Xbox Game Pass does reduce traditional game sales admits Microsoft

metro.co.uk:

with everyone, but now Microsoft has been forced to tell the truth about how Game Pass affects individual game sales.The recent on the proposed acquisition has revealed another awkward fact: that by putting a game on Game Pass its sales as an individual title take a noticeable hit for at least 12 months.You may not think that surprising, indeed it seems entirely logical, but previously Xbox boss Phil Spencer has insisted that that isn’t the case.Back in 2018, Spencer said that a game being on Game Pass (he was using Forza Horizon 4 as his example) led to ‘more sales of the game’, as he claimed that, ‘Gamers find things to play based on what everybody else is playing.’It now seems that may have been a verbal inexactitude, especially as the CMA report, via, also mentions Activision complaining that putting games onto subscription services, ‘severely cannibalises B2P [buy to play] sales, particularly in the case of newer releases.’Metroid Prime Remastered review – the perfect first person MetroidvaniaHogwarts Legacy goblin artefact leads to more accusations of antisemitismNew mobile game turns retro Sega games into sexy anime girlsIn other words, no matter what Microsoft has previously pretended, putting your game on Game Pass, or an equivalent service, results in less traditional sales.That’s not necessarily a problem for a third party publisher, if they’re being appropriately compensated by Microsoft or whoever, but it is exactly the reason why Sony has said it from day one.It’s unclear whether Microsoft’s economy with the truth will affect deliberations from other monopoly investigations around the world, but it’s certainly not going to help their case, as the question of whether they’re allowed to acquire Activision