A new Q&A has dropped today from former GamesIndustry.biz reporter Chris Dring, and it sheds some perhaps unfortunate light on Xbox Game Pass and how much it can hurt game sales.
Although each game's specific number can vary, and this is just "anecdotal" information that's been passed around, Dring says that "games that are in Game Pass can expect to lose around 80% of its expected premium sales on Xbox".
"Anecdotally, games that are in Game Pass can expect to lose around 80% of its expected premium sales on Xbox. That’s the figure that gets thrown around. It’s less if it’s a big mainstream release, but generally… look at how low Hellblade 2 charted. Or where Indiana Jones came. Or even Starfield. Game Pass clearly hurt sales of those titles on Xbox."
Dring went on to say that in this case, it can be quite beneficial for Microsoft to bring those games to multiple platforms. The hype behind a big Xbox Game Pass release "can have a strong impact" on its launch elsewhere, says the reporter.
"If it’s a game on multiple platforms, it can be beneficial. That surge in players on one Xbox can have a strong impact on sales on PlayStation, for instance."
Most of this feels like information we've heard before, of course, but that 80% figure is quite a notable one - and it perhaps explains why Team Xbox has decided to press on so aggressively with its multiplatform plans. Games aren't getting any cheaper to make — case-in-point, modern Call of Duty — and with this new approach, Xbox Game Pass can sustain subscribers and drum up excitement while PS5 brings in crucial game sale revenue for Microsoft.
Of course, in the case of third-party Xbox Game Pass titles, Microsoft pays publishers to put their games on the service in the first place which helps offset the loss in sales. These figures can go into the millions potentially!