Xbox Game Pass Gets Cheaper — But Call of Duty Pays the Price
Microsoft slashes Game Pass prices across all tiers, but future Call of Duty titles won't launch day one anymore. Here's what changed and if it's worth it.
Microsoft just dropped some genuinely mixed news for Game Pass subscribers: the monthly price is going down, but one of the service's biggest selling points is quietly disappearing alongside it. Let's break down exactly what changed and what it means for your wallet — and your gaming backlog.
The Price Cuts Are Real and Pretty Good
Starting April 21, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate dropped from $29.99 to $22.99 per month — a $7 reduction that adds up to $84 in savings over a year. PC Game Pass also got trimmed, going from $16.49 down to $13.99/month. Canadian subscribers aren't left out either, with Ultimate falling from $33.99 CAD to $25.99 CAD.
These aren't rounding-error cuts. For a lot of people sitting on the fence about subscribing, this could finally tip the scales. New Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has made it clear she wants Game Pass competing hard on value, and cheaper pricing is the most direct way to do that.
Here's the Catch: Call of Duty Isn't Day One Anymore
Here's where things get complicated. As part of this restructuring, Microsoft confirmed that future Call of Duty titles will no longer launch day one on Game Pass. Instead, new entries in the franchise will arrive on the service roughly a year after their initial release.
That's a significant shift. When Microsoft acquired Activision Blizzard, one of the loudest promises was that Call of Duty would stay on Game Pass as a first-day benefit. That promise hasn't fully held up — and for subscribers who joined specifically to play new CoD titles without paying $70 a pop, this stings.
To be clear: existing Call of Duty games already on Game Pass aren't going anywhere. This only applies to future releases going forward.
Is the Trade-Off Worth It?
Honestly? It depends on how you play.
- If you play a wide variety of games — indie titles, Xbox exclusives, day-one releases from other studios — the lower price is a straight win. You're paying less for the same library (minus future CoD launches).
- If you subscribed mainly for Call of Duty — this hurts. You'll either need to wait a year or buy new entries separately. That changes the math on whether Game Pass still makes sense for you.
- If you're a casual subscriber — $22.99/month for access to hundreds of games, including day-one Xbox exclusives, is genuinely good value. The CoD change is a bummer but probably won't be a dealbreaker.
What This Says About Microsoft's Strategy
Reading between the lines here, Microsoft is betting that Call of Duty's biggest audience isn't primarily on Game Pass — it's on PlayStation, where the game still sells tens of millions of copies at full price. By delaying CoD from day-one Game Pass inclusion, they can potentially capture more of that direct revenue while still offering the service at a more competitive monthly rate.
It's a calculated trade-off, and Microsoft is clearly betting most subscribers won't churn over it. Whether that bet pays off will probably show up in subscription numbers by the end of 2026.
The Bottom Line
Game Pass is cheaper now — genuinely cheaper, not just for new subscribers. That's good news. But removing future Call of Duty day-one access is a real reduction in value for a meaningful slice of the player base. Microsoft is essentially saying: we'll give you a lower price, but we're taking one of the crown jewels off the shelf.
Whether that's a fair trade is something only you can decide. But if you were on the fence about Game Pass before, $22.99/month is a much easier yes than $29.99.