Xbox Game Pass imposes strict monthly hour limits on cloud gaming

Xbox is making a change to Game Pass that probably won't have very many defenders online.

Microsoft's gaming division announced in a blog post this week that the cloud gaming service that has been included with Game Pass subscriptions for years is getting fairly harsh hourly limits per month, starting in November. You'll be restrained to different amounts of time depending on which tier of Game Pass you subscribe to:

• Game Pass Essential: 5 hours per month

• Game Pass Premium: 10 hours per month

• Game Pass Ultimate: 15 hours per month

People who don't subscribe to Game Pass will also be able to buy hours from the Xbox store, but the larger point here is that nobody will be able to stream Xbox games without limits anymore. Xbox's blog post says this change will "only" affect four percent of Game Pass subscribers, but that could still hinder a lot of people from playing whatever they feel like playing in November and beyond.

Speaking of which, Grand Theft Auto VI comes out in November. While it wouldn't be eligible for Game Pass streaming at launch, there's always a possibility it could be added to the service months (or years) down the line. If/when that happens, you won't be able to stream it for more than 15 hours per month. That's not great.

This is only the latest in a string of not-entirely-positive headlines about Xbox in the past year or two. Between a big leadership change that saw AI executive Asha Sharma take over the brand, console price hikes, and Xbox's inclusion on the BDS boycott list by association with Microsoft's partnership with the Israeli military, the mood around Xbox in online gaming circles has been pretty rotten lately.

For some reason, I don't think imposing hourly limits on game streaming right as the biggest game of the decade launches is going to help matters.