Microsoft has announced a major adjustment to its flagship Xbox Game Pass subscription, slashing the price of the top-tier plan while pulling back on one of its biggest post-Activision Blizzard perks: day-one access to new Call of Duty titles.
Starting 21 April 2026, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate drops from $29.99 to $22.99 per month in the US. PC Game Pass is also being reduced, from $16.49 to $13.99 per month.
UK pricing is expected to follow suit but has not been published at the time of writing.
In the UK, Xbox’s official site currently lists Game Pass Ultimate at £22.99 per month and PC Game Pass at £13.49 per month, with no immediate change reflected on the compare or store pages as of the announcement.
No more Call of Duty
Alongside the price reduction, Microsoft confirmed a significant change to how new Call of Duty games will be handled on the service.
Beginning this year, future Call of Duty titles won’t join Game Pass Ultimate or PC Game Pass at launch. Instead, new entries will arrive on the service during the following holiday season, roughly one year after their initial release. Existing Call of Duty games already in the library will remain available.
The move comes after three years of Call of Duty launching day one on Game Pass following Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. It marks a notable pivot as the company balances the high cost of securing blockbuster releases with subscriber feedback on value.
“Our players cover a wide breadth of geographies, preferences, and tastes, so while there isn’t a single model that’s best for everyone, this change responds to a lot of feedback we’ve gotten so far. We’ll continue to listen and learn,” the group said.
Xbox added taht Game Pass Ultimate subscribers will still receive hundreds of games across console, PC, and cloud; online multiplayer; day-one releases from first-party Xbox titles; and in-game benefits.
The service now operates alongside a revamped lineup of tiers introduced in late 2025 (Ultimate, Premium, and Essential), giving players more flexibility in choosing the level of access they want.
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