Microsoft’s controversial price hike for Xbox Game Pass goes into full effect in November, at which point fans with the Ultimate tier will have to pay $29.99 monthly to access the subscription’s entire library. It’s a 50% increase for the service whose existence almost immediately prompted some longtime members to cancel the subscription. But while Game Pass has had a steady supply of strong mid-sized games this year, 2025 has mostly been bereft of true heavy hitters from Microsoft. That is, until The Outer Worlds 2 comes along.
Obsidian’s long-awaited follow-up to its anti-capitalist RPG will officially be released on Oct. 29, unless you’ve got advance access. Fans can play early if they purchase the premium edition of the game, or if they already have Game Pass and choose to upgrade their purchase for an additional $29.99. Aside from Call of Duty, The Outer Worlds 2 is undoubtedly Microsoft’s biggest release of the year. The first Outer Worlds sold at least 5 million copies as of 2023, which arguably makes it underrated compared to its juggernaut influences, like the Fallout series.
Still, expectations for The Outer Worlds 2 must be high. Releases timed right before December typically signal that the publisher wants to leverage holiday sales, which often means that the most eye-catching releases tend to come out in months like November. The Outer Worlds 2 may very well be the specific game that makes people consider (re)starting a Game Pass subscription. After all, the options are either pay $69.99 for a stand-alone purchase or $29.99 for day-one access on Game Pass. For some, Game Pass might turn out to be the better deal.
But opting for Game Pass also ostensibly puts a timer on an economical playthrough for The Outer Worlds 2. The first game can take anywhere between 15 to 40 hours to beat, depending on how much of a completionist the player is. The sequel is expected to be a bigger and better experience, which might mean a month won’t be long enough to comfortably get through it. Anyone who signs up for Game Pass explicitly to play The Outer Worlds 2 has to contend with the real possibility that they’ll need to have the subscription for at least a few months. Is Game Pass still “worth it” if you end up paying more for it than you would just outright purchasing the game you want?
For some, the answer will be yes — especially if they dip into the wider Game Pass catalog. Despite all the uproar surrounding the price hikes, Microsoft has done a good job of maintaining the service with good games this year. Many of those recent additions are solid games that fans may not have seriously considered purchasing without Game Pass, like Keeper or Ninja Gaiden 4.
Whether the gamble works out for Microsoft, we won’t really have a way of knowing. The publisher traditionally does not share specific numbers when it comes to subscribers. But between The Outer Worlds 2 on Oct. 29 and Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 scheduled for Nov. 14, you’ve got to imagine the needle is going to move in Microsoft’s favor. At least, that’s likely the case for anyone who already owns an Xbox or PC. So far, the public has not sounded amenable to paying $600 or more for premium Xbox hardware.
It certainly doesn’t hurt that Game Pass is about to include a handful of other noteworthy titles, such as:
- PowerWash Simulator 2 (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X) – Oct. 23
- 1000xResist (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X) – Nov. 4
- Football Manager 26 (PC, Xbox Series X) – Nov. 4
Leaving the service at the end of October, however, are:
- Jusant (Cloud, Console, and PC)
- Metal Slug Tactics (Cloud, Console, and PC)
- Return to Monkey Island (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Discourse around the future of Xbox has been incessant this year, but November will be the true test of Microsoft’s pricing strategy. We can only wait and see if it works out for the company.
