Microsoft has confirmed that releasing new games on Xbox Game Pass has an adverse effect on overall sales.
In a provisional report for the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), Microsoft mentions that games added to the subscription service declined in sales shortly afterward (thanks, GamesIndustry.biz).
“Microsoft also submitted that its internal analysis shows a [redacted]% decline in base game sales twelve months following their addition on Game Pass,” reads the document.
It’s worth noting that this doesn’t mean any game added to Xbox Game Pass will be less popular, as more niche titles like Hi-Fi Rush tend to find an audience on the service they (likely) otherwise wouldn’t have. Though it does run counter to a statement by Xbox boss Phil Spencer in 2018 about the service’s impact on sales.
“When you put a game like Forza Horizon 4 on Game Pass, you instantly have more players of the game, which is actually leading to more sales of the game,” Spencer said. “Some people have questioned that, but when State of Decay 2 launched, you saw if you looked in the US at the NPD you saw this game selling really well the month it launched on Game Pass.”
The report above came about due to rising tensions regarding Microsoft’s planned $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Over a year has gone by since that initial announcement, and the deal still has yet to close. The CMA recently suggested that Microsoft sell Activision, Blizzard, or Call of Duty to prevent the merger from being blocked.
Written by Kyle Campbell on behalf of GLHF.
