Xbox is introducing monthly time limits on cloud gaming for Game Pass subscribers, a change the company says is driven by rising costs. Starting in November, those on the £16.99-per-month Ultimate plan will be able to stream games for up to 15 hours each month before they must purchase additional cloud play time. Premium subscribers will receive 10 hours, while Essential users will get five hours.
Microsoft says the caps will allow the firm to “continue to invest” in the service’s reliability and performance. Cloud gaming lets people stream and play titles over the internet on phones, tablets or other devices, rather than downloading and running them on local hardware.
Xbox estimates that only 4% of Game Pass users currently use its cloud streaming feature. Citing a recent Wall Street Journal report that Game Pass has 30 million subscribers, that would mean roughly 1.2 million people are affected. The announcement drew criticism from some players, with one X user describing 15 hours as “abysmal.” Jez Corden of Windows Central told the BBC the move reflected “the AI-driven component crisis,” noting an apparent contradiction in restricting paid cloud gaming while continuing to offer unlimited access to Microsoft’s Copilot AI assistant. Both services depend on data centers, whose expansion has pushed up component costs.
Xbox also said that from November, users will be able to purchase “cloud playtime hours” through the Xbox store without holding a Game Pass subscription. It has not yet revealed pricing.
The decision follows comments from Xbox chief executive Asha Sharma, who told the BBC in a recent interview that the industry needs to “start to innovate on affordability and efficiency” amid rising computing costs. She described the sector as being “in the middle of ‘Rampocalypse’” — a term referring to sharp increases in RAM prices driven by data-center demand — and said Xbox “hasn’t been healthy.” Microsoft’s July financial filings showed annual Xbox revenue fell by $1.7 billion to about $21.8 billion, a 7% decline. The company has cut around 3,200 jobs, with further reductions planned across its 2027 financial year, and has made acquired studios such as Double Fine Productions and Compulsion Games independent again. Microsoft president Brad Smith recently told the BBC that restructuring is necessary when a business is struggling.
Cloud gaming has yet to reach the mainstream despite significant investment. Google shut down its Stadia platform in January 2023 after it failed to attract enough users, and many gamers still find streaming unreliable because it depends on high-speed internet. The new fee could further limit its appeal.