Xbox Game Pass is Playing By “Volume Over Value”

Microsoft’s latest Xbox gamepass lineup for October 2025 makes it hard to justify the new $30 price hike. After this price hike, players expected blockbuster titles and early access exclusives. Instead the October lineup feels like a budget bundle. It is led by Ninja Gaiden 4 and padded with smaller, low-demand games like The Grinch: Christmas Adventures. 

Microsoft is charging more while offering less, betting on players’ inertia rather than excitement. Game Pass’ move mirrors what’s happening with Netflix and Disney+, where subscription fatigue is coupled with declining content quality. 

It’s a typical subscription trap: raise prices, shrink value, and hope that brand loyalty holds long enough for people to not notice right away. 

The Day One Illusion 

Microsoft’s decision to make Ninja Gaiden 4 a day-one exclusive for $30 game pass ultimate subscribers shows how the company is gating the content by tier. Pay double and you play on the release day, pay $15 and you wait. It’s a textbook gaming industry’s scarcity model, designed to make early access a luxury, when the game itself is not blockbuster. 

On top of that, the problem is Ninja Gaiden 4 isn’t the kind of headline title that justifies a premium tier. It’s a niche action series with loyal fans but limited mainstream pull. 

Meanwhile, those on cheaper plans get Ninja Gaiden 2 Black, remaster of a game that was originally released in 2008. Microsoft isn’t rewarding loyalty, it’s testing how much users will tolerate for the “first access” rather than quality content. 

Quantity Over Quality 

Game Pass’ October lineup mixes hits like Baldur’s Gate with random titles such as Supermarket Simulator and The Grinch: Christmas Adventures. The casting of Frank Stone might appeal to game nerds, but positioning Dead by Daylight spinoff as a major October addition hints at content acquisition struggles. It’s a reiteration that subscription services prioritize volume over value. 

Microsoft is chasing optics rather than curation. A longer game list creates the illusion of value, even if most titles go unplayed. It’s a basic streaming era trap. A clear parallel could be seen in what Sony did with PlayStation Plus revamp. 

After merging its tiers (Essential, Extra, Premium), Sony began bulking older and obscure titles like Rogue Legacy 2 and MediEvil: Resurrection, to pad the catalogue, while major first party releases remained locked behind separate purchase. 

Departure Disparity 

Microsoft is taking some bold or senseless decisions with this lineup. They’re swapping Cocoon, one of the best indie puzzle games in years, with The Grinch: Christmas Adventures. Instead of keeping the games people actually want, they’re adding the fillers just to flex that “look we added more games”. 

Once again, it’s an industry problem and not specific to Microsoft only. Electronic Art Studio plays by the same rule, rotating out narrative-driven experiences like It Takes Two and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order while padding the lineup with annualized releases like FIFA 23 or Madden NFL 24.

A Carousel of Confusion

It seems that Microsoft has kept the game pass tiers confusing on purpose. $30 Ultimate subscribers get Ball x Pit and Ninja Gaiden 4 on day one. $15 Premium users only get Ninja Gaiden 2 Black and Eternal Strands later. PC Game Pass at $16.49 gives a mixed bag. 

With games scattered across tiers and release dates, it gets really tough to figure which subscription really offers the best value. Such confusion actually nudges people towards a pricey ultimate plan, thinking that if this is the most pricey one then it would be definitely the best.