Let's talk about subscription gaming

[Grim5]

I play mostly single player story driven games and I'm a Publisher's worst nightmare. I will pay a $5 subscription fee, play 1 game for a couple days and cancel. They just gave me a $60usd game for $5usd, thanks!

This is how I've managed to play a whole handful of recent AAA games in the last two months, including Gears 5 from the Windows store and to date I've only paid Microsoft $3.

Personally I'd love it if every publisher let me play their games for peanuts - I'd be saving hundreds of dollars each year from not having to buy games.

 

[TNA]

Buying all the way. Not into subs, not saying I won’t ever do it as £4 a month is not bad. I could do that maybe if suddenly I had more time on my hands to play games I would usually not buy but would not mind trying out.

These days I either get games I really want in which case I am happy to support the developers and would 100% want to own and have more control over or get something on deep sale that is under a fiver and even then get a refund if I don’t like it.

I play mostly single player story driven games and I'm a Publisher's worst nightmare. I will pay a $5 subscription fee, play 1 game for a couple days and cancel. They just gave me a $60usd game for $5usd, thanks!

This is how I've managed to play a whole handful of recent AAA games in the last two months, including Gears 5 from the Windows store and to date I've only paid Microsoft $3.

Personally I'd love it if every publisher let me play their games for peanuts - I'd be saving hundreds of dollars each year from not having to buy games.

Same here I mostly play single player story driven games. Gears 5 is an example of a game I would not buy but as you say for a small amount if I had the time I would not mind trying through a sub on the cheap.

 

[adidan]

No, I don't want no sub.
A sub is a buy that can't get no love from me.

Yeah, I generally play the bejebus out of one game at a time. I'll buy DLC and the like but a sub, nah. I'd feel like to get my money's worth i'd have to constantly be playing and life doesn't allow that.

 

[Grim5]

No, I don't want no sub.
A sub is a buy that can't get no love from me.

Yeah, I generally play the bejebus out of one game at a time. I'll buy DLC and the like but a sub, nah. I'd feel like to get my money's worth i'd have to constantly be playing and life doesn't allow that.

People who play lots of different games get the most benefit like me. People who just play one game at a time for long periods are better buying the game.

I mean look at this list lol, I intend to play and finish these games by the end of the year.

If every publisher was doing a subscription - I could play all of these for like $100. But I have to buy most of them so it's costing way way more.

Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Ion Fury
Man of Medan
Greedfall
Borderlands 3
Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch
The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening
Trine 4
Medievil Remake
Call of Duty Modern Warfare
The Outer Worlds
Death Stranding
Star War Jedi Fallen Order
Pokemon Sword
Doom Eternal
Mario and Sonic Olympics
Digimon Survive
Luigi’s Mansion 3
Dreams
Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair
Spongebob: Battle for Bikini Bottome Rehydrated

 

[robfosters]

EA Premier is a no brainer for me. I love fifa ultimate team and buy the ultimate edition each year. On PC, it’s £80. An entire year of EA Premier, which includes the ultimate edition, is £90. So for another tenner I get early access to new games and pretty much every other EA game out there, like Madden 20, all the battlefields, battlefront etc. I believe the deluxe edition of the new Star Wars game is going to be on it too. I’m my position, you’d have to be royally stupid to do it any other way.

Game pass is £48 a year! That’s insane for the level of content you get. Only one I think is a bit overpriced is Ubi’s.

 

[adidan]

People who play lots of different games get the most benefit like me. People who just play one game at a time for long periods are better buying the game.

*snippety snip*

Oh I agree, for someone like you subs sound like they are probably a good idea if priced right.

Personally, I just wouldn't be able to find the time let alone have the need.

 

[TNA]

Personally, I just wouldn't be able to find the time let alone have the need.

+1

 

[paulmapp8306]

Depends how many games you buy.

I buy maybe 3 or 4 a year, and never at release, so even being generous I'll spend 120 a year, or 10 a month. There almost always from different stables as well, so unless I can get a sub for approx 5 per platform at most, doesnt work for me.

For others it will make perfect sense.

 

[Dirk Diggler]

I'm considering a subscription service, mainly because probably 2/10 games I buy I actually finish. More often than not, I feel like I've wasted my money. Example: Code Vein, £40 and enjoyable for 8hrs - then the Cathedral level and I know I won't touch it again. If this were part of a subscription then the 8hrs would be just another 8hrs of entertainment, uninstall and move on.

What's the best subscription service on offer right now?

 

[MonkeyBasher]

I'm considering a subscription service, mainly because probably 2/10 games I buy I actually finish. More often than not, I feel like I've wasted my money. Example: Code Vein, £40 and enjoyable for 8hrs - then the Cathedral level and I know I won't touch it again. If this were part of a subscription then the 8hrs would be just another 8hrs of entertainment, uninstall and move on.

What's the best subscription service on offer right now?

The MS game pass is £1 a month at the moment and normally £3.99.
I don't think you are going to find better value for money for that. Its content changes quite often and also includes some new releases (outer worlds from day 1) for example.

If you like sport games then have a look at EAs offering.

if you like there back catalogue games (ME and DA for example) then also have a look at EAs origin.

 

[Tombstone]

I'm considering a subscription service, mainly because probably 2/10 games I buy I actually finish. More often than not, I feel like I've wasted my money. Example: Code Vein, £40 and enjoyable for 8hrs - then the Cathedral level and I know I won't touch it again. If this were part of a subscription then the 8hrs would be just another 8hrs of entertainment, uninstall and move on.

What's the best subscription service on offer right now?

The MS Gamepass has got to be up there as one of the best value for money at the moment, EA/Origin is also good value. Although some Ubisoft titles are very very good I actually think their sub is somewhat overpriced in comparison to other subs.

 

[Dirk Diggler]

I just remembered I got a code for MS Pass with my 3700x - just loaded and first payment of £3.99 is due in March! Can't argue with that, I'll give it a bash.

 

[Dirk Diggler]

I gave it a bash, and have mixed feelings. I enjoyed Gears 5 and would not have regretted paying around £30 for that. I tried Vampyr, Wasteland 2 & Rage 2 and these are all games that were on my Steam wishlist awaiting a sale. I didn't enjoy any of them, and it felt like no loss at all to try them out.

Unfortunately, I got a few hard freezes during my time with Gears 5. I've also had 2 BSODs while just surfing the Xbox app. Add to that, that the games get installed into a folder that I am denied access to and it's no way, not for me. Xbox for PC is utter trash and has been uninstalled.

I've been impressed with the subscription model, so will probably give Origin a try.

 

[Wegason]

I think it all depends on whether you are a monogamous gamer or a polygamous gamer (as I call it). I am a monogamous gamer, I get into a game and play it for ages, it was Team Fortress 2, Left 4 Dead, and Overwatch. I enjoy multiplayer and although I buy some single player games on sales I don't always play them and go back to Overwatch. I think Planet Coaster and Two Point Hospital are two non multiplayer games I sunk 40 or so hours into.

Given I don't have a lot of time to game and I enjoy getting good at one ge at a time generally, subscriptions don't make sense for me.

My best mate on the other hand is a polygamous gamer, he gets all the latest games. I remember a couple of years back he had bought Battlefield 1, Ghost Recon Wildlands, Titanfall 2 and other newly released games as they came out and he often goes from game to game. He would benefit from subscriptions as he would save money!

 

[Grim5]

I gave it a bash, and have mixed feelings. I enjoyed Gears 5 and would not have regretted paying around £30 for that. I tried Vampyr, Wasteland 2 & Rage 2 and these are all games that were on my Steam wishlist awaiting a sale. I didn't enjoy any of them, and it felt like no loss at all to try them out.

Unfortunately, I got a few hard freezes during my time with Gears 5. I've also had 2 BSODs while just surfing the Xbox app. Add to that, that the games get installed into a folder that I am denied access to and it's no way, not for me. Xbox for PC is utter trash and has been uninstalled.

I've been impressed with the subscription model, so will probably give Origin a try.

you mean game pass? You DO have access to the folder where the game files are installed. You just have to know where to look

 

[Thesman106]

There is just too many damn passes

 

[Dirk Diggler]

I've decided to give Xbox Game Pass another try as I received this wee message box today, which appears to explain the BSOD's.

 

[Darujhistan]

There is just too many damn passes

Correct, just like TV. Chop content up into as many little peices as possible and then keep reselling it to you over and over agan every month. They can get stuffed.

Any games with replay value like all my Paradox and TW titles and their assorted mods are all duplicated and stored away, so I'll never need to play online, download games, or try and find old mods from 10 years ago.

 

[strumpusplunket]

I just got the free Origin Basic Access activation thing, so now I have two subscritpions ongoing - Game Pass and Origin Basic.

I can't take it! I now have a kind of panicked compulsion to play as many games as possible whilst I have the subscriptions and then cancel them. But now there are too many!

I could just about manage to tick off the ones I still have an interest in on Game Pass before I'm charged for another month, but now I have to cram the Origin games into that month as well.

This is basically free stuff. It shouldn't be making me feel this way!

I may just be psychologically unsuited to subscription services...

 

[Dirk Diggler]

I just got the free Origin Basic Access activation thing, so now I have two subscritpions ongoing - Game Pass and Origin Basic.

I can't take it! I now have a kind of panicked compulsion to play as many games as possible whilst I have the subscriptions and then cancel them. But now there are too many!

I could just about manage to tick off the ones I still have an interest in on Game Pass before I'm charged for another month, but now I have to cram the Origin games into that month as well.

This is basically free stuff. It shouldn't be making me feel this way!

I may just be psychologically unsuited to subscription services...

Exhaust one service and then cancel, move on to the other.