely had to keep an eye on the crashes at the time and make sure it was still running well.” [laughter]. But yeah, I think PlayStation Plus just brings a new audience, and we’ve had some success there.”

His brother Josh quickly followed up by explaining the power PlayStation Plus has to bring games back to life after launch. “For us it was exciting. You know, the game was out for a while when [PS Plus] It happened, and just seeing that there were people revitalizing the crowd, getting new people to play the game as it progresses, that’s what excites us.”

Finally, Mike Grier concludes with an emphasis on a case-by-case approach. “Believe [the benefit of these services is] Definitely something to keep in mind as Game Pass has grown significantly. So, you have to see what your goals are as a developer. Looking at sales is really important obviously, but also what opportunities do you have to promote the game? Game Pass and PS Plus are an amazing tool for that.”

Let’s take it even higher, to a huge studio about to release their first big project. Enter Arctic7. You may not have heard of this new team, but the new studio run by former bigwigs at EA and Sperasoft is aiming to create multimedia experiences across video games, TV, and other platforms (not in a way that is unlike Remedy). . Running headlong into today’s market, CCO John Burns provided a consumer-focused opinion.

“With my experience in Games as a Service at Jagex and other companies[…]. I think what we’ve seen is the more choice that you can give players, whether it’s platforms, whether it’s different types of games, or innovation and game modes, with how they pay and consume. […]it’s really great”.

Burns continues: “Either look: okay, I can go to a store and buy a physical copy (which is still pretty prevalent in some parts of the world) or guess what? I can subscribe, I can do microtransactions. I think the how many the more choices we give players, the better. We’ve seen PS Plus and Game Pass drive growth. They drive innovation. I think the more the merrier.”

What are your thoughts on the service? Let us know below, and while you’re at it, why not check out our articles: Exoprimal’s Dino Shooting Feels At Home On Xbox Game Pass, But Has It Staying Power?, as well as our Top 30 Game Pass Games by July 2023.

Please note: the interviews in this article have been edited for clarity and brevity.”