Xbox Game Pass: Microsoft plans à la carte plan with add-ons
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Fortune reports Microsoft is planning a Game Pass overhaul that would let subscribers pick add-ons for multiplayer, cloud gaming and console-only games.
Microsoft is reportedly planning a sweeping overhaul of Xbox Game Pass that would let subscribers choose, à la carte, what they pay for — with standalone add-ons for online multiplayer, console-only games and cloud gaming, all under an ongoing tiered structure. The information surfaced in a Fortune profile of the gaming division's CEO, Asha Sharma, published on October 20, 2026, and picked up on Friday, October 24, by outlets such as Engadget, IGN and TrueAchievements. According to people familiar with the strategy quoted by the magazine, the new system still has no launch date or official price list, but it is a centerpiece of the executive's drive to turn the subscription service into a genuinely profitable business.
What an "à la carte" subscription would mean
Today, Game Pass subscribers pay for a fixed bundle of benefits: a rotating game library, online multiplayer, cloud streaming and bundled perks such as EA Play and Ubisoft+ Classics on the most expensive tier. Under the model described by Fortune, part of that list would stop being embedded and start being sold separately. Subscribers could, for instance, drop access to console-only games or trim their cloud hours to cut their monthly bill — the same logic behind battle passes and standalone skins, applied to the core of the service.
The idea did not come out of nowhere. Back in April, Windows Central already reported that Xbox wanted to move to a model "where users can effectively decide what packages of content they want to see as part of their plan," even mentioning the possibility of removing the bundled Fortnite Crew to reduce the price. By October, Fortune's report had given official weight to the matter, stating that the overhaul is part of the company's declared strategy — not just a back-of-house study.
"Xbox is planning a major overhaul of Game Pass that would have players choose features à la carte, including add-ons for console-only games, cloud gaming, and multiplayer, with the system operating on a tiered structure, according to people familiar with the strategy."
Fortune, October 20, 2026
How much each Game Pass plan costs today
To gauge the scale of the change, it is worth recapping the current lineup of plans, redrawn after the price cut announced at the start of Sharma's tenure:
| Plan | Price | Key benefits |
|---|---|---|
| Game Pass Ultimate | US$ 23/month | 500+ games, day-one releases, Fortnite Crew, EA Play, Ubisoft+ Classics, multiplayer and up to 15 hours of cloud gaming |
| Game Pass Premium | US$ 15/month | 200+ games, multiplayer and up to 10 hours of cloud gaming |
| Game Pass Essential | US$ 10/month | 50+ games, multiplayer and up to 5 hours of cloud gaming |
| PC Game Pass | US$ 14/month | 300+ PC games, day-one releases and EA Play |
Those numbers help explain why plan engineering is so sensitive: only months ago, Game Pass Ultimate cost roughly double its current price, and the cut of nearly a third was one of Sharma's first moves in the role. Weathering wild price swings is precisely the scenario in which a menu of standalone add-ons becomes attractive for Microsoft's finance side — and potentially more honest for the consumer.
Cloud gaming is the first laboratory of the new model
Game streaming looks like the reform's gateway. Since the launch of monthly cloud caps — 5, 10 or 15 hours depending on the tier — Xbox has already treated extra hours as a standalone, purchasable product. In parallel, the company is previewing the sale of cloud access to users who do not even have Game Pass: you pay to stream games without a full subscription. In other words, the foundation of the à la carte system is already being built in practice, with multiplayer and console-only games expected to follow the same track.
This design also tackles an old perception-of-value problem. Perks embedded in the top tier, such as the bundled Fortnite Crew and access to other publishers' catalogs, only matter to a slice of subscribers. Those who play exclusively on PC, for example, never saw the point of console perks. The new format promises to align what you pay with what you use — although Fortune does not say whether day-one releases of first-party titles, the top tier's biggest draw, will survive the revamp.
Why Microsoft is making the move now
The overhaul is not a product whim: it is business math. According to Fortune, Microsoft wanted to reach the end of fiscal year 2026 with roughly 77 million Game Pass subscribers — a target that stands in stark contrast with the current base, estimated at just over 30 million. On the other side of the ledger, the report itself points to the service as a tool that cannibalized sales of expensive first-party releases, especially in launch windows, creating friction between subscription revenue and sold games.
Sharma took over the division in February amid a belt-tightening drive: the division went through mass layoffs — about 3,200 positions over the year — and studio sales, while the company requires stronger business cases from its teams. The likely US$ 1,800 price tag, according to industry sources, for the future Project Helix consoles is the other extreme of the same policy: products and services charge the price the balance sheet demands, not the one the market finds pretty. In the middle of all that, Game Pass is the most visible asset in the gaming portfolio — and the most logical target for rationalization.
The context also explains the urgency. With digital ownership debates, console price reviews and ever-growing competition in the subscription market, Microsoft needs to prove that the all-you-can-eat games model can work. An à la carte menu is the classic answer from a company that does not want to kill the service but no longer accepts the gulf between 77 million and 30 million customers.
What we still do not know
- Add-on pricing: how much multiplayer or cloud gaming will cost as standalone items — and whether everything combined would end up cheaper or pricier than today's bundles.
- Fate of day-one titles: nothing indicates whether first-party launch access will remain embedded or become the perk of a premium add-on.
- Timing: Fortune reported no launch date, and Xbox has made no formal statement about the overhaul in the shape of a traditional press release.
- The fate of current tiers: analysts such as TechPowerUp's believe the current plans may be retired once the new system goes live.
Until Xbox formally speaks up, the picture painted by the story is the same: in Asha Sharma's mind, the Game Pass buffet is running out of days — and in its place, every subscriber will assemble the plate they can afford. Keep an eye on our coverage of gaming and subscriptions: if the change is confirmed, it will be worth reassessing your monthly plan before the next renewal cycle.
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