Microsoft has pulled the trigger on its biggest Game Pass shakeup in years. Starting April 21, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate dropped from $29.99 to $22.99 per month, while PC Game Pass fell from $16.49 to $13.99. It is the first time Microsoft has lowered Game Pass pricing since the service launched, and it comes with a significant tradeoff: future Call of Duty titles will no longer arrive on Game Pass at launch.
The changes took effect immediately, with existing subscribers seeing the lower price on their next billing cycle from April 22 onwards.
A New Direction Under Asha Sharma
The price cuts are the first major move by Asha Sharma, who succeeded Phil Spencer as head of Microsoft Gaming in late February 2026. In an internal memo, Sharma acknowledged that Game Pass had become "too expensive for too many players" following the controversial October 2025 increase that pushed Ultimate to $29.99.
Sharma has pledged a top-to-bottom review of the Xbox division, with the price reduction signaling a shift toward accessibility and subscriber growth over premium pricing. Microsoft's language suggests this is a permanent adjustment, not a temporary promotion.
The Call of Duty Catch
The biggest change is the removal of day-one Call of Duty access. Beginning with this year's entry, new Call of Duty games will join Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass during the following holiday season — roughly a year after launch. Existing Call of Duty titles already in the Game Pass library remain available.
Industry analysts have largely called the move "unsurprising," noting that Call of Duty's inclusion in Game Pass failed to significantly boost subscription numbers or Xbox console sales. The franchise's removal from day-one access essentially offsets the revenue lost from the lower price point.
What Stays the Same
Xbox Game Pass Core pricing remains unchanged. All other day-one launches from Xbox Game Studios titles continue as before. Cloud gaming, EA Play access, and other Ultimate perks remain intact at the lower price.
Conversion Rates Adjusted
Microsoft also updated the conversion rates for tier upgrades. Moving from Essential to Ultimate now converts at 45 percent (up from 40), while Premium to Ultimate converts at 65 percent (up from 55). These changes mean existing prepaid time converts less favorably when upgrading.
The price reduction represents a notable reversal from the trajectory Microsoft set last year, and signals that the company is willing to sacrifice some per-subscriber revenue to grow the Game Pass install base under its new leadership.
