A leak from earlier today ruined the surprise, but Microsoft has now officially unveiled a brand-new Xbox Game Pass tier named Core. This new subscription is coming soon as a replacement for the long-time-available Xbox Live Gold. Microsoft calls this an evolution of the original service. While pricing will remain the same, the benefits are getting a shakeup.
Starting September 14, Xbox Live Gold members will become Xbox Game Pass Core members. Games with Gold is getting axed entirely, with October bringing the final drops of the promotion that currently offers two free Xbox One games for all Gold members to claim every month.
In its place, Microsoft is offering a smaller collection of titles from its Game Pass vault for Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One. This will start with over 25 games from in-house developers and third-party studios, with more titles being injected to the service "2-3 times a year."
The currently confirmed games list is as follows, with more being announced later:
- Among Us
- Descenders
- Dishonored 2
- Doom Eternal
- Fable Anniversary
- Fallout 4
- Fallout 76
- Forza Horizon 4
- Gears 5
- Grounded
- Halo 5: Guardians
- Halo Wars 2
- Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice
- Human Fall Flat
- Inside
- Ori & The Will of the Wisps
- Psychonauts 2
- State of Decay 2
- The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited
"For over twenty years, Xbox players have been connecting via Xbox Live to compete, cooperate, and experience the world’s biggest online multiplayer games," said Microsoft today in its announcement blog post. "In 2017, we introduced Xbox Game Pass which provided a curated library of games. Game Pass Core brings online play together with Game Pass in a new offering for gamers around the world."
As for current Xbox Live Gold members, Microsoft detailed what will happen to the ongoing benefits and any games they may have claimed previously:
- On September 14, Xbox Live Gold members will automatically become Game Pass Core members, with no change in pricing, and have immediate access to a new library of over 25 high-quality games.
- Member deals & discounts will also be part of Xbox Game Pass Core.
- Games with Gold will come to an end on September 1.
- Players can continue to access any Xbox One games they previously redeemed through Games with Gold if they remain a Game Pass Core or Game Pass Ultimate member.
- Regardless of subscription status, any Xbox 360 titles redeemed via Games with Gold in the past will be kept in a player’s library.
Mirroring Xbox Live Gold"s current pricing, Xbox Game Pass Core will cost $9.99 a month or $59.99 a year.