For a while in the late 2010/early 2020s, it seemed liked gaming subscriptions may be the future of the hobby. Microsoft certainly wanted us to think it was the future, pushing Xbox Game Pass every chance they got, and Sony eventually joined the party with their own expanded PlayStation Plus service.
Ultimately though, enthusiasm for gaming subscription services hit a wall. Xbox Game Pass badly missed growth targets back in 2022, and since then, execs like Phil Spencer have struck a more reserved tone when discussing subscriptions, saying Game Pass would likely never account for more than 10 to 15 percent of their business. Recently, Microsoft boasted that they now had 34 million Game Pass subscribers, up from 25 million reported back in 2022, but admitted to The Verge those numbers include users who were converted to the service after basic Xbox Live Gold became Xbox Game Pass Core last year. So, it’s quite possible subscribers to what we traditionally think of as Game Pass (the one that gets you the full catalog of games) may have stagnated or even decreased. Meanwhile, Sony has remained largely mum about how PS Plus has been performing.
Given this context, NPD/Circana analyst Mat Piscatella has provided a rather enlightening stat. According to his data, subscription service spending in April was only up 1 percent compared to April 2023. And to compound matters, subscription spending in April 2023 was only up 2 percent over April 2022. In other words, game subscription spending has basically been flat over the past two years.
And it's still stalled. March 2024 non-mobile video game subscription spending was only up 1% vs the April 2023 figures that got me to post the below last year. https://t.co/O0WQhQX023
— Mat Piscatella (@MatPiscatella) May 7, 2024
While some may say “no change is good change,” revenue being flat is worse than it appears at first. Over the past couple years, both Game Pass and PS Plus have raised prices, and again, you had Microsoft pulling moves like lumping all Xbox Live Gold subscribers into their Game Pass numbers. With those moves by Microsoft and Sony, you’d expect revenue to be up – it being flat, means engagement is down.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – the “Netflix of gaming” concept just isn’t the winner it once seemed to be. The Netflix concept works with quicker, more disposable entertainment like TV and movies, but when it comes to a video game a player may sink hundreds of hours into, they want ownership and guaranteed access to it. With more people playing a smaller number of live-service titles longer, Game Pass and other similar subscriptions are at odds with where the industry is going.
Anybody out there subscribers to Game Pass or the higher tiers of PS Plus? How have you been feeling about the services in recent months?
