Microsoft revealed it"s working on another Xbox Game Pass plan last year, one that"s aimed at being a multi-user version to offer the subscription"s benefits to five users for one price. Xbox Insiders in Colombia and Ireland have had access to this version for months now, but six more countries are joining the fray.
Chile, Hungary, Israel, New Zealand, South Africa, and Sweden are the countries that Microsoft announced today as the latest test beds for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Friends & Family Plan.
While a mouthful, as its name suggests, this plan offers the full Xbox Game Pass Ultimate experience to all the users included in the membership. This means gaining all of the membership"s games across Xbox consoles and PC, EA Play, Xbox Cloud Gaming, Perks, and other monthly benefits.
It"s unclear what will the regional pricing targets be for the newest countries joining the program. In Ireland, the plan is available for €21.99 per month.
Here"s a handy list of things Microsoft wants you to know about the Friends and Family plan, at least in its current form:
- The people you share your membership with must reside in the same country as you.
- Joining this plan will convert the time remaining on your membership to time in the new plan, based upon the monetary value of the old membership. For example, a full month of Ultimate will be converted to 18 days of membership for this plan. This way you won’t lose any of the remaining value on your existing subscription. Conversion is final, and users must wait for their new membership to expire before returning to a previous membership.
- Conversion is not available for invited group members. Before joining a group, a group member can cancel their existing subscription or wait for it to expire. If they do not have a Microsoft account, invited friends and family will have to create a new Microsoft account and sign in with it to participate.
- Members with Xbox All Access (in supported countries) won’t be able to participate in this plan.
Those residing in Colombia, Chile, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, New Zealand, South Africa, and Sweden can use this link to join the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Friends & Family Plan. An FAQ with more information about inviting others, limitations, and other elements can be found here.