Game publishers don’t like Game Pass because it destroys value, claims PlayStation boss

Once again, we remain grateful for the FTC’s judgment against Microsoft to stop its proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The trial is simply the gift that keeps on giving, revealing executive statements, corporate sentiments, and behind-the-scenes dealings we’d never hear about otherwise.

Recently, we learned that Bethesda was surprised and confused by Microsoft’s commitment to keeping Activision Blizzard games cross-platform, while blocking Bethesda titles for Xbox and PC.

They also gave us some insight into when Sony expects the PlayStation 6 to launch and how the company plans to keep Activision Blizzard out of development if it becomes a subsidiary of its competitor, Microsoft.

Today, thanks to a new evidence-gathering audience, we got a little insight into how publishers feel about Xbox Game Pass. At least, according to PlayStation boss Jim Ryan. The executive said in a pre-recorded testimony, via IGNthat game publishers don’t like Game Pass.

“I’ve talked to all the publishers and it’s unanimous that they don’t like Game Pass because it destroys value,” Ryan reportedly said.

This statement was made during a general commentary on Microsoft’s business, in which Ryan also said that “the Game Pass business model seems to have some challenges and Microsoft seems to be losing a lot of money.”

Sony has always been against the Game Pass model of releasing first-party games from day one. While the popularity of the service prompted an expansion in PlayStation Plus tiers, none of them match the Game Pass library and high-profile releases.

PlayStation maintains that the model is untenable for the types of games it makes — single-player, story-based offline games — and has yet to release any of those games on PlayStation Plus on day one.