Microsoft’s payments for adding games to the Xbox Game Pass service has long been a topic of discussion in the gaming world. Although it is an economic burden for the company to add its own games to the subscription system, especially the figures paid to third-party game producers are very curious. Here are the details…

Microsoft spends $1 billion for Game Pass!

According to the report, Microsoft spends $ 1 billion annually to add third-party games to Game Pass. The company offers millions of dollars to other publishers, especially for smaller games, just as an upfront payment.

However, since every game and deal is different, it is thought that higher payments are made for newly released big games. In addition, it is not yet clear whether the fees Microsoft pays for additional services such as EA Access are included in these expenses.

In 2021, Phil Spencer stated in a statement that the agreements are very diverse and who gets paid how much and for how long varies. Also, it was recently announced that Xbox will be the exclusive licence holder for Capcom’s Kunitsu-Gami: Path Of The Goddess, for which a Game Pass deal was struck in exchange for financial support. Such collaborations are said to be a common strategy to cover costs.

While Microsoft is trying to optimise the Game Pass model in the best way for both itself and other publishers, it is clear that it has invested heavily in the success of this service.

While the company strengthens its first party support by acquiring many studios and publishers, it also makes significant expenditures for third party games. The company has even taken the business to the next level by financing games that do not come out of its own organisation.

Xbox is scheduled to make a presentation at the Tokyo Game Show next week. We will probably learn more about new third-party games to be added to Game Pass at this event.