Xbox first-party games will grab a price hike in 2023
Major titles, such as Starfield and Forza Motorsport, are among the games that will be at a higher price.
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What you need to know
Game prices have been increased across the industry at several major publishers, and at last, Microsoft is joining in.
Starting in 2023, major Xbox first-party games across Xbox Game Studios and Bethesda Softworks will be $70, instead of the $60 price that bigger games previously launched at. This affects games such as Forza Motorsport,Redfall, andStarfield, all of which are being developed exclusively for Xbox Series X|S consoles and Windows PC.
“We’ve held on price increases until after the holidays so families can enjoy the gift of gaming. Starting in 2023 our new, built for next-gen, full-priced games, including Forza Motorsport, Redfall, and Starfield, will launch at $69.99 USD on all platforms," a Microsoft spokesperson told Windows Central. “This price reflects the content, scale, and technical complexity of these titles. As with all games developed by our teams at Xbox, they will also be available with Game Pass the same day they launch.”
Other publishers like Activision Blizzard (which Microsoft is currently in process of acquiring) as well as Take-Two Interactive and Sony Interactive Entertainment previously raised prices, seeing games like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Marvel’s Midnight Suns andGod of War Ragnaröklaunch at $70 on the latest hardware.
Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencerpreviously alludedto potential price hikes, stating back in October 2022 that the company had not raised prices on anything, and that it probably couldn’t continue forever.
“I do think that at some point, we’ll have to raise some prices on certain things, but going into this holiday, we thought it was really important to maintain the prices that we have because consumers, right now, are more uncertain than they have been in a long time,” Spencer added.
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate
Even though prices of bigger games are increasing, with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, players have access to a range of first-party titles across Xbox Game Studios and Bethesda Softworks, as well as different third-party games.
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Samuel Tolbert is a freelance writer covering gaming news, previews, reviews, interviews and different aspects of the gaming industry, specifically focusing on Xbox and PC gaming on Windows Central. You can find him on Twitter@SamuelTolbert.
