Impatient Xbox Game Pass members turned Starfield’s Premium Edition upgrade into a best-seller

Starfield officially arrives on September 6, which is also when it unlocks for Xbox Game Pass, and PC Game Pass members. Thousands (millions?) of players didn’t want to wait until then, so they opted for the $100 Premium Edition, which unlocked on September 1 – up to five days early.

So many did this, in fact, that Starfield has already broken past 245,000 concurrent players on Steam in its first few days of early access. But, what if you’re both a Game Pass member, and want to play early? The answer: The Starfield Premium Edition Upgrade.

The Starfield Premium Edition Upgrade basically turns your Standard Edition into Premium – unlocking the game early, and giving you all the other goodies that come with it. It’s normally $35, but Game Pass members get it for the slightly cheaper $31.49. Game Pass members, of course, have access to the base version, which makes the offer just too good to pass up, especially if it means playing Bethesda’s next big game a few days early without paying the full $100.

As spotted by Pure Xbox, Xbox owners everywhere (who are also Game Pass subscribers) have been buying the upgrade in order to play Starfield early. The Starfield Premium Edition Upgrade is currently the best-selling item across both the US and UK Microsoft Stores, and the same is true for other regions/countries around the world (simply change the country code in the URL to see it).

In fact, this is also the case for the PC storefronts. Filtering options to the left of every page make it easy to see what’s popular on each platform.

Buying DLC for a game you do not technically own might seem strange, but it’s actually a common benefit Game Pass subscribers take advantage of. The upgrade in this case would be worthless, should your Game Pass membership run out, but it also means you didn’t have to spend the full $100 to play Starfield early – which is what makes this a good deal.

Seeing as Starfield is not an online game, we may never see how many players actually jumped in during early access. So far, Forza Horizon 5 holds the record, with over 1 million players ahead of its official launch. I imagine if Starfield numbers are strong enough, Microsoft will be more than happy to share exact figures.

Pre-order Starfield today or get ready with discounted Game Pass codes

Starfield will be launching exclusively for Xbox Series X/S and PC (Windows) on September 6th 2023. Pre-order your copy of Bethesda’s upcoming action RPG from the links below and get set for the new galactic adventure.

Players who pre-order the premium edition can play Starfield early from September 1st. That’s five days before it lands on Game Pass! PC Players looking to upgrade their PC can also get Starfield for free when you buy select AMD Ryzen processors, AMD Radeon graphics cards, or a gaming system that contains both.

Alternatively, you can play Starfield on Game Pass on day one. Our shop here at VG247 is currently offering a 5 per cent discount on Game Pass codes and Xbox Credit – simply redeem the code “VG247” at the check out. The code is valid until 31st July, so stock up now to save money on a Game Pass membership or discounted Xbox Credit if you’re buying Starfield on the Xbox Store.