Microsoft Gaming's new CEO Asha Sharma has openly acknowledged what many subscribers have been thinking: Game Pass costs too much. Speaking candidly about the service's current state, Sharma confirmed that a restructure is in the works, according to GameSpot.
"Game Pass has become too expensive for players, so we need a better value equation," Sharma said, adding that the long-term plan is to "evolve Game Pass into a more flexible system" - though she cautioned that building out and testing those changes will take time.
What does 'more flexible' actually mean?
Sharma stopped short of spelling out exactly what a revamped Game Pass looks like in practice, but the language around flexibility and a "better value equation" strongly hints at tiered pricing, a la carte options, or some kind of restructured subscription lineup. Microsoft has already experimented with Game Pass tiers - PC Game Pass, Game Pass Standard, and Game Pass Ultimate currently occupy different price points - so further segmentation isn't out of the question.
This admission isn't coming out of nowhere. A report from March suggested Sharma was already eyeing ways to bring the subscription's cost down as part of her broader agenda after taking the top job. Now she's confirmed it publicly, which gives the rumor real weight.
Why this matters
Game Pass price increases have been a sore point for the Xbox community. Microsoft raised subscription prices significantly in 2023 and again adjusted the lineup in 2024, removing day-one first-party games from the base tier. That move frustrated a lot of longtime subscribers who felt the value proposition had eroded precisely when the price was climbing.
Sharma stepping in and directly acknowledging the pricing problem is a notable shift in tone from Microsoft's leadership. Whether the follow-through matches the rhetoric remains to be seen, but at least the new boss appears to be listening. The Xbox ecosystem badly needs a win on the value front, and a genuinely more accessible Game Pass could go a long way toward rebuilding subscriber confidence.
No timeline was given for when changes will roll out, so for now players are in a holding pattern - but the signal from the top is clear enough that something meaningful is coming.
