Since the beginning of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, gamers have been able to upgrade their Xbox Live Gold and PC Game Pass memberships to Game Pass Ultimate at a 1:1 ratio using a $1 trial month of Game Pass Ultimate. Gamers were also able to spam said $1 deals by creating new accounts endlessly, which likely lead to Microsoft deciding to end the $1 Ultimate deal. Luckily for those who don't want to spend 10-17 dollars a month, or liked to use the $1 deal for Ultimate conversion, the deal has returned, but the conversion ratio is no longer 1:1 and is now a 3:2 or 4:3 ratio depending on the scenario (check below for the possible scenarios). This ratio nerf seems like a reasonable compromise to having the $1 trial back.
These conversion methods still remain the best and cheapest ways to get Game Pass Ultimate, well if you don't want to be make new accounts for the $1 month deal. Funnily enough, you can also convert EA Play to Game Pass Ultimate at a measly 3:1 ratio. This is much worse than the other two conversion ratios, I doubt it's ever going to be worth it but since it's cheaper maybe if you could get a good enough deal it could be worth it.
What happens to my prepaid months of Xbox Live Gold, Xbox Game Pass, and/or EA Play when I sign up for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate? When you subscribe to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, we’ll convert any prepaid time you have on Xbox Live Gold, Xbox Game Pass, or EA Play subscriptions and apply it toward the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate plan at the current conversion ratio, up to a maximum of 36 months. Prepaid time conversion is final and non-refundable, and ratios are subject to change.
• Xbox Live Gold and PC Game Pass conversion ratio: Any remaining time will convert to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate time at a ratio of 3:2 and be rounded up to the next full day. For example, 90 days remaining of Xbox Live Gold or PC Game Pass will convert to 60 days of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate time.
• Xbox Game Pass for Console conversion ratio: Any remaining time will convert to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate time at a ratio of 4:3 and be rounded up to the next full day. For example, 90 days remaining of Xbox Game Pass for Console will convert to 68 days of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate time.
• EA Play conversion ratio: Any remaining time will convert to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate time at a ratio of 3:1 and be rounded up to the next full day. For example, 90 days remaining of EA Play will convert to 30 days of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate time.
Microsoft is also getting rid of its Friends and Family subscription preview program. The program used to let you and up to four other accounts use Game Pass Ultimate. I never used the service myself but it seems like it was a good plan if you had friends or family members to split the bill with, so it's a shame that it's gone now. Those who participated in the service will be compensated with Game Pass Ultimate to their accounts, depending on the length they had left.
On August 15, 2023, the Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family preview program will end as we review what we’ve learned over the past several months and investigate how to build an offer which we can launch worldwide. Thank you for your interest and participation in the Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family preview program. It has been incredible seeing our Game Pass Ultimate members share the fun of Game Pass with their friends and family. What does this mean for my membership?
• Starting July 14, 2023: Existing Primary and Secondary members will be emailed details describing this change.
• Starting July 17, 2023: Primary account holders will no longer be able to add new members to their shared membership.
• August 15, 2023: Existing memberships will end and Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family will no longer be available.
• Starting August 15, 2023: We’ll be sending Xbox Game Pass Ultimate codes as a thank you for participating in our preview program (to both Primary and Secondary members) depending on your Primary account holder’s remaining time as described in the table below.
° Your shared Friends & Family subscription must be active on August 15, 2023, to be eligible. If you’d like to cancel or change your membership, visit your Microsoft account.
° We’ll send a personalized code (or more than one code) to your Xbox account on console and the Xbox app on PC.
° Codes must be redeemed with the Xbox account you used to participate in the current Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family membership.
° All participants in your group plan will also be receiving the same personalized offer, so that you can continue playing together.
Last but not least, Microsoft seems to be reworking Xbox Live Gold. The service is changing its name to Xbox Game Pass Core, and it seems like it will keep its core features, with the biggest change now allowing you to have access to more than 25 games from the Game Pass library. Before this change, Xbox Live Gold was being left in the dust by PlayStation Plus in monthly games offered and there wasn't any point in getting the service outside of playing online games. So it's great to see Microsoft finally adding more value to its Xbox Live Gold membership. If this initial launch library of games increases over time and includes all their exclusive titles, it could become a better service than PlayStation Plus Essential.
So let's run through all that again: Microsoft brought back the $1 trial at a worse conversion ratio, then discontinued the Game Pass Friends and Family subscription plan, and they are now changing Xbox Live Gold to Xbox Game Pass Core and it'll feature an initial game library of more than 25 games. It's been a crazy month for Xbox. Will you be playing Starfield through the holy $1 trial? Were you a part of the Friends and Family plan? How do you feel about Xbox Live Core? Tell me in the comments below.
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