Bigger games cost more money to make, and as a result, the price of these products will increase as well. Today we’re finding out that Microsoft is joining the club. Their new upcoming exclusive video game titles will also start running $70 a game. That’s a jump from the once standard $60 price tag these games came equipped with.

News of this increase in video game pricing came via IGN. A spokesperson alerted the IGN publication that these prices will reflect the content, scale, and technical complexity of these video games. Likewise, we can expect the new pricing to go into effect in 2023. Unfortunately, this means that the big exclusive games we know are coming out next year, like Redfall, Starfield, and Forza Motorsport, will run you $10 more to pick up. That might be a bit disappointing to hear, but on the flip side, these games will still be on Xbox Game Pass.

The spokesperson that talked with IGN also confirmed that first-party Microsoft Xbox games will still launch the same day on the Game Pass subscription service. It’s making that particular service look even more enticing as you can pay a monthly fee to unlock all of these games rather than throwing out $70 on a title you might not be completely satisfied with. But that also begs the question of whether we’ll see Microsoft increase the price of anything else. There is only an announcement regarding the pricing increase for first-party Xbox video game titles.

We don’t know if the same trend will land on the console or the Xbox Game Pass subscription service. Typically we see consoles sold at cost or even below the cost of manufacturing. Companies like Microsoft will then make up the difference along with profits when it comes to software and peripheral purchases. So if the game prices increase altogether, that might indicate that Xbox Game Pass could soon be on the rise too. But, again, that’s purely speculation on my part, and we have yet to see any announcements regarding pricing increases for the subscription service or the consoles themselves. 

For now, it looks like the best bang for your buck is still paying for the monthly subscription fee. This not only gives you all the first-party exclusive titles from Microsoft at launch but also a variety of third-party video game titles. Meanwhile, those who opt to pay for games separately might be more willing to wait for the games to drop in price before picking them up. So it should be interesting to see how well some of these games do during their first week.

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