Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 now available on Xbox Game Pass; Microsoft planning to expand Game Pass tiers

tech.hindustantimes.com:

Microsoft announced on Tuesday that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is now available for download on Xbox Game Pass. This first-person shooter game can be accessed via Game Pass for Console, PC Game Pass, and Game Pass Ultimate, starting today, July 24. This announcement follows recent reports predicting Modern Warfare 3's arrival on the subscription service this month.

Modern Warfare 3, originally released in November last year, becomes the first Call of Duty title to join Xbox Game Pass. Gamers can now experience the latest Call of Duty instalment ahead of the franchise's next release, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, which will be accessible on Game Pass from starting on October 25.

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This announcement comes just days after Microsoft revealed plans to raise the pricing for Xbox Game Pass. Additionally, a new 'Standard' tier of the subscription service will be introduced, which will not include new games on the day of their launch. The price hike coincides with the addition of popular Call of Duty games to the service, marking a significant expansion of Game Pass's library.

The inclusion of Modern Warfare 3 represents a broader strategy by Microsoft to integrate games from Activision-Blizzard's portfolio into Game Pass. Microsoft acquired the Call of Duty maker in a monumental $69 billion deal in 2023. Earlier this year, the game subscription service added another major title, Diablo IV, in March.

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The forthcoming addition of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 to Xbox Game Pass underscores a new era for the Call of Duty series on Xbox platforms. No previous Call of Duty title has been included in the Game Pass library until now. This change follows Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard, the publisher behind the popular franchise.

Modern Warfare 3, which was released in November 2023,