I love my PlayStation, and I love Google Stadia. Hell, I even love me some Nvidia GeForce NOW every once in a while, although the Steam or Epic launcher peaking through a game’s boot process has been a major turn-off for me. Of all of the services, Stadia and Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass would have to be the most well-polished, well-rounded, and implemented services to date.
I swore I would never become an Xbox gamer, and here I am writing about Game Pass yet again. Microsoft has just done a bang up job at making the service appealing and when I compare it to other offerings, there’s really no way to shake a stick at what the company has put on offer.
When I saw that it was announced on the official Xbox Insiders blog that it would allow users in Ireland, and Columbia to begin previewing a brand new version of Game Pass that allows for up to four people to play simultaneously on one plan, I got pretty excited. Yep, you heard that right – Game Pass is getting a family plan!
This family plan will work with Game Pass Ultimate only, and allow up to four friends and family to access Ultimate benefits across console, PC, and the cloud without them having to fire up four separate subscriptions. To participate in the preview, you’ll not only have to be in one of these countries right now (a wider rollout is scheduled for a later date, of course), but you’ll also have to purchase the ‘Xbox Game Pass – Insider Preview’ Game Pass plan via the Microsoft Store.
A few things to know – first, others on the plan with you do not need to be Insiders, but the account manager does. The others will just need to reside in the same country as you. Also, enrollment is limited and will remain open ‘while the offer is available. Joining the Insider Preview will convert your current membership’s time remaining to the new plan based on the monetary value of the old membership.
Lastly, anyone with Xbox All Access is not able to check out the preview. If you meet all of the aforementioned requirements and want to check out the Family Plan, be sure to skim the ‘Known issues‘ list on the blog in case you run into any problems.
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